Bad Bannerfish...what do I do?

[anndonnie]

I have one Bannerfish and she/he is eating my orange plate coral. She/he also steals food from the candalactus. Does she need a "buddy" or is she just being a bad fish??? Also, my tank is fairly new...55 gallons...I left a thread about Black Moss on my bubble. We are finding that we also have a lot of algae on our glass. My husband scraps it everyweek when he does the water change, but the algae is back in two days!!! Its brown and green. Even the ground stones have brown algae growing like crazy. We shut the drapes so no sunlight is hitting the tank. What is causing this problem and how do I stop it? We can't get behind the live rocks that are leaning up against the tank...should we try to in order to clean the glass? Gosh, so many questions in just one thread. Please help us.

 

[Gobie]

There is more then one spices of Heniochus two look the same.
Heniochus acuminatus is not reef safe.
Heniochus diphreutes is reef safe.

Heniochus diphreutes has a shorter anal fin, also the breast is more rounded and they have a smaller snout.

 

[anndonnie]

Really? Shucks...so, I must get rid of her? Anyone want to buy a fish?

 

[Gobie]

Algae my be from phosphates or other problems.
What are your water parameters?
How long has the tank been set up?
Do you have uncured live rock?
Has it cycled yet?
I ask because I see two weeks experience, this is not enough time to cycle a tank.

 

[AllenFord_SC]

Are you using tap water? Sound like a high phospahte problem. Buy a phosphate test kit, prefferably by Salifert, and check what it's at. You can lower phosphate in a number of ways. The most common is running chemical filtration media through a PhosBan Reactor.

Here is a link to one.
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/produ...&Ntx=mode+matchallpartial&Np=1&pc=1&N=0&Nty=1

and here is a link to the media:
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/produ...&Ntx=mode+matchallpartial&Np=1&pc=1&N=0&Nty=1

Like I said though, test your levels before buying this product and if you are using tap water you may want to look into an RO/DI unit.

 

[anndonnie]

The tank is three months old; cured live rock; well water; water changes regularly (20% weekly after first month) with water that has cured; water tests good; we have a Heimler (sp?) filter system (from Germany) where the bio balls stay right in the canister. Well, now what? Any further suggestions. The green "moss" is growing like wild fire on the rocks and the tank is glass looks yukky. We did drop the "oxygen" level by removing the air holes from the air pumps b/c we have air bubbles all over everything (looks like beads of lead).

 

[Fred_J]

You will need to slowly get rid of any bioballs for a reef tank. They allow nitrate to build up which is harmful to corals and invertebrates. The well water needs to be tested for total dissolved solids (TDS). Unless they are unusually low you will need to use RO/DI water (this will be the main cause of the algae. Remember algae is a phase most tanks go through, that's why people get clean up crews.In your case mostly some snails to clean the glass for you. What kind of Skimmer are you using? Are you testing the water parameters?
Fred

 

[anndonnie]

yes, my husband checks the water weekly. He indicates he has been trying to increase calcium and ph. The well water is stabilized a week ahead to "cure" sort of speak. What is a "clean up crew"? We put in a fire shrimp and he died the next day. We have blue leg crabs..lots of 'em. Snail sounds like a good idea. Our local fish store told us "we don't need them" and the same reply to our inquiry into "skimmers" for a new tank. Thanks for all your help. What should the TDL reading be? We have slight "hard water". Our book is not too informative in this area. Thanks. Ann (ps - Fred - I like the photo of you on a harley)

 

[AllenFord_SC]

Your TDS should be at 0 optimally. The only way I know of reaching this is with an RO/DI unit. If you don't want to spring for an exspensive system, you can find one cheap on eBay. This will probably cause me to get flamed because everyone says they are no good, but oh well. There is a nicer one, probably in the top 5 on the market, sold at www.airwaterice.com called the Typhoon III. $199.00 but worth lots more. After all, this is about the health of your livestock. IMO well water can't really be cured 100% because of so many trace elements.

 

[anndonnie]

Thanks so much for the advice. Much appreciated. I know where I will be this weekend...spending money and NOT shopping for new clothes or shoes!!! LOL I'll let you know how I made out. Ann

 

[Fred_J]

Before buying a skimmer try reading the sticky on skimmers in the all things salty forum. Anthony Calfo tells you which ones he likes on the first page. Please don't go to an LFS and ask them which one you need. After you decide what to buy things are a lot cheaper on the net. It is possible to buy water from walmart at about .50 per gallon. You can see this quickly adds up.
Thanks, That was on my clubs new years day run. It and reef keeping are the best relaxation possible.

Fred

 

[One Eyed Bunny]

Also, I don't know if this'll help much, but what kind of lighting are you using? Some bulbs when they're older than six months begin to change spectrum. This shift could cause a spawning of algae.

Have you changed your lighting recently?

This is just a suggestion, check it out, but don't go buying new bulbs unless you exhausted all of the cheaper methods of correcting the possible problem.

 

[anndonnie]

With regard to the lighting...we just "upped" our wattage and purchased a four foot high wattage light fixture suitable for coral...and for the life of me ... I think it is 96 watts (?????) maybe more. I'll have to ask hubby when I get home (I am at work - naughty me). We used some of our common sense and took out the bubbles the circulating bumps were dispensing...cut back the number of hours the new light was on to 9 hrs....cleaned the glass really good. Hubby says he is still working on the ph level to get to 8.3 (currenlty 8.1 or 8.2). We will check for phosphorous as suggested above. Thanks for the tip on the skimmers...actually our local fish store rep told us a skimmer would be cheaper on the net! Nice store huh?

Besides snails, should I purchase shrimp or something else? Should I trade in my Bannerfish (the bad kind) or the orange coral (it doesn't really do anything - but sit there like a rock and get chewed on! I was expecting it to "move" or something!

Well, got to get back to work before I am caught doing personal business at work!!!!!
Ann:lol:

 

[Fred_J]

Ann, Just try to get three or four Mexican turbo snails from your LFS. What they can do for your algae will amaze you. Then you can take a little time on picking out the rest of the clean up crew.
When you say you want a coral to move I assume you mean sway too and fro in the currant. The soft and LPS corals can do this for you. The best bet is something like pulsing Xena. It can be very hard to ship and take a long time drip acclimating it. You will end up with a skinny are with a hand looking thing on the end that is opening and closeting on its own. Some people have trouble growing this while others complain it is growing like a weed and can even cover the back glass.
The soft corals and anemones swaying in the alternating currant is very beautiful. Feel free to PM or email me if you would like,
Fred

 

[MBuck]

I recently purchased an ASm mini "G" skimmer, right about $100.00, works like a top! it is an in-sump skimmer, so it needs to be in your sump, don't know if they make a hang-on version or not! FYI!

Good Luck!