brown algae

[rx7racer210]

i reset up my 55g tank have about 50-60lbs of live rock good light and al levels are good. My problem is that i am being attacked by brown algae i clean the rocks and tank and sand but it seems to take over my rocks making them look very ugly any advice help or thought would be muchly appreciated.

[justahobby]

NTS - New Tank Syndrome? If so, Diatoms will disappear soon enough with patience and good husbandry. How long has it been set up, any livestock, what kind of filtration?

"This too shall pass"

[rx7racer210]

its been setup for about 2 month now i cracked my old tank so had to buy a new one i figured it was that no livestock et in a few days and i have a 65g wet/dry filter rite now working on getting a good priced protein skimmer but no luck so far

[justahobby]

Do you have a clean up crew yet? I rem. when I had diatoms I bought a couple turbo snails that were diatom eating monsters. They left pearly white streaks wherever they went. That may help ease the suffering on your eyes while you wait.

[CoryDude]

Agree on the problem and fix. It'll take time. Just curious, what your exact parameters on things like ph, alk, no2, no3, po4, etc?

[ErikH]

You need to get accustomed to testing, and keeping a log of your levels. As they stabilize, you can change how often you test. For now, you can test daily. Try to do so at the same time each day. Po4 is the secret killer of corals, I think. :) Diatomatic algae is just a simple problem that will go away with the addition of a CleanUpCrew. A CUC will need to be replenished until you find the right combination for your tank. Some things will breed well in your tank and keep you rid of some problems. Biodiversity is the wise choice.

[rx7racer210]

salinity is perfect ph is 8.3 amonia is 00 nitrate and nitrite at most since i dont have a super awesome exact point test kit as so near to 0 it mite as well be 0. i wana try to add like some mirco algae or something in with my bioballs anything that you suggest? I am going today to get turbo snails and sleaner shrimp i do a water change everyother day and i still believe my main problem is just that i have to use tap water till my ro unit arrives and i install it. If anyone is in san antonio tx feel free to send a message my way

[CoryDude]

IMO, get rid of the bioballs and get on ro water asap. Silcates can really fuel that algae. and unless you're cleaning those bioballs every few weeks, they can fuel your algae problem also.

What about skimming? What are you using?

[corruption]

Silicates are an overblown 'cause' of diatoms, IMO... Its the nutrients that feed the explosion, the silicates are just what they use to form their structures -- which are present in abundant enough concentration in our salt mixes already.

Otherwise, agreed -- bioballs are best suited in a non-reef setting, though if you're diligent they can work well. If you're not diligent, they become nitrate farms and will indeed help fuel nuisance algaes :) RO is also indispensible when it comes to saltwater keeping -- I've done both and I'd never go back to tap water :)

-Justin

[rx7racer210]

my problem is my f
lfs is far away and im working on getting a ro\di unit but dont have the 220 they want for it otherwise ro is where i would be. what should i use instead of bioballstoday i am removing and going to clen all of my live rock and sand and clean my bioballs.i really want to do a refugium but gotta figure out a simplke cheap way to soing it till i can get my arcylic and wut not ...another 120

[NateDogg]

At one point I was using water from the glacier water machines at HEB. They use RO, and carbon filtration. They don't add minerals back in. If you go that route, I would only use Glacier for the reasons I just mentioned. The trick is getting your water shortly after the service the machine(there is a screen that displays the last service date). I have tested water from these machines and got readings anywhere from 0 to 75 tds. Now i get my water from my friend's ro/di unit. I know when the filters are fresh then.

In my bc29 I had bioballs. My nitrates got to the point where bi-weekly water changes wouldn't take them down. So, the bioballs came out over a two week period and I would add LiveRock to replace the bioballs. The live rock should be the same size as the bioballs and you should add several lbs over the two weeks. That helped me a lot.

[CoryDude]

Check out some of our sponsors prices on ro/di units. Buckeye Field Supply has units well under $200.