0 phosphates and nitrates but algae issue

[fishkeeprian]

Hello,

My icp test came back with zero nitrates and phosphates but visually I know that it can’t be correct because of the algae issues I’m having.

My rocks are coated in fluffly brown algae which
Feels slimey to touch. It almost looks like cotton wool close up.?and there is a odd bit of green hair algae popping up.

I understand there must be excess nutrients in my tank
And it’s be consumed by coral, algae and microfurna in the take so when it comes to testing it isn’t there in the water column.

What’s the best way to deal with this? I run a refugium 12hrs on and 12hrs off. I have a hydra 26hd T5 combo. Hydras are running Ab plus spectrum for 12hrs and t5s are running for 6 hours coming on half way through my led schedule.

I run a skimmer that is running fairly dry and have been dosing Brightwell Aquatics microbacter 7 but just not seeing any improvements.

I don’t do water changes as I dose ATI Essentials and i feed once a day pellets sometimes new life spectrum or PE mysis. I will also feed RS MYSIS couple times a week.

Thanks

[Michael Hoaster]

Where do you think is the most concentrated source of algae-causing nutrients? The water? The sand? No, it's in the algae itself. So manual removal is key. Otherwise it will continue to feed itself, which your ICP test supports. Competition for nutrients should be provided by your refugium. What are you growing in there? I recommend a fast growing green macro, like Ulva for nutrient spikes, and a slower growing red macro for normal maintenance. How's your clean up crew? An army of snails and pods can help. Also consider Mollies. Don't feed them and they will go after all kinds of algae. A 3-4 day blackout can help as well.

Good luck!

[bertoni]

I agree that algae die-off probably is help feeding algal growth. That's a normal cycle. If the algae is easy to siphon off the rock, I might spend a few minutes a week removing what was easy to get.

My first thought in such cases is to try nutrient reduction. This approach works in some cases. Reducing the amount of food going into the tank might be appropriate, and running some GFO can help, too. These steps are easy to try. What animals are in the tank, and what is the amount of food being added, as well as the type and frequency?

I'd also get a regular water change schedule going. Water changes can do a lot to help with water quality and keeping the ionic balance in reasonable shape.

Did the tank have any coralline at any point? If so, keeping the calcium and alkalinity levels in line might help over the very long term with pest algae control.

[Rhodesholar]

Hello Fishkeeperian.

Question for you because I didn't see it mentioned.

How much flow do you have in the tank?

My rule of thumb has always been if you think you have to much, you don't have enough. lol

Anywhere the detritus settles, that algae will grow.

I have a 72 gallon bowfront tank and I am running (2) 4100 gph powerheads on full blast on a wavemaker plus almost 900 gph coming back from my return pump.

I haven't seen nuisance algae in my tank for over 20 years.

[fishkeeprian]

Originally Posted by bertoni

I agree that algae die-off probably is help feeding algal growth. That's a normal cycle. If the algae is easy to siphon off the rock, I might spend a few minutes a week removing what was easy to get.

My first thought in such cases is to try nutrient reduction. This approach works in some cases. Reducing the amount of food going into the tank might be appropriate, and running some GFO can help, too. These steps are easy to try. What animals are in the tank, and what is the amount of food being added, as well as the type and frequency?

I'd also get a regular water change schedule going. Water changes can do a lot to help with water quality and keeping the ionic balance in reasonable shape.

Did the tank have any coralline at any point? If so, keeping the calcium and alkalinity levels in line might help over the very long term with pest algae control.

Hello,

Will algae consume the nutrients quicker than my coral i.e starving them?

I don’t do water changes as I using a balling method. If I did water changes is there a chance I could overdose my tank on trace elements?

I feed twice aday max. I may feed once in the afternoon which is a quarter of a small cap of Copepods in a phyto mix, which I let if flow through tank. The main feed is in the evening. I spot feed my fish so I don’t over feed the tank. It’s a variety of pellets, Mysis pellets, NLS pellets and seaweed pellets. As soon as I notice they have had enough i stop feeding. I also have acropower riged up on my doser dosing 5ml per day.

These is small patches of green hair algae and a very fine furr over my rock.

