What is this stuff?

[Pslreefer]

Have this slimy green algae growing all over. It forms oxygen bubbles, grows back with a few hours after scrubbing off the overflows, comes off easy but is a slimy texture.

Any ideas?

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[Michael Hoaster]

Slimy and oxygen bubbles makes me think dinoflagellates, but the green color looks more like cyanobacteria. And the pic is blurry. It might be better to show it growing in your tank to give us more clues.

 

[Pslreefer]

What is this stuff?

Here is some pics in tank. It popped up after using chemiclean... also, has zero nitrates and po4 at .04, so the imbalance I assume is what allowed this to take over after the chemiclean treatment.

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[Michael Hoaster]

OK, in these pics it looks more golden brown, like dinoflagellates. All of your description in your first post sounds like dinos too. Does the bubbling increase through the day?

I think it's dinos. Yours don't look exactly like the stuff I had, but there are many different species of dinos, and many strategies to fight them. This makes it more challenging, with many conflicting methods.

Focus on the basics. Manual removal - set yourself a schedule of removal and stick to it. You have to be relentless. I was removing it every other day. Predation - lots of pods and snails, even mollies. Pods were instrumental in my successful battle and underapppreciated as clean up crew members. The more help you have the easier your job will be. Competition for nutrients - get a greedy macro algae like Ulva and put it in bright light. As it grows, keep pruning and exporting. UV - it worked great for me and many others.

Good luck!

 

[tomreefer]

Could be Lyngbya but if you say it has bubbles like other mentioned could be Dinos. One way to know for sure is a microscope. I am thinking more Lyngbha (Cyano). Does it have a nasty odor to it? If it does most likely Lyngbha.

 

[Pslreefer]

I was thinking lynbyga as well, but no doesn't smell any worse than that regular algae smell. The bubbles go get worse as the day goes on and go away at lights out.

But I remove it and not too long after it's right back. The areas I can't get too it grows in longer strands as well.

Another thing I noticed is it turns my sand green and cakes it up.

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[Pslreefer]

Guess I'll get a uv, been meaning to recently anyway.


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[tomreefer]

I would try removing it with a filter sock basically replacing the water with same water and see what that does.

 

[tomreefer]

it could be Calothrix looks similar as I said only way to tell is through a microscope. You can contact John from reefcleaners and see what he says.