please help me with my algae problem(pix inside))

[collie man]

i have had this tank set up since december 20th and ever since ive had horrible algae problems. i am stumped on what to do, even my diamond goby has to work double time to barely make a dent.
thank you for all your help!!!
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http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f286/h2ospeedoboy/DSC01604.jpg
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[fish77]

do you vacuum your gravel?
do you use tap water?
It could be some type of nutrient issue.

 

[mike_cmu04]

Also make sure you are doing weekly water changes with rodi water to help with the nutrients

 

[BlueFaceAngel]

Tap water will cause this, but more importantly you need more flow in the tank, the water is stagnant at the bottom this allows debris to settle and form bad algae, you need another power head or two on the bottom to stir things up. that will keep it from forming.

 

[collie man]

okay thanks all, i have nearly zero nitrates or phosphates so i know its not nutrients, i use ro/di water and kalk for top off and do weekly water changes. could it be lights going bad? and il ltry and add more flow but im concerned about heating issues because i dont have a chiller so more powerheads means more head.

 

[collie man]

and no i do not vacuum my sand. i thought you were not supposed to disturb the sand bed at all.

 

[BlueFaceAngel]

most of the time you dont, but in vacing it will help...i wouldn't really be concerned too much with heat issues..what is your tank running now? two power heads may bring it up 1 degree if that

 

[TripleT]

Do you have a protein skimmer?

What are you feeding, and how much?

+1 on added flow. Add another powerhead, or up-size what you have.

Depending on model, you can put them on simple timers if you don't want them to run at the same time for too long.

It seems like you have a lot of rock in there. I would remove at least a couple of pieces to help with flow, and give your livestock a little more room to roam.

 

[BlueFaceAngel]

you may also be running your lighting too long...5-6 hours is enough...try leaving your lights off for a few days that should 'help'

 

[collie man]

my lights are on for 10 hours a day. about to set up actinics to come on 1 hour before all the lights and one hour after. this may help idk.

i feed Rods Food about a half pinkie nail size every day.

and i have about 70 pounds of rock but im afraid if i take any out i will create a spike or take away some of the biological filtrations. should i try and put all the rock i take out in a another a tank? ive some room in my sump where my heater is but i dont want it to just collect dibris and create more problems.

what should i do i know they fish would love more room but i went crazy looking for live rock because it is so essential i feel liek taking some out is wasting money...

 

[collie man]

i do have one toadstool so i dont want to freak it out by turning off the lights

 

[BadSquishy]

I spent my first six months with much worse...everyone's advice is spot on,

my 2 cents, before you vac, siphon the algae (cyano) and the thin layer of sand to which its attached out of the tank.

put the removed sand and algae in a small bucket and add unscented bleach - stir and let soak for a day or so - rinse thoroughly - and after its COMPLETELY dry you can return it to the tank.

If you don't get the algae out before you vac, you'll simply stir the algae into the sand where it will supply the nutrients for a new crop...your phosphates may read zero...it all tied up in your algae.

a phosban reactor couldn't hurt ...

 

[dmorazan]

lights

lights

go down on the lights to 7.5 to 8 hours a day and how about the skimmer?

 

[collie man]

alrighty, i have a cpr aeroforce skimmer and a phosphate reactor.

 

[BadSquishy]

Sounds like you've got all the bases covered...at this point I'd guess that once you siphon out what you've got, you'll be pleasantly surprised that it won't return as fast or nearly as bad.