Algae Scrubber Basics

[Apotack]

I mentioned my reasons two posts above.
I have two tanks that I like to keep isolated from each other. From any type of cross-contamination.
One tank with Scurbber had some spots of Cyano, GHA, the other tank has been Cyano free for two years. Thus when moving a ATS from one tank to another, I want it contaminant free from Cyano, GHA, etc
I just moved it after Turbo's recommendation. That bit of bleach really worked. Looks like new (I also soaked it in vinegar before bleach to remove the coralline/calcification).
Always rinsed well since Bleach and Acids (Vinegar) or Ammonia's should never be mixed!! Toxic poisonous gases are created.

Um, make another scrubber.

 

[Floyd R Turbo]

Going to try running my scrubber LEDs 24/7. I had it up to 18hours on.

Should I bump it straight to 24 hours or stage it to 20- 22 hours for a couple weeks first?

Production has been awesome so far.

There's no harm in easing into it. If you have a sufficient bioload (lots of fish, lots of feeding) then generally speaking, it's hard to over-drive a scrubber, at least quickly. It might happen over time but IME it's usually a system that is moderately stocked and fed where running a scrubber full bore can lead to "hitting the wall" quickly.

Um, make another scrubber.

Kinda late, but I don't necessarily disagree!!

 

[SantaMonica]

is it possible for a ATS to outcompete bryopsis and bubble algae

Yes, a scrubber can out-compete any nuisance algae, if strong enough and if run enough months. Bryopsis is hard because it has roots which get nutrients from inside the rock, so it can last long after nutrients in the water are low. And Bubble stores nutrients inside the bubble, so it can last longer too. So you have to keep nutrients low for a long time.

Going to try running my scrubber LEDs 24/7. I had it up to 18hours on.
Should I bump it straight to 24 hours

Can go right away to 24.

 

[iced98lx]

Here is what happens when you don't clean your scrubber soon enough and it grows algae up the sides of hte enclosure killing the screen:

Side A


Side B


Detachment:


Clean:

 

[Floyd R Turbo]

What does it look like after you rinse it off? How long did you let it grow?

I let mine go for ~16 days and while the growth comes off easily, there is still plenty left to re-grow from. But, I don't have that gooey/slime layer that I can see in yours, that gelatinous stuff blocks light...so in your case, yeah you would want to at least take the screen out and swipe your hand across it to remove that slime/goo and pass it under the faucet, then if the mat was all GHA after that, you could actually put it back in use.

 

[sensei]

Yes, a scrubber can out-compete any nuisance algae, if strong enough and if run enough months. Bryopsis is hard because it has roots which get nutrients from inside the rock, so it can last long after nutrients in the water are low. And Bubble stores nutrients inside the bubble, so it can last longer too. So you have to keep nutrients low for a long time.

Santa Monica,
How low do you need to keep nutrients for these to go away?
I ask becuase even with the scrubber you have detectable levels of N and P, so these 2 kinds of algae may never go away even with a strong scrubber??

Thanks again

 

[iced98lx]

What does it look like after you rinse it off? How long did you let it grow?

I let mine go for ~16 days and while the growth comes off easily, there is still plenty left to re-grow from. But, I don't have that gooey/slime layer that I can see in yours, that gelatinous stuff blocks light...so in your case, yeah you would want to at least take the screen out and swipe your hand across it to remove that slime/goo and pass it under the faucet, then if the mat was all GHA after that, you could actually put it back in use.

The "clean" picture is rinsed. I shouldn't have said "kill" it just was so blocked by algae growing up the acrylic in the growth chamber it started yellowing out and melting

This was roughly 30 days.

I have no doubt it will spring right back.

Sent from my XT1575 using Tapatalk

 

[SantaMonica]

Here is what happens when you don't clean your scrubber

This is where upflows really help out, since they don't die when you let them go to long. I've not cleaned an upflow for months, and it just gets to a certain thickness and stays there.

How low do you need to keep nutrients for these to go away? I ask becuase even with the scrubber you have detectable levels of N and P, so these 2 kinds of algae may never go away even with a strong scrubber??

You need to keep it low enough to get rid of them long term. There is no number, but you'll see the effects over months.

 

[iced98lx]

This is where upflows really help out, since they don't die when you let them go to long. I've not cleaned an upflow for months, and it just gets to a certain thickness and stays there.

Could be true, my UAS never grew any algae so I never got to harvest it or not harvest it.

 

[Floyd R Turbo]

This was roughly 30 days.

Ah. Yes, that's a bit too long. I go 14, maybe 16 days. Never have gone over 18.

 

[sensei]

can you please define what you mean by "low enough"?
What numbers of P and N are low?
Thanks

 

[SantaMonica]

There is no number. It's relative to how much is in the rock. As the amount in the rock decreases, the amount in the water will need to be lower and lower to keep pulling it out.

 

[iced98lx]

Ah. Yes, that's a bit too long. I go 14, maybe 16 days. Never have gone over 18.

Not intentional, but when I had to travel with short notice I was just glad to see all the fish made it after several weeks with the wife at the helm!

 

[jason2459]

Thanks guys.

24/7 it is

 

[sensei]

There is no number. It's relative to how much is in the rock. As the amount in the rock decreases, the amount in the water will need to be lower and lower to keep pulling it out.

Thanks for the explanation Santa Monica,

I still have one more question:
lets suppose the system is a mature where equilibrium is reached, there will not be much P or N in rocks but there is a heavy load of fish so even if the ATS is pulling nutrients out, fish load and feeding will put nutrients in.
in these scenario there are measurable levels of N and P in water column.
in this case is it possible to erradicate bryopsis and bubble algae with a algae scrubber??
or odds are that there will always be some these algae in display tank even with potent scrubber??

Thanks again

 

[FullBoreReefer]

I will chime in. My ATS has been rocking for nine months. I harvest a good amount biweekly, but I still produce gha in my display. Mine is larger than needed, and I think I feed fairly on the light side to be honest. My tank is 6yrs old. I don't have large amounts in the display(see my specs in my sig) but enough that I ended up getting a long spine urchin to clean up the random spots that slowly BUT constantly continue to grow. I don't really mind, it's natural, and provides food for a tank mate I had never previously owned.

 

[SantaMonica]

Yes if the scrubber is routing enough nutrients out of the water fast enough, then the static level will be low enough to keep bryopsis and bubble away.

 

[wildman926]

Yes if the scrubber is routing enough nutrients out of the water fast enough, then the static level will be low enough to keep bryopsis and bubble away.

X2. To help keep the nutrients down, I sometimes skip feedings to every other day.

 

[iced98lx]

Flipped mine to on 24/7 for a 7-10 day test run.

 

[jason2459]

Flipped mine to on 24/7 for a 7-10 day test run.

Measuring contest at the end?