Algea Bloom

[dawgwe1]

Came home from work this morning and found my 2.5 week old 29 gallon tank had an algea bloom yesterday. Green colored algea covering the rocks, glass, crushed coral substrate along the front edge of tank. Also have a lot of small white organisms on the glass, heater tube, skimmer suction tube, and filter suction tube. They basically look like little white wiskers.... Any idea what they are and should I be worried about them. They come right off with blasting with turkey baster or magnetic algea scraper.

Tank has no fish in it it yet. Going to pick up a few snails today. Stocked with rock from reef cleaners and a few established pieces of live rock from a fellow reefer. Checked a few parameters when I got home:
Ammonia 0
Nitrate 5
Temp 78
Density 1.024

Don't have a phosphate test kit.

Using dual 96 watt power compact lights - one 50/50 and one 10k
Two korelia nano 420 power heads
300 HOB skimmer with carbon
Skimmer

Thanks for any info....

 

[Krish]

Your tank is very young and the algae bloom is typical for any new tank which is un-fortunately part of the cycling process. The white stuff is hard to say without a picture. Any chance to get one??

 

[dawgwe1]

Here is a pic... (best I could do for now)
http://i1198.photobucket.com/albums/aa459/dawgwe1/IMG00085-20101226-1022.jpg

 

[Krish]

Not sure what that is, but I vaguely remember having something similar during cycling years ago. At one point I had tons of tube worms attaching all over the place, but you would know if it was a tube worm if it had something looking like a flower coming out of it. In addition to that, I hadsome stringy algae, but it went away with time. Maybe someone esle can positively ID it for you.

 

[ssgatbliss]

I believe the small white things could be vermetid snails. Just a guess though.

 

[dawgwe1]

They looked like small strings (1/16" to 1/8" long) and don't seem to move around like snails would. They just showed up - a lot of them covering the glass so I don't know. They have not reattached to the glass since I scrapped them off so must have gone through the filter system or settled on the bottom of the tank. See what happens overnight.

 

[mojoreef]

Just let it go its normal. When you start your cycle basically you are building up the bacterial population of the tank. SInce their is so much food in their the bacteria bloom, but once that food runs out they scale back their population (die) at this point algae is johnny on the spot and takes up the available nutrients. This will continue for a perisod of time until your tank reaches an equalibrium, where you have the perfect amoun of bacteria to deal with the nutrient and they stop having such sways in population dencity.

Anyway the critter that look like white string are a critter (and I can remember the name, perhaps leslie would know) if you go touch them they should be as hard as a rock and brittle if they are what I believe they are and they are safe, usually you will find the in your sump, or on your heaters

Mike

 

[ssgatbliss]

If they are vermetid snails they they don't move. They are more like a tube worm or I saw a post one day that said 'fishing snail' because they emit a catch line thread from the top. I have a bunch in my tank. Again not sure that's what they are, just a best guess.

 

[dawgwe1]

Thanks for the responses . I will leave as is and let the tank continue to on its own cycle and see where it goes.....

 

[dawgwe1]

Algea bloom lasted six days and cleared up a fast at it started. Added 10 snails a last weekend and going to look at adding a clown this weekend. Tanks is four weeks old today...

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