Algae Scrubber Basics

[hkgar]

HI all

Sorry to do this and not search, but I have had to replace ny ATS screen. After many years of surface it just began falling apart.

The screen is 9x9.5 inches and flow about 330 gph. The lights are deep red LEDs 21 each side and 3 watts each.

How many hours of light is recommended to get a new screen off to a good start. I am think 18 hrs?

 

[LeJeune981]

Fun growth pic.. some type of cheato formed on my screen.. looks like cheato.. but super thin...got about 5 lbs of it off the screen the other day!!!!

Sent from my SM-G930VL using Tapatalk

 

[SantaMonica]

looks like cheato.. but super thin

Cladophora ("angel hair")

How many hours of light is recommended to get a new screen off

More important is the strength. If you have highly-reflective white surfaces, you want very reduced strength until the screen fills in.

 

[Fishbulb2]

Hi everyone,

I need a little help getting my scrubber going. It's a SM Drop 1.4x. I got it last Christmas, but it's just never taken off. It get's a thin film of a slimy jelly-like algae, but never anything that looks green. Right now the light is on from 6am to 9pm. It is on a 75g tank that I feed with 1 -2 cubes a day of frozen food. The tank has a very heavy bubble algae infestation and some hair algae. Not sure why this tank has given me so much trouble.

I used a pretty weak air pump when I set up the scrubber because noise is a big concern (with the wife). I'm looking to try the Fusion 700 pump but I'm wondering if people think it will solve my problem or if they can recommend a quieter pump. Thank guys.

FB

 

[SantaMonica]

With all the nuisance algae, the nutrients in the water will be low. So you'll need the low power (2 LEDs) to start, and, with the black shade screen in place.

Once the white surfaces are covered with brown or green, then the reflection of the light will be less, and you can remove the black screen. Then after growth gets thicker, you can plug in the high power.

 

[Floyd R Turbo]

HI all

Sorry to do this and not search, but I have had to replace ny ATS screen. After many years of surface it just began falling apart.

The screen is 9x9.5 inches and flow about 330 gph. The lights are deep red LEDs 21 each side and 3 watts each.

How many hours of light is recommended to get a new screen off to a good start. I am think 18 hrs?

With that many LEDs and a fresh screen, I would recommend that you start off with half-power for 9 hrs/day. I'm assuming that you have your LEDs about 2" or so from the screen, but with 21 per side, that's a pretty decent sized array. If you don't have the ability to dim them, use a diffuser. If you don't have that ability, then I would cycle them on/off throughout the day; something like 1 hr on, 1 hr off, for a sum total of 9 hrs/day photoperiod.

As you start to get growth kicking in, you can add hours. The rate at which you do so is largely dependent on how much growth you get and how well it attaches. For your first few harvests, keep it minimal. You won't be scraping the screen for months, just rub/rinse and maybe pick away at growth to thin it out, but you want to leave a lot behind each time.

If you get slime, which is typical for a new screen over the first few weeks, just rinse that off after swiping with the palm of your hand. You can do this several times a week if needed, the slime tends to inhibit GHA attachment early on so that's good to keep an eye on.

Also you might consider adding a mortar coating like this

https://youtu.be/gxlWkBf_oUA

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/gxlWkBf_oUA" frameborder="0" allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen></iframe>

 

[hkgar]

With that many LEDs and a fresh screen, I would recommend that you start off with half-power for 9 hrs/day. I'm assuming that you have your LEDs about 2" or so from the screen, but with 21 per side, that's a pretty decent sized array. If you don't have the ability to dim them, use a diffuser. If you don't have that ability, then I would cycle them on/off throughout the day; something like 1 hr on, 1 hr off, for a sum total of 9 hrs/day photoperiod.

As you start to get growth kicking in, you can add hours. The rate at which you do so is largely dependent on how much growth you get and how well it attaches. For your first few harvests, keep it minimal. You won't be scraping the screen for months, just rub/rinse and maybe pick away at growth to thin it out, but you want to leave a lot behind each time.

If you get slime, which is typical for a new screen over the first few weeks, just rinse that off after swiping with the palm of your hand. You can do this several times a week if needed, the slime tends to inhibit GHA attachment early on so that's good to keep an eye on.

