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[gareth.hubbarde]

Hi there, my tank is 94l kent marine, I got no life in there yet as only been up and running for 2 weeks. Last few days since putting in 10kg of live rock I got green algae spread all over my rock, glass and rear. It makes the whole tank look green! Did a 10l water change today, hopefully it will help.

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[Dr. Reef]

its very normal for algea to show up during/after cycle as nitrates and phos levels increase. Algae needs few things to thrive.
1. strong/excessive light or longer light hours
2. nitrates (try to keep less than 10ppm, 0-3 is better)
3. phos (under 0.03)
4. control feeding amounts
please check your nitrate and phos levels and cut back on lights and feeding.

 

[gareth.hubbarde]

Not feeding anything as nothing in tank yet. Hoping to put goby and shrimp pair in soon.

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[mcgyvr]

Are you aware of how to properly cycle a tank?
You want to ensure thats done correctly before adding any livestock..
And then how to properly maintain a tank?

And as said the "ugly stages" are totally normal in a new tank..
brown diatoms/green algae/red cyano,etc... can and will all show up in the first month or so..

Hopefully you have test kits too so that you can maintain the tank/water properly..

Is that a leather coral in there too?

 

[Stolireef]

Not feeding anything as nothing in tank yet. Hoping to put goby and shrimp pair in soon.

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Nope. If I had to guess, you had some die off on your live rock. Was it cured or uncured?

Die off boosted your nitrates and other nutrients resulting in algae growth. Tank is not ready for livestock yet. Give it a few weeks, do water changes and, if possible, pull out the leather coral and shut off your lights.

Also, give us a full rundown on your equipement (lights, skimmer, sump, etc.) and test results for Ammo, nitrite, and nitrate.

 

[ReeferNoob4ever]

I agree...live rock funk

 

[WatDatThing]

Turn off the light if you have it on.

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[gareth.hubbarde]

It's only a small tank 94 litres, I can't take out the leather coral as well as a I have nowhere else to put it. I have t5 lights one is a 50/50 one. 35 watts. I have a nano Skimmer that came with the tank and a pump. Hope that helps.

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[gareth.hubbarde]

Will test water today and post results.

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[gareth.hubbarde]

Tested today and everything a bit high, ammonia however was sky high! I used the remaining 15litres I had of ro to do a water change, so that's 25% changed. Will leave it now a week and check again next weekend. Would you advise another small water change 10 litres next weekend, when is best time to do tests? Oh and for next few days an keeping lights limited to 8 hours a day. Would welcome feedback.

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[mcgyvr]

I'd suggest you just take the next 3-4 weeks learning all the basics... Just leave the tank alone and let it "Cycle"...
But it doesn't seem like you are aware of whats needed to properly maintain a tank..
Start here..
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1031074

 

[ReeferNoob4ever]

I agree with mcgyvr. Look into bio spira for the meantime. I did have a hitchiker leather make it through the cycle.

 

[gareth.hubbarde]

Bio spira?

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[gareth.hubbarde]

Should I do weekly water changes of 10%?

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[mcgyvr]

yes you can do water changes if you want to keep nitrates from getting too high and having to do a bunch of large ones to get it down..
Other than that you just need to wait for the tank to finish cycling..

oh and of course top off with fresh water to account for evaporation.

You probably have at least 2-3 weeks of just waiting now..

 

[Stolireef]

I'd suggest you just take the next 3-4 weeks learning all the basics... Just leave the tank alone and let it "Cycle"...
But it doesn't seem like you are aware of whats needed to properly maintain a tank..
Start here..
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1031074

Seems like we give this exact advice at least five times per week. Folks, read the stickies at the top of the new to hobby forum. I've been in the hobby for a long time and I still occasionally refer to them.

Also, look up posts by Sk8tr. Her advice is spot on and her methods are tried and true. Not saying that anything in the stickies is the 'last word' on a subject, but they should be some of the first words.

 

[Dr. Reef]

I would not waste my time in "instant cycle bottles" do it the way it's been done for decades. Let it cycle on its own and meanwhile learn the basis off the stickies on this website. Just my opinion.

 

[ReeferNoob4ever]

Irrelevant. ^