gfo, what to expect

[Marchillo]

pretty much 1 month ago I had an unfortunate incident of an automatic feeder dropping a couple months of pellets into the tank at once.

I got out what I could, but I soon got a Cyano problem. I went lights out for 3 days recently which helped a ton. But now I am getting green hair algae in a bunch of spots (including the sand), which I've never had.

I set up my BRS reactor today with gfo, the higher density stuff or whatever it's called. I'm not expecting quick miracles, but not sure what to expect. Will the gfo help the GHA? Should I do another lights out soon? I absolutely hate manual removal. I try to prevent it from happening in the first place, which until this mishap I had done pretty well.

Thanks in advance for the insight.

 

[davocean]

Other than that I'd say make sure you used proper dosage, going over can result in an alk drop.
Keep on WC's and aggressive skimming, possibly a lights out period again if issues continue.

 

[Marchillo]

I did the proper dosage. 80g with sump and I did 10 tablespoons - 8 x 10 = 80g.

Skimmer is going and continue to do 10-15% wc's - once per week. Sounds like I'm on track.

 

[shifty51008]

Have you checked your phosphate levels? If p04 is high the gfo will be used up within 24 hours and need to be changed, but unless your testing with a good test kit you dont know when to change the gfo

 

[SPS911]

Gfo can strip the water pretty quick. I always start with half of the suggested dose at first and then go from there. Test often

 

[Marchillo]

Well I'm behind the ball on this one. I have a Hanna checker that I couldn't really figure out and didn't trust it. So I'm 18 hours in using the normal dosage. I'll pick up a kit but I missed the starting point.

Thanks for the tips. I haven't tried that Hanna tester in a while. Maybe I'll give it a whirl this morning.

 

[Drewl117]

Check on you tube for how to use the Hanna checker. It made it a lot easier for me until I got the hang of it. I love the Hanna checkers!

 

[Fish Keeper82]

Check on you tube for how to use the Hanna checker. It made it a lot easier for me until I got the hang of it. I love the Hanna checkers!

+1
I absolutely love my Hanna Checker. IME It is better used in your situation where you are attempting to get Phosphate under control knowing it is high. After Phosphate levels are in check the glass algae will be more helpful in letting you know when its time to change out GFO.

Attached is a chart of my levels using the Hanna Checker. I was getting my system under control since my rocks were leaching phosphate during initial tank setup, and the Hanna Checker was a great help during that process.

 

[Reef Frog]

GFO does a good job of preventing new algae growth if changed out when needed. Some established algae can persist for quite a while however, even in the low PO4 environment.

That's why physical removal or other treatment like peroxide are helpful - they speed things up.

 

[Sk8r]

Change the medium monthly until you see the problem notably diminished. After that, changes are not necessary.