Also you might consider adding a mortar coating like this

https://youtu.be/gxlWkBf_oUA

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/gxlWkBf_oUA" frameborder="0" allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Thank you

I am using 3 pairs 7 LED strips from Steves LED's and using a basic driver (1 for each pair of strips) and cannot control the intensity. What would you suggest as a diffuser? I have changed the cycle to 60 on and 100 off.
I will check Steve's for a controllable driver.

 

[Fishbulb2]

With all the nuisance algae, the nutrients in the water will be low. So you'll need the low power (2 LEDs) to start, and, with the black shade screen in place.

Once the white surfaces are covered with brown or green, then the reflection of the light will be less, and you can remove the black screen. Then after growth gets thicker, you can plug in the high power.

Thanks Santa Monica. I try that for sure. But so you don't think it's time to up the air pump quite yet?

FB

 

[MuscleFish]

It is good idea to use a wooden airstone (micro bubbles), or better to use a normal airstone with bigger bubbles?

Thanks

 

[homer1475]

I don't use an upflow scrubber but have read quite a bit about them. I would think larger bubbles would be better. Most designs for an up flow just punch holes in regular airline tubing to feed the scrubber.

 

[MuscleFish]

I don't use an upflow scrubber but have read quite a bit about them. I would think larger bubbles would be better. Most designs for an up flow just punch holes in regular airline tubing to feed the scrubber.

I did that and all air out from the first hole

 

[Scrubber_steve]

It is good idea to use a wooden airstone (micro bubbles), or better to use a normal airstone with bigger bubbles?

Thanks

You need larger bubbles to move water over the screen

 

[LeJeune981]

I did that and all air out from the first hole

Too big if holes..
I used a 1/32 drill bit for mine

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[LeJeune981]

Cladophora ("angel hair")




That stuff grows like wild!!!! You can almost watch it grow

Sent from my SM-G930VL using Tapatalk

 

[SantaMonica]

But so you don't think it's time to up the air pump quite yet?

If you mean up the LEDs... no, wait until there is more growth.

better to use a normal airstone with bigger bubbles?

Yes for scrubbers, bigger bubbles are better, because it create more air/water interface, which remove the boundary layer around the algae. also it creates larger openings for light to get in.

 

[Floyd R Turbo]

What would you suggest as a diffuser?

something like this

https://www.lowes.com/pd/OPTIX-Comm...3-44-sq-ft-Prism-Ceiling-Light-Panels/4777774

prismatic diffuser for ceiling light fixtures. Cut by scoring with a razor knife several times, you will eventually cut through it. It's brittle so it tends to shatter if you score & snap, so use eyewear

 

[hkgar]

something like this

https://www.lowes.com/pd/OPTIX-Comm...3-44-sq-ft-Prism-Ceiling-Light-Panels/4777774

prismatic diffuser for ceiling light fixtures. Cut by scoring with a razor knife several times, you will eventually cut through it. It's brittle so it tends to shatter if you score & snap, so use eyewear

Thanks

 

[Scrubber_steve]

I have always had excellent algae growth on my scrubber screens using just 660nm spectrum, for salt water. But recently I did some testing on a fresh water test tank & haven't had good growth at all. I used water from my outdoor pond & added pellet food to let rot, rather than putting fish in.
Has anyone used a scrubber on fresh water? what spectrum did you use?

 

[Scrubber_steve]

I have always had excellent algae growth on my scrubber screens using just 660nm spectrum, for salt water. But recently I did some testing on a fresh water test tank & haven't had good growth at all. I used water from my outdoor pond & added pellet food to let rot, rather than putting fish in.
Has anyone used a scrubber on fresh water? what spectrum did you use?

Doesn't Turbo or Santa bother this thread/forum nowdays?

 

[_Mackus_]

My ATS screen, which used to pick up a real good amount of green algae every week or two, has not been growing anything of significance for the past couple months. Just some light colored slime, no green growth.

I treated my tank with fluconazole, following the instructions as exactly as I could. I stopped running the ATS during the treatment, and didn't put the screen back in until after a week following the treatment and about a dozen or more small water changes (3-5%).

Is it possible that some of the medicine remained in the tank following my water changes and killed all the algae on the screen when I replaced it? If so, should I start a new screen? I've since added the ability to do larger water changes more frequently, so I've changed about 10-15% of my tank water a couple dozen times over the past 6 weeks or so.