terrible algae problems

[tiberiusjones]

Its overtaking my tank. Long strands of algae everywhere , its overgrowing all my live rock and encroaching on my corals. Phosphates are minimal, water conditions are good, I dont get it. Will a UV filter help? I hear they do. What brand is good?

 

[GPhiAce]

Got pictures??

 

[fishdoc11]

The UV will most likely not help. A picture would b nice but it sounds like the typical hair algae that is almost always a phosphate (P) problem. The algae is likely consuming the P in organic form before it can be tested in it's inorganic form by your test kit (what type of test kit is it?). To alleviate the problem getting rid of the source is the best thing........tap water, old rock/sand, overfeeding etc.....are just a few common causes. The next best thing and something that needs to be done carefully if you have SPS is using a FE based P remover.
Here is a recent similar thread:
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=926883&highlight=hair+algae

Chris

 

[Dustin2]

try a product called algone. You stick it in the fillter and after a few days I saw a diffrence

 

[stevensmd]

my algae problem was caused by old light bulbs..after putting new ones in, the problem cleared up rather quickly.
dave

 

[hesstondc]

I had a red slime problem a few weeks ago, dosed chemiclean and it cleared right up
clay

 

[GPhiAce]

Have you tried physically removing the algae and getting a lawnmower blenny? You may also want to check the phosphates in your system- could be coming from a few different sources, but is usually the problem along with too many nutrients in the water. From what I have read about the UVs is that they are good for diseases and outbreaks depending on the size of your system, setup, amount of exposure to the UV, etc, but not for algae. The algae is typically due to nutrients and PO3. Which test kit are you using for your PO3, and have you had your parameters checked by someone else? I had a slight problem with my PO3 and NO3 once before, but my test kits read them as low, and they were really high. The products which were mentioned before have seemed to be highly recommended, but make sure you read the life of each to make sure you do not keep them in too long and they start to act as a sink. You can do a search on here too-- very helpful. Good luck

 

[digidana]

you can throw a sailfin molly (freshwater/sw) in there and it will eat it right up.

 

[ducklabdad]

Check out this thread here on reef central http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1329802

it is far and away the best advice on this type issue I have seen or tried. "caution to stay away from all the algae dosing "quick chemical fixes" They do not take care of the problem long term.

Heed the Capns advice on this thread!!!

 

[imsqueak]

I tried the Black Molly(s). They werent interested (got 4 of them at once after learning my lesson with shrimps and aips). Is there such a thing as "black sailfin'? They did have fancier fins than normal black molly.

I too am getting sick of ripping off hair algae every two weeks and taking all the rocks out every 2-3 months.