I know with most people it's the opposite. But my tank has no algae... I recently added a coraline covered rock to seed the tankfor some purple / pink growth.. I started with BRS Pukani dry rock and I figured the leeching phosphate would start an enormous algae growth, but so far it's almost nonexistant with the exception of some real thin layers of a green film in some areas near the center of my lights. My tank is 125 g and I have 3 kessil a150 15k's. My tank is 5 months old and is currently fallow due to an ich outbreak. I want to add some tangs and fish that like green algae such as dwarf angels. How can I get more green algae growth? My refugium has a significant growth and i'm thinking it's because of low flow and the spectrum there is 10 k. Do you think turning off my power heads in the DT for a few weeks will help? I'm also using RO/DI water with 0 TDS... I figured that is keeping the algae away also. I'm afraid to add declorinated tap water because I feel that may turn into cyno... not sure about that though. I have already gone through my diatom bloom and everything has been settled for a couple months now.
How to grow green algae?
- Thread starter cbbram
- Start date
brandon429
Active member
What a simple simple request. Just go to lfs, get the freshwater planted tank fert tabs that you press in the substrate. Break one up and cast it about the tank
You got algae in a week.
You got algae in a week.
brandon429
Active member
or as fast as 10 mins 
jj reefs love phosphate for the primary producers and those fert tabs are pure N and P rock n roll.
jj reefs love phosphate for the primary producers and those fert tabs are pure N and P rock n roll.
_shorty_
New member
What are your levels currently? With ich outbreak, I'd assume higher than ideal nutrient levels already, or over-population.. Usually people are trying to move the other direction with nutrients, unless I just don't understand something. If i were going to do a fuge id let the fuge get going and draw from that manually to supplement your Tangs.
Depending on what your growing in your fuge just transfer some to the tank every few days. If the fish don't like it then buy a different kind of algae and dedicate most of the fuge to what they like by harvesting and tossing most of the other stuff. I've seen tangs eat a lot of different things.
I turned off my powerheads a couple days ago and noticed green algae starting to grow on the rocks. I want to get some snails and when I add tangs I want at least something on the rocks for them to graze on. I turn on the powerheads once a day to kick up detritus so the filter can catch it. I will do this sparingly so it won't get out of control.
ehaleyjr18
New member
You can also buy the algae sheets which is what we feed to our tangs. Much easier than cleaning excess algae from tank.
jimmy frag
New member
this is unique wanting your tank to produce hair algea. also another impatiant start up. careful what you wish for as not all fish like to eat green hair
_shorty_
New member
I will also add - my hippo tang LOVES organic baby spinach. - and it's probably cheaper and I'd guess even more nutrient enriching than a lot of your algae sheets you can put in or hair algae. Once I started feeding her that stuff - she started looking really fat and healthy and her color deepend.
again, I suggest finding other ways to feed your tangs via a different method - and work at reducing nutrients (which directly relates to negative growth of hair and other types of algae).
Also - do your research on tangs - They are some of my favorites as well, but many tangs are very 'ich'/disease proned and some are very aggressive and/or need large areas to thrive. That, in combination with a high nutrient 'hair algae' growing tank just doesn't seem like a good combination to me.
I don't know your experience level, but 'unique' in the saltwater game isn't always a good thing. I've had to learn that the hard way...
again, I suggest finding other ways to feed your tangs via a different method - and work at reducing nutrients (which directly relates to negative growth of hair and other types of algae).
Also - do your research on tangs - They are some of my favorites as well, but many tangs are very 'ich'/disease proned and some are very aggressive and/or need large areas to thrive. That, in combination with a high nutrient 'hair algae' growing tank just doesn't seem like a good combination to me.
I don't know your experience level, but 'unique' in the saltwater game isn't always a good thing. I've had to learn that the hard way...
Thanks... I will give that a try when I restock. My tank is fallow right now and was just looking for a way to have a bit of algae in the tank for when I restock. I guess not having any is a good thing.
_shorty_
New member
I hope you understand - I'm no expert, and I'm not saying it's impossible - or even a bad idea. I was just strongly cautioning. I've wasted so much money and killed fish and coral over the years, and that gets old. My focus over the past few years in getting back into the hobby has been stronger husbandry diligence (despite my tendency to be super lazy! - which also means 'what do I put in place to make tasks as easy, yet still effective, for myself as possible?'), increased patience, and heavy reasearch to grow my understanding of the science behind a healthy echosystem. Keeping the bad levels DOWN and the good levels UP.
It's not the idea of the hair algae... that in itself is not a bad idea. It's the conditions that cause the hair algae that are the problem for basically every reefer out there to maintain on a steady and continuous basis. Some just have a better handle on it, based on thier knowledge, experience, and thier diligence in maintenance than others. I think you'd probably need to be pretty experienced to purposefully allow/cause the hair algae, yet keep your nutrient levels low... balancing it just right - to filter just enough to allow slow growth - without allowing nutrient levels (Nitrates and Phosphates) to sky-rocket and drastically reduce your water quality - in turn causing an over-all unheathy tank, with unhealthy, stressed, and diseased inhabitants.
IMO, I think most are just saying that there are easier and safer methods for maintaining healthy tangs.
Keep the questions coming, though! and Good luck!