I also get a brownish algae over my power heads and glass.

I’m keen to get this cleared up.

How would I go about using Rowa phos? I don’t want to strip all nutrients out my tank and cause more issues.

Andy suggestions of a plan to help me move forward?

Thanks

[bertoni]

Algae might be capable of starving corals, but I wouldn't assume that it's going to be a problem.

I would continue to do water changes on a regular basis. The Balling method might keep the ionic balance a bit better than other approaches, but I wouldn't trust it to prevent all problems, personally. 10% a month is a good target, and shouldn't cause any problems with overdosing trace elements as long as the salt mix is okay.

How often the fish are fed and how much of it they eat right away is less important than the total quantity going into the tank. Digestion is a fairly inefficient process, and a lot of what goes in comes back out. The amount of food going into the system might be more than the export capabilities can handle.

You could try RowaPhos or some other GFO product. That's where I'd likely start, after checking the feeding levels. Sometimes, they can solve the problem. I might try half the recommended amount in a reactor, and see how the tank responds.

[fishkeeprian]

Originally Posted by bertoni

Algae might be capable of starving corals, but I wouldn't assume that it's going to be a problem.

I would continue to do water changes on a regular basis. The Balling method might keep the ionic balance a bit better than other approaches, but I wouldn't trust it to prevent all problems, personally. 10% a month is a good target, and shouldn't cause any problems with overdosing trace elements as long as the salt mix is okay.

How often the fish are fed and how much of it they eat right away is less important than the total quantity going into the tank. Digestion is a fairly inefficient process, and a lot of what goes in comes back out. The amount of food going into the system might be more than the export capabilities can handle.

You could try RowaPhos or some other GFO product. That's where I'd likely start, after checking the feeding levels. Sometimes, they can solve the problem. I might try half the recommended amount in a reactor, and see how the tank responds.

I put some rowa in a reactor and set it to tumble slightly to stop it from clumping together is that correct?

It also says 100g is good for 400l saltwater tank do i used 50g.

How often should I change it. I can’t test because it throws up an incorrect test result.

I’ve cut back the the feeding also. I will feed the copepod/phyto blend every other day, and feed pellets the other. So one feeding per day.

Thanks

[bertoni]

Light tumbling probably is okay. If you see any signs of the media abrading into dust, I'd suggest cutting back on the flow. Starting with 50g should be fine. You can ramp up the amount as you see how the tank responds. I'd give the 50g a week to see whether that's enough to cause any stress.

[fishkeeprian]

Originally Posted by bertoni

Light tumbling probably is okay. If you see any signs of the media abrading into dust, I'd suggest cutting back on the flow. Starting with 50g should be fine. You can ramp up the amount as you see how the tank responds. I'd give the 50g a week to see whether that's enough to cause any stress.

Should I stop dosing ammino acids? I dose 5ml of acro power per day and 4ml of red sea ab plus.

[bertoni]

The amino acids might add a bit of fixed nitrogen, but if the product actually contains only amino acids, it won't add phosphate. You could keep dosing for a while to see how it goes.

[fishkeeprian]

Originally Posted by bertoni

The amino acids might add a bit of fixed nitrogen, but if the product actually contains only amino acids, it won't add phosphate. You could keep dosing for a while to see how it goes.

Will the nitrogen not contribute towards algae growth?

I’m using acropower not sure will post a pic of ingredients .

Thanks for your continued help

[bertoni]

The nitrogen would help algal growth, but it might also be feeding the corals. That's hard to predict. You could cut back if the algae doesn't recede. That's what I'd do.

[fishkeeprian]

Originally Posted by bertoni

The nitrogen would help algal growth, but it might also be feeding the corals. That's hard to predict. You could cut back if the algae doesn't recede. That's what I'd do.

Started scrubbing rocks today and letting the filter socks catch the debris and then syphoned the sand into the filter sock a little time after then changed it.

Ordered some Tropic Marin pro reef salt and will start small 10% Weekly water changes.

If this the correct steps or larger water changes?

[bertoni]

I think small water changes are a fine place to start. You can do them more frequently if need be, or go larger, but 40% a month is a strong schedule.