Help! - New Tank and Algae

[Mugg1977]

My aquarium has been cycling for 2 weeks now. Initial set-up included 40lb live sand and 40lb live rock. I added 1 "red emerald crab", 1 4-stripe damsel (cheap incase it doesnt make it), and 25 snails (Nassarius, turbo, mexican turbo, and bumblebee) 5 days ago, then 40lb additional live rock (that so graciously came with a 2" serpent star) 2 days ago. Throughout the process, I have had parameters as follows: 77 degrees F, SG=1.022, pH = 8.3, Alkalinity = Normal (on my test scale), Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrate = 0.

My question is this, green hair algae is beginning to grow on the tank walls, the original rock, and a small patch of sand. The algae on the rock and sand have a more brown color,but the snails seem to be just fine with it, in fact the damsel is picking some of it off of the rocks and glass as well. I understand from my research that this type of algae growth is typical for a cycling aquarium, but I am going out of town until Sunday. So, what can I expect when I return, is this in fact normal, am I right on the type of algae, etc., etc.? I will be getting the rest of my clean-up crew Monday, if all is still well when I return Saturday. Thanks for the help. Sorry for the long post!

John

 

[Ed Hahn]

John,
When rock goes from one environment to another you will usually get die off of old coraline algae. Usually when you have die off of Algae or other animal you have a release of phospates into your tank. This release will promote a algae bloom.
I hope this helps.
Ed

 

[Mugg1977]

Ed,

Thanks. I'm glad this is normal. With me being out of town, should I be worried about what to expect when I get back Sunday, or will the clean-up crew keep it in check?

John

 

[Gordo]

The cleanup crew really can't keep up with a bloom. Your tank is young and this will all run its course. Just keep checking you water parameters and do water changes as needed. You say that your Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrate have all been at zero through out the cycle. Where did you get your live rock from? You shoud expect Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrate to spike at different phases of the cycle.

 

[Mugg1977]

Sorry, meant to put this in the original post. The LR was precured from the dealer, and I used Bacter-Vital to speed up the process a bit (supposedly, Bacter-Vital minimizes, and even eliminates the spikes). As is surely obvious, I am new to all of this, and have been going on the advice of my dealer, who has been excellent. Thanks for the help!

 

[Angelscrx]

You should let the tank go through it's natural cycle period which can vary by tank size and contents of the tank from a couple of weeks to a couple of months. Sounds like you have added a lot of stuff in the first two weeks and if your test kits aren't registering anything I would get a different kit and test again. Anytime you add more rock to a tank you get a cycle. Whether it's a mini cycle or a major cycle depends on the amount of rock that you add and or how well (long) it was cured. Let the tank cycle and do frequent water changes. I wouldn't add anything else for a while.

 

[Mugg1977]

Thanks,

That was my plan. I just wanted to get the tank "seeded", get some cleaner crew in there, and I had to get 1 fish