Coraline Problem

[surf_buddy]

The problem is I have too much of it, and it is nearly impossible to get rid of with the acryllic scrapers I'm buying at LFS. My tank is an acryllic 55g, and the viewing area is starting to look like it has a purple frame around it... not the look I'm going for. Any tips on removal?

 

[jedimike]

Sea Urchins love the stuff...

 

[surf_buddy]

Sea Urchins love the stuff...

Good to know... any particular species better than others... and reef safe? I've really don't know much about urchins.

 

[billaweed]

I wish I had more coraline in my tank than i do right now. love the color it adds to the tank, but sounds like you've got a coraline take over..

just curious, how often do you have to scrape it?

 

[jedimike]

They are reef safe, but they are also like bulls in a china shop. They won't eat any of your corals, but they will inadvertantly knock things over. I used one for a while just to get rid of the coraline, then I traded it off. The pincushions tend to stick more to the glass, the pencils cling more to the rocks.

I also have a glass tank... before you attempt keeping an urchin, make sure they won't scratch your acrylic.

 

[brady816]

hmmm i used a razor blade for mine but mine was a glass 55 gal tank. wish i could help man

 

[mfinn]

I have tried to clean acrylic tanks that contained urchins and they can mark the acrylic up as well as take off the coraline. You can see little trails they leave etched into the tank.

 

[surf_buddy]

I wish I had more coraline in my tank than i do right now. love the color it adds to the tank, but sounds like you've got a coraline take over..

just curious, how often do you have to scrape it?

I try to remove a little patch 3"x6" every few days. I'll post a pic today.

 

[surf_buddy]

hmmm i used a razor blade for mine but mine was a glass 55 gal tank. wish i could help man

No worries... and nice tank!

 

[surf_buddy]

I have tried to clean acrylic tanks that contained urchins and they can mark the acrylic up as well as take off the coraline. You can see little trails they leave etched into the tank.

Yeah I don't wan't that! I guess I will opt for using a metal blade (not a razor blade) in a test area... perhaps in my refrigum and see what happens.

 

[james734]

No metal on acrylic. You'll leave scratches. The safest thing is the plastic scrapers. They don't work as well as razor blades on glass but it's about the only option you have. I hate scraping the stuff myself but a doing a little now and then will keep you ahead of it. I try to scrape mine while I do water changes every week. I go until the hand it tired and pick up more the next week. It's really a never ending battle.

 

[surf_buddy]

Here's a picture of the purple maddness I'm battling.

 

[mfinn]

What's the problem with the lfs plastic scrapers ?

 

[james734]

That's really not all that bad..

 

[billaweed]

that looks pretty sweet actually

I'd leave it and keep doing what your doing now.. Then again i love the stuff and some dont

 

[twilliard]

I use a normal metal scraper on my acrylic. I have too

 

[dnjan]

The plastic scrapers will remove corraline from the acrylic, but they need to be resharpened frequently. Use a regular metal file to file the end of the plastic scraper back to sharp edges.

Scrape twice a week.

When the corraline gets too far ahead of you, go for the micromesh-on-a-magnet method and "sand" it out.

 

[surf_buddy]

that looks pretty sweet actually

I'd leave it and keep doing what your doing now.. Then again i love the stuff and some dont

I like it too... you should see it in person.

 

[surf_buddy]

I use a normal metal scraper on my acrylic. I have too

So I ended up doing a test scrap with a metal scraper in my fuge... and all looks good. I used the scraper lightly and it worked way better than the plastic scrapers when I was using full brute force. I found that in some spots the algae was so thick that there was no way I was going to get through it with a plastic scraper.

I can't say I'd advise for everyone, since this was a used tank (free) and already has some scratches, but from what I see I did no new damage to the acryllic.

 

[csdoyle]

try sharpening your acrylic scraper with wet/dry sandpaper from time to time. Just rub it along on a flat wet surface.

Try putting a small cutting board in your sink with the wet/dry sandpaper on it nice and flat and make your edge.

Cheers,

Chris