Hair algae?Disolved organics?

[Tomoko Schum]

I did?

Are you talking about a new Phosar product that has GAC mixed in it? It's not out yet, though.

There are a number of other mixes such as those with alumina based ones and GAC, and Dr. Foster and Smith's own GFO plus zeolite and carbon.

Tomoko

 

[buzzbait00]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9758536#post9758536 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by sasscuba
Do you have a phosphate reactor running?

I don't.I have the ferric hydroxide in a media bag sitting right ontop of the gard of a mag 12 return.Sould get alot of flow through it.

 

[sasscuba]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9762198#post9762198 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by buzzbait00
I don't.I have the ferric hydroxide in a media bag sitting right ontop of the gard of a mag 12 return.Sould get alot of flow through it.

I had a bad hair algae situation until I bought my phospahte reactor and made sure to use low to 0 TDS water. Now it is free of HA.

 

[DrHank]

Let me add another thought. I agree with Tomoko on on the GAC and the Ferric Oxide Hydroxide. Snails are fine (expect to loose turbos, they cant take the heat), so are hermit crabs. As 8ball states Foxface do mow down HA but also add to the bioload.

I fought a similar problem and it took 8 months to win. I was finally able to pull down (undetectable nitrates and phosphates) by setting up a 10 gallon plant tank. I used about a 4" deep sand bed, added C. Profilera, C. Floridans, Ulva, and Red Gracillia. Used an overflow from the sump (which also had Cheato in it) set to a very slow turnover rate. The sump is lighted on a 12 hour reverse cycle and the plant tank a 16 hour reverse cycle. Lighting is by 13w curlicue florescent in clamp on reflectors.

It took months but I finally won. I harvest Caulerpa every week, Ulva every month. The Cheato is decreasing due to competition with the plant tank. The Red Gracillia isn't supposed to be growing under the conditions I have it but it has quadrupled in as many months.

You may want to consider giving it a try.

 

[buzzbait00]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9754508#post9754508 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by buzzbait00
Thanks Tomoko,
I going to see what the phoslock does,Lower my skimmer cup,run carbon in a canister filter for a few days and get some more turbo's.See what happens!By the way its not all bad.Claudia thinks the green moss on the rocks is pretty!

Thanks Doc!
If the above doesent work Ill try it.I already have a unused bulk head on my sump and room for a 10 planted.

 

[sasscuba]

Run a $30 phosphate reactor......I have a 125 gallon without a sump and I don't grow any macro algae. Good TDS water and no phosphates and Hair alage cannot grow.

 

[Tomoko Schum]

Planted tanks/planted refugiums work a lot better if you don't run a lot of GFO in my experience. ( I have them in tanks with and without GFO.) A lot of macroalgae and phytoplankton are known to take up nitrate and phosphate at 10 to 1 ratio, some taking up phosphate at higher ratio to nitrate and some lower. When you limit phosphate down to near zero, macro cannot take up a lot of nitrate. When you drive the phosphate level to near zero, chaeto stop growing completely - may turn into mush. Caulerpa racemosa generally do better with GFO.

Tomoko

Tomoko

 

[DrHank]

Right again Tomoko. I pulled the GFO when I started my plant tank. Why pull the nutrients that the plants need to grow. Regarding the Chaeto, I found that mine is just being out competed by the plant tank. I'm going to probably move all that is left to the sump of my 29 gallon system over the weekend. No HA problem in that tank just bubble algae. The two emerald crabs that I added yesterday seem to be having a field day so far so I doubt that it will be a problem (if you call it that) much longer.

 

[Tomoko Schum]

I am glad that emerald crabs are working out for you.
C. racemosa is the only macroalgae that I can coax to grow in the fuge of my 120G (planted) refugium albeit very slowly.

Tom Barr had a very pretty SW planted tank a couple of years ago with a variety of plants he collected himself in Florida. Some of the macros were so pretty. Hope yours does well.

Tomoko

 

[DrHank]

Thanks. I know that the only reason that mine is doing as well as it is is because I've got it tucked behind my display, can only get at it from one end of the tank, and I'm not trying to make it look good. The tank is only for nutrient export. If I were trying to make a display out of it, it would probably crash. It's serving it's purpose though and for that I'm thankful.