ID this algae???? What eats this????

[smalls383]

Is this red hair algae? What can I get to eat this on my sand bed? So far I have 10 nassarius snails, 2 red leg hermits, 1 large electric blue hermit, and no one really touches it. Or, do I just need more hermits in my 54 gallon to do the trick?

<a href="http://imageshack.us"><img src="http://img253.imageshack.us/img253/89/cimg2607yn2.jpg" border="0" alt="Image Hosted by ImageShack.us"/></a><br/>

 

[MinnFish]

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=147010
Here is some helpful info.

 

[ILoveReefer]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13042457#post13042457 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by MinnFish
http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=147010
Here is some helpful info.

Cyano bacteria

 

[smalls383]

Thanks for that thread.....and CUC members that will eat this?

 

[tmz]

The only thing I know that eats it is a queen conch. Others may but I've not observed it nor heard of it from others.

 

[weluvfish54]

more flow

 

[smalls383]

All the params seem to be on point....trates at 0.....im gonna head out to get a conch and see if that will feast on it

 

[MinnFish]

Before, you go and buy a queen conch. Please research, they get very large and uses LR like a jungle gym. And they are some great snacks for triggers.

 

[Sk8r]

google cyanobacteria. The lights-out method is the safest course with it. Look that up on RC.

 

[smalls383]

Lights out huh.....that might be a bit scary with a GBTA right?????

 

[abulgin]

Lights out may or may not work, plus even when it does work the cyano releases all the stored phosphates back into the water when it dies, so be prepared to do massive water changes.

I had a cyano problem once. I had no detectable phosphates or nitrates, I was using RO/DI water for everything, and I was employing a 30g fuge with a huge amount of Chaeto. Problem was, I was also running a Phosban reactor and the GFO is so efficient that it was removing almost all the phophate--the Cyano was out-competing all my good stuff for what little phosphate remained and was actually getting worse.

I solved my problem this way--removed the Phosban reactor and allowed the Chaeto to do its work; scaled back my water changes to every two weeks (sometimes, frequent water changes can actually make matters worse because you end up reinvigorating the system with new phosphate/nitrate that may be in your make-up water--leached by salt, etc.); and siphoning the cyano off my rocks and sand with each water change. It took some weeks, but it ultimately paid off--no more cyano.

 

[Sk8r]

What you do is first shield all intakes: nems walk when miffed. Second, turn out your lights for 3 days, actinic only on 4th day if T5 or mh. Cyano will be visibly less. It will probably return 2-3 times. You can do this lights-out 1x a month safely. You can feed fish and nem during lights out if they show interest, and they may.

The ocean has darks like this when a major storm parks over the reef. So the short lights-outs are ok---BUT, test your water, because the cyano dieoff can be a heavy bioload. Yours isn't near as bad as it can get (thick red sheets covering everything) so you should be ok. Make sure your skimmer is working well and you'll be fine. You might want to do a 10% water change at the end of the dark period just in case.
Repeat the treatment once a month until the cyano is no longer a problem. It will also tend to knock any small incidence of algae you have.

Cyano feeds primarily on light, carbon dioxide, and water: in our reefs, there's only one of those main three we can safely deny them: light. Also reducing phosphate will help, but that is not its main nutrient.

 

[tmz]

Light depravation will work but will in my opinion stress invertebrates. Cyano bacteria needs 3 things to survive: water ,CO2 and light. It will thrive if it has nutrients available in particulate or dissoved forms. Eventhough it can make it's own nutrients it needs less energy to consume them if the are readily available. So, to control; it, control nutrients via cleaning siphoning, puffing up any detrius accumulation,skimming, phosphate removal and control CO2 levels by insuring enough flow at the surface of the water along with a bubbly skimmer to insure rapid gas exchange with the surrounding air.