kalk contributes to nuisance algae?

[roons]

read this

http://saltaquarium.about.com/cs/algaecontrol/a/aa091100.htm


im having a problem with either diatoms or dino, not sure which

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=798056


that article says that with prolonged use of kalk it precipitates phosphates out of the water and they settle in my sand and live rock....................have you found this to be true? would using kalk be a catch 22 in battling algae? i run my lights for 11 3/4 hours total , 8 bulb t-5, from first set on to last set off.............. i thought this was the norm, im wondering if 8-9 hours like they say is enuff for a reef tank...............maybe not for t-5?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

that article says that with prolonged use of kalk it precipitates phosphates out of the water and they settle in my sand and live rock....................have you found this to be true?

As far as I know, no one has ever measured that and shown it to be true or false, but in general, there are other places to look for reasons for algae problems than limewater.

Diatoms are not usually soft and stringy. Usually more hard and golden brown.

I do not think T5 lights are anything special in terms of total output, especially as it impacts algae.

Have you measured nitrate and phosphate in the water itself?

Some folks have apparent success treating dinos with high pH, but lowering phosphate with GFO is a good option for most problem algae, IMO.

You might search on dino problems and see the differnet methods peopel have used to treat them, and what their success was.

 

[roons]

yes tests are 0, but they were 0 when i had cyano too, i think it consumes them first...............whats gfo? it would have to be water born yes? i think the problem is its in the sand.........

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

i think it consumes them first...............

Yes, that can be.

GFO is granular ferric oxide phosphate binder (Rowaphos, Phosphate Killer, Phosban, and many other brands).

I would not assume the problem is "in" the sand, or at least not in a way that GFO filtration would not work. Algae always grows on something. Add a ton of nutrients, and algae shows up on rock and sand, but that isn't where the nutrients came from. IMO, that has fooled a lot of people into blaming sand for algae problems.

 

[roons]

yes but i made the assumption that was the case ,since i had and have no reading how would a gfo work if there is none in the water?

it is on rock also but only in certain spots, where there is little to no flow there is none, it seems to be mostly where the most flow is, which i find odd



just retested to be sure, phos is in fact 0, nitrates are maaaaaybe .2, its hard to tell if theres some shade there or not, looking thru side

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

If there is problem algae, there is phosphate in the water. It also sounds like you have a marginal kit. 0.05 ppm phosphate is more than enough to cause an algae problem.

However, you may never detect any even with a good kit. With a lot of growing algae, it is using it as fast as it shows up. So you need to interfere in the process, and GFO can do it.

 

[roons]

i see, silicate wouldnt fuel this stuff? i just dont want to spend the money on phosban if its a waste, ive used it in the past and still had algae, i might add i have chaeto in fuge...........when i had cyano it wouldnt grow, it started to grow after i got rid of the cyano until this crap appeared , now it has stopped growing again................for some reason its not preventing other algae from forming

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Silicate is a necessary nutrient for diatoms, but not any other algae, including dinos. Diatoms also need the same other nutrients that all algae do: nitrate, phosphate, and often iron.

If the problem is diatoms, cutting off the supply of silica in top off water often does the trick.

Silica in a Reef Tank
http://advancedaquarist.com/issues/jan2003/feature.htm

 

[roons]

well im using 0 tds ro/di.................im going to replace my lights wens, right now im doing 6 hrs on and thats it......................as ive been told old bulbs can produce algae, how im still not sure of, i guess the wrong spectrum light algae likes but thats a whole nother conversation.................nitrates are only removed via water changes correct?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

nitrates are only removed via water changes correct?


No, there are lots of ways to reduce nitrate. I prefer growing macroalgae and skimming:

Nitrate in the Reef Aquarium
http://www.advancedaquarist.com/issues/august2003/chem.htm

 

[roons]

mmmmmmmmmm,i run a euroreef cs6-3 with ozone..........im at a loss as to why my chaeto wouldnt consume nitrate b4 an algae outbreak, ok..................ill try phosban if it doesnt go away with bulb change..................

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Maybe just not enough Chaetomorpha to balance the input.

 

[Boomer]

Rooms

That looks like cyano and not dino's or diatoms at all. There are many forms of cyano

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

That sounds reasonable. Thanks.

Cyano is best treated by reducing nutrients (nitrate and especially phosphate), increasing water flow, and reducing organics (skimming, carbon, etc). There are also chemical treatments, but I wouldn't use them except as a last resort.

 

[roons]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6942289#post6942289 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Randy Holmes-Farley
Maybe just not enough Chaetomorpha to balance the input.

oh , there might be a need for even more? i thought it would just grow faster

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

The more there is, the more nutrients it can take up in a given period of time. It has a limited possible growth rate based on space, light, other nutrients, etc.

Think of a person eating ice cream. While one can eat it fast, 10 people can eat it a lot faster.

 

[roons]

man, 2 years and still learning................ill get some more , ty

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

:thumbsup:

Good luck.