How do i get rid of green hair algae?

**wwest** · 07-01-2006, 07:42 PM

does anyone have any ideas about how to get rid of hair algae? i clean my tank today and was picking out by my hands. is there another way?

pham411 · 07-01-2006, 08:15 PM

hair algae could come from a number of different things. to get rid of it you must get rid of the source. usually something thats producing high phosphate levels. most common source is from people using tap water, than over feeding, yada yada so on.

what is your set up like.

**wwest** · 07-01-2006, 08:21 PM

its a 40 gallon bow front, all my levels are good
sal 1.025
iodine .02
ph 8.4
nitrites 0
nitrates 0
anm 0
kh 115
cal 450

the only water i have used in the tank is r/o water i also have a filter and a skimmer. i could be over feeding i have three small fish and two anemone's i feel them about a half of a cube every day.. power compact lighting soft and hard corals.

pham411 · 07-01-2006, 08:27 PM

how long has your setup been up? and do you test for phosphates.

if its still quite new you might be over feeding, if its over 10 months, then it might be because of your bulbs. old pc bulbs can promote HA. i remember reading somewhere that old lights shift in spectrum and can promote HA

pham411 · 07-01-2006, 08:27 PM

u said you have a filter, what type is it also please.

**wwest** · 07-01-2006, 08:33 PM

the tank has been setup for about 2 or 3 months now. and my filter is a milinium 2000

wildeone · 07-01-2006, 09:46 PM

Just to dump in my 2 cents, it look like (from you other posted photos) that you are using live rock. If that is the case, then maybe you should get rid of the filter as it is typically a nitrate farm that you don't want. The rock will do all of the filtering.

As for the HA, I would get 5 or more trochus snails. Mine ate every bit of my HA in about 2 weeks. You may need to scrub your rock first as they like it when it is small.

pham411 · 07-01-2006, 09:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wildeone

Just to dump in my 2 cents, it look like (from you other posted photos) that you are using live rock. If that is the case, then maybe you should get rid of the filter as it is typically a nitrate farm that you don't want. The rock will do all of the filtering.

As for the HA, I would get 5 or more trochus snails. Mine ate every bit of my HA in about 2 weeks. You may need to scrub your rock first as they like it when it is small.

yups, wild1z got a point. maybe the hair algae is sucking up your nitrates thats y your reading is 0. again do you test for phosphates?

**wwest** · 07-01-2006, 09:53 PM

cool yea i have mainly reef rock but my reef rock is cured and i beleave i have three true peaces of live rock
i was wondering about my filter.. not alot of salt tank use filters do they?

wildeone · 07-01-2006, 10:34 PM

No, it doesn't matter if the rock is cured or not, it will still act as the filter. The curing only has to do with the fact that uncured rock put into a tank will cause an ammonia spike and a cycle to happen. This shouyld have already taken place in your tank if you have 0 ammonia, nitrites and nitrates.
Mechanical filters on a SW tank are not that common.

veriann · 07-02-2006, 07:40 AM

i'll work in reverse with the questions!
u can use the external filter to pollish your water with carbon or phozban ect when u think it needs it, or fill it with coral rubble if dont wish to remove it from the setup! if u do use it with coral rubble keep it away from any bubbles in the sump. towards the pickup heading back to the main tank is best cause in this zone u should have already rid the section of bubbles!

are u useing a hydometer or refractor for messureing your S/Gravity?
your levels look good, your CA reading is holding steady yes?

yes PO4 test has to be on the cards at some point! its a way to assess excess nutrients buld-ups in the tank>fueling the HA in most cases.

also pay attention to temp. this is important as well. Delbeek& Sprung list ideal range as 70 to 80

another thing to pay attention to is your PH & ALK.(pH 8.4-8.6 and alkalinity 10-12 dKh) to favor coralline and inhibit the nuisance algae.

u can tackle the problem on a few fronts. take one rock at a time in a bucket with drained tank water and scrub it out of existance. try 1 rock a day or at a time to limit spooking the fish!
never scrub it in the tank> it will spead like crazy if u do this!

look at the nutrients your adding to the tank & limit it! eg: food/salt mixes/water sources ect ect. your not stupid, im sure u can track it down. if its over feeding slow it for awhile till your live rock reaches peak populations of bacteria to process all the wastes. or at the very least till the algae problem is under wraps!
i'd proberly gross feed the anems every second day for awhile

this is also where the external filter u have can come in handy, by adding phos removing media. the inital removal will starve the tank temporaryly of PO4. but untill its gone u have to keep on top of it!

i would stick to the snails to see how that goes. there are other algae eaters, but a seahare or fish to tackle the job is still going to increase the bio-load on the tank, where as some trochus or turbo snail are not! alot less anyways

hope this helped

m8298 · 07-03-2006, 09:36 PM

What worked for me was a combination of bringing up my Alk and Calcium as Veriann mentioned, along with the addition of one Sea Hare. If you get a Sea Hare, I'd recomend supplimental feedings of Caulerpa and Romaine.