Hair Algae Onslaught

[snarkes]

Ok... suggestions please.

I've got a 55 gallon tank with a 15 gallon fuge and a 10 gallon sump.

My Parameters:

Amonia, Nitrites and Nitrates: 0
pH: 8.2
Temp: 78-80
Salinity: 1.025
Calcium: 400
Phosphates 0... but I know i've got some.

I have Cheato growing in the sump that I give Iron every few days. I have a CSS 220 skimmer, and do a 20% water change once a week. Also I'm running enough Rowaphos for a system twice its size. Flow is provided via three maxi-jet 1200s and the Rio 2500+.

There are six fish in the tank, all doing great. I feed once a day changing it up between spectrum pellets, mysid shrimp, and emerald feast (just enough that the fish eat it quickly).

My cleanup crew currently consists of approximately 25 astrea and trochus snails, 5 super tongan nass snails, and 20 or so red and blue legged hermits.

Not exactly sure where the issue came from. Everything was going well for a long time. The system has been up for a little over a year and the hair algae issue really became a problem a month or two ago.

 

[alexb518]

did you upgrade your lights to MH? or, how old are your lights? when the bulbs get old, they fall out of spectrum and may lead to this problem. another thing that i could point out is that you feed to often. everyday is excessive. skip 2-3 days a week. but, it's likely a lighting issue since everything else seems fine.

 

[BurntOutReefer]

whats your water source for change's etc..?

 

[snarkes]

Hmmm... well my lighting is 175k MH's. The bulbs are only about 4.5 months old. May be worthwhile to note that splashing water sometimes hits the bulbs... which I end up cleaning once a week. But I had wondered if maybe the ballast has gone downhill? I've got a big metal box with two magnetic ballasts inside that my dad used before he upgraded to 250s. I do wonder though, because the hair algae wasnt an issue before the upgrade... and has steadily become one ever since. How can you tell if a ballast is going bad? the lamps themselves are reeflux 14k.

Feeding. I see how some feed a couple of times a day. Didnt realize that once a day was too much.

My water comes from my RODI unit (optima chloramine advanced from purelyH20).

 

[BurntOutReefer]

how long is your photoperiod?...so the algae started once you went to MH's.....

 

[snarkes]

My lights come on at 3pm and go off at 12am, and I do believe that the issue has really come on since I put the MH's in. I know that lights changing can creat issues with the spectrum change, but the amount of hair algae is really ridiculous. Doesnt seem like any of my changes have done anything about it either.

Either way... I bought both lamps brand new in December, so they shouldnt be done yet.

 

[snarkes]

Anyone have anymore thoughts?

 

[wizzbane15]

a small thought. If you do not have glass covering your MH bulbs, you may be getting excess UV rays going into your tank. This could trigger a hair algae bloom sing algae is one of the few organisms that like extra UV light. Most glass you find these days does a decent job at filtering out a substantial amount of the UV produced by MH bulbs.

 

[kurtg]

Do you have a phosphate reactor? My algae goes out of control whenever my reactor media gets a little old.

 

[snarkes]

I honestly had never thought about putting glass over the lights... hmm... couldnt do it right now though cuz it would overheat the tank.

I wish I had a phosban reactor. I just dont have the room under my tank to put one. I do have the Rowaphos just under the outlet from the tank, so it should be reacting with the water?

Just strange that I would go a year without an issue and then I cant make it go away.