I'll start from the beginning (pics)

[LockeOak]

I would do all of the above (switch to RO, do a 3-day dark period to weaken it, add a fuge if possible, just a pile of chaeto behind some of those rocks would probably help). Also, how much flow do you have? Strong water flow can prevent a lot of those mats from forming, or at least slow them down.

 

[wolrey]

Keeping up with the rinsing/cleaning of your sponges is a good start.

Most consumer grade (salifert, api, redsea) phospate test kits aren't very good. You shouldn't put so much faith in them. I wouldn't trust a zero reading. Even if you got a Hach test kit and got a very low reading, I would say they phosphates are being used up by the blooms you are having. They alone are indication you have phosphates, that's why I said to get the phos reactor. Growing cheato and other forms of algae in a fuge will help, but the reactor will pull alot of phosphate.

Jeff

 

[Mappelbaum37]

if the algae in my tank eats up the phosphates and it reads 0 then what's the problem? Shouldn't I have 0 phosphates then? Also I was planning on buying an HOB fuge because i don't have a sump but i was told that they are hard to maintain because they aren't really big and the guy at my lfs said that if i was going to buy a fuge I should do it the write way and purchase a big one to sit in the sump.

Any way, I have read some stories on this site where caulerpa in their fuge leaks into the main tank and completely covers itself over the enitre display tank. Is chaeto different? Would I be able to buy a ball of chaeto and net it and hang it in the corner of my display tank. So I would'nt be getting a fuge, I would be putting the chaeto in my main tank. Would it spread itself throughout my tank?

-Also I just want to make sure that my lights arent causing any of this (their age) and I shouldn't replace the lighting because it would only create more algae.

 

[airinhere]

You are correct about the algae consuming the nutrient levels in your tank until they are reading zero. Problem is that you do not want to rely on nuisance algae for nutrient control.

Anything you do to kill the existing algae has to be replaced by some sort of nutrient removal or control.

Chaeto would be a great method. I use it and it is not invasive (although it does get large over time and needs manual pruning.

Your LFS guy is kinda right. Bigger refugiums have more space for growing macroalgae. Thats the benefit of a larger refugium. More nutrient control capacity. The fact that they are more expensive is probably not his motivation. (Hopefully)

Lights are the least of your worries. Old bulbs can shift color spectrum into the red spectrum and is more useful for algae to grow. After a year, T-5 bulbs can be problematic, but the choice of what color bulbs you are using is more important than how old they are at this point.

 

[Jmikitz]

.. you have the algae because of the phosphates. cycle of life.. the algae needs the phosphates to live . along with light .. you read o phosphates because the algae is consuming it .. but the problem is you dont want the algae . at least not the algae you have. if you removed all your algae you would see high readings. then a big bloom which you have. the readings would go down because the algae is consuming the phosphates. if you remove the phosphates via a reactor or adding a fuge with macro ect. the macro would compete for the phosphates . hence reducing the un desirable algae .

 

[Mappelbaum37]

Thanks for the response guys. What your saying makes sense but if the algae consumes the nutrients in the water so there is nothing left to show up on the water test then once I get rid of the algae on the rock wont there be nothing left, either algae or nutrients since the nutrients have already been consumed but I also got rid of the algae?

Also like I asked in my last post, will I be able to add a little thing of chaeto *not caulerpa* to the corner of my tank and tie it up so it hangs in the water so it can consume the nitrates in the water? It wont completely spread out and seed all over the tank right? Then once it gets too big I'll remove some of it from the tank...

Good idea or really bad idea?

Thanks for the feedback- Appreciate it

 

[Jmikitz]

Ok, im looking back at all the past replies and such, looked at your pics and i cant seem to find a really important , let me rephrase.. essential piece of hardware.. all i see is a freshwater setup.??? where is your protein Skimmer???? did i miss it??

 

[Mappelbaum37]

forgot to mention equipment!
- koralia powerhead 3
- maxi jet 1200 w/ quick filter
- prism protein skimmer HOB hense the no sump program I'm running
- fluval 405
- H.O.T. magnum pro system (just recently bought)
- T-5 nova extreme 216 watt lighting system

 

[Jmikitz]

are you pulling dark green skim?? stinky??
Im digging... but theres a reason.. im gonna do some research on your equiptment.

 

[Mappelbaum37]

the prism is pulling out a lotta crap that is greenish/brown...Not so much chunky, more liquid form. For the not so good reputation has it does well on my tank and im pretty satisified because my biggest problem is that im sumpless so I need han on the back material....Thats what limits me and my buying...

 

[Jmikitz]

you dont need a sump.. closed loop systems work well if they are outfitted right.

 

[Jmikitz]

i keep cheeto in my tank.. stuff it in the corner.. you have to farm it now and then but its manageable.. i try to keep some red in there too for my tangs.. it also gives a place for the essential critters to live and reproduce..

 

[Mappelbaum37]

In the display tank right? What's the difference between caulerpa and chaeto?

 

[Mappelbaum37]

Also, what exactly are they. I know they eat up the nutrients and the nitrates in the water, but what are they categorized in?

 

[Mappelbaum37]

Anyone know what chaeto is? whats the difference between chaeto and caulerpa? I can add chaeto to the main tank, not caulerpa?

 

[Mappelbaum37]

-Major cleaning went down today in the tank. First I cleaned the quick filter on the maxi jet 1200.
Then I replaced 50% of the carbon in the fluval and cleaned the sponges.
After that I really dirtied the tank up with the turkey baster and my handy dandy tooth brush.
Took out approximately 15 gallons but to be exact I took out 13 gallons and used ro water for the water change.

I completely forgot to take a before pic. but I have some after shots here for you guys. Tank looks a lot better as well as the sand. Once the lights go out tonight there off until wednesday!

*Note that most corals are closed and I dont really blame them seeing as the mess I made in the tank today was extreme.

Pincushion urchin on the bottom of this rock:
(still pretty dirty but a lot better)

Some more rocks:

More pics on next post --->

 

[Mappelbaum37]

Nice clean sand:

rocks:

full tank shot w/ actinics:

*there was some really stubborn pieces of green hair algae that I had to side with. They may have won the battle but I'm gonna win the war.

 

[Bonsai7255]

I've had a small ball of chaeto in my 29 gallon for about 3 months and so far no problem with it. As far as a HOB refuge it would be better than nothing at all. You could actually make your own out of an old filter and clamp-on light. IME anything with a sponge is bad news. They will collect detritus like magnets. Unless you clean them everyday or evry other day they will make your nitrates go through the roof.

 

[aaronc1540]

I haven't seen many snails in your tank. More snails will also help.

 

[FEEDERFISH]

Only use RO/DI everytime you do a water change and top off, tap water is just adding to your problem, get a TDS meter and test your spring water/tap water, you want 0 TDS or your just adding problems from the start. Increase water movement that will help out greatly for the dead spots where cyno is forming. Also what is your Alk, Ca, and Mg levels. Get them in check and keep them there. Also if you are reading 0 phosphates there are different types or phosphates some that can not be read by test kits. At the same time as soon as phosphates are present they are being absorbed by your algae. RO/DI will save the headache and work on the algae battle, save up some $$