OzarksReef
Member
Hoping I can get some help in managing a problem with brown algae growth on the surface of my live rock. Here's some pics (it's worse now):
The problem
I noticed this appear as some small brown patches on the rock about a year ago. My initial observations were that it appeared where I used kalk paste on aiptasia. I have been meticulous with water changes and managing nutrients in my system (more info on this below), and thought I was making some headway. It's important to note that I set up a new tank a month ago, plumbed it into the new system for two weeks, and then moved everything into it (went from a 50-gallon to a 120-gallon). While this move may have exacerbated the problem, I am confident it isn't the primary cause - this stuff has been with me for about a year now. Something recent (after the tank move) - I am developing an algal "film" on the glass every day.
My tank
NH3, NO2, NO3 are all zero using API tests. PO4 is below 0.03 - reads 0.0 on the Hannah checker. I get great color and growth on all corals - including lots of SPS. I run two (2) T5 lights for 12 hours and the other six (6) for 5 hours. Flow provided by two vortech MP40's. I have a fairly low bioload - 3 anthias, flame hawk, algae blenny, two chromis, and a medium sized purple tang. The tank is plumbed into a 40-breeder frag tank and a 40-breeder sump (around 160-175 gallons total volume). I'm using an Octopus NWB-150 skimmer that pulls a full skimmer cup weekly - very dark skimmate. I'm running phosban (150ml) and carbon in reactors. I dose MB7 daily (5 drops). I have dosed vodka in the past, but stopped a couple months back. I do an 8% - 10% water change every week. I just added 100 gallons of new saltwater with the system changeover a month ago.
If you've had some experience with this problem in the past, please weigh in on this. I'd love to see purple where I'm now seeing UGLY brown!
The problem
I noticed this appear as some small brown patches on the rock about a year ago. My initial observations were that it appeared where I used kalk paste on aiptasia. I have been meticulous with water changes and managing nutrients in my system (more info on this below), and thought I was making some headway. It's important to note that I set up a new tank a month ago, plumbed it into the new system for two weeks, and then moved everything into it (went from a 50-gallon to a 120-gallon). While this move may have exacerbated the problem, I am confident it isn't the primary cause - this stuff has been with me for about a year now. Something recent (after the tank move) - I am developing an algal "film" on the glass every day.
My tank
NH3, NO2, NO3 are all zero using API tests. PO4 is below 0.03 - reads 0.0 on the Hannah checker. I get great color and growth on all corals - including lots of SPS. I run two (2) T5 lights for 12 hours and the other six (6) for 5 hours. Flow provided by two vortech MP40's. I have a fairly low bioload - 3 anthias, flame hawk, algae blenny, two chromis, and a medium sized purple tang. The tank is plumbed into a 40-breeder frag tank and a 40-breeder sump (around 160-175 gallons total volume). I'm using an Octopus NWB-150 skimmer that pulls a full skimmer cup weekly - very dark skimmate. I'm running phosban (150ml) and carbon in reactors. I dose MB7 daily (5 drops). I have dosed vodka in the past, but stopped a couple months back. I do an 8% - 10% water change every week. I just added 100 gallons of new saltwater with the system changeover a month ago.
If you've had some experience with this problem in the past, please weigh in on this. I'd love to see purple where I'm now seeing UGLY brown!
