Grass growing in my tank.

[Whatnow]

I've got a lot of what looks like grass growing all over my LR. I think it's hair algae. Some of it is about an inch and a half tall. What can I use to get rid of it?

Thanks

 

[Krish]

The best defense against any nuicance algae is to limit the excess nutrients in your tank (ie nitrates, phosphates etc) which all come from over feeding, not doing regular water changes and allowing waste/detritus to accumilate in the tank, not using ro/di water, using salt mixes that contain traces of phosphates etc in them and so on. So in your case, how long has the tank been up and running? Also, what salt mixes are you using, are you using ro/di water and what do you use for filtration? In otherwards, tell us a bit about your setup so we can know which direction to steer you in.

 

[Whatnow]

Ok, here it is.

Aquapod 24 pc. Startup 10-04-06 (give or take a couple days)
Salt- Instant Ocean ½ cup per gallon
20 lbs live sand
30 lbs live rock
walmart bottled water by the gallon.
Stock power head with Hydro flo

The Aquapod is leaking from the top left corner.

That’s about it.

Also the sand is turning brown but I thought that's normal.

 

[jsmkmavity]

youre not the only one with that problem. ask your supplier to contact the manufacturer if the tank is still under warranty.

 

[Krish]

Also the sand is turning brown but I thought that's normal.

Definately...That is probably diatoms. Everyone experiences it at one point or the other when setting up a new tank. It will eventually go away as your tank matures. Here's a thread you can take a look at with a link you can check out on page 2 as well with info on diatoms. http://www.reeffrontiers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=20112 As for the bottled water you use, is it ro/di water? If not, it may contain silicates in it which is what diatoms use to grow/build their skeletons which is what you see. I'd double check that. As for the rest of your setup, everything seems perfectly fine and the tank is still young so no worries on the algae. We all experience it (especially when setting up a new tank) and with tank maturity, it will all go away. Just allow your tank to cycle and do it's thing trying to eliminate any waste from settling in the tank and rotting which will fuel the algae to grow. Also, I didn't see a skimmer mentioned in your setup. Do you have one or have any plans on getting one? I have a AquaC nano skimmer hanging on my 24 gal Aquapod and it does a great job in eliminating tons of waste. If you click on the link in my signature titled, "My Aquapod" you can see how it is setup. Hope that helps and good luck!

 

[mmkeeper]

Some bottled water will add back some minerals for flavor.

 

[mark peacock]

lol. evian spring

 

[ronj]

i say just invest in a good lawnmower!!!!!. J/K...do plenty of regular water changes and give it a liitle time to clear up..don't overfeed and don't add any supplements ..you could cut back on your photo period as well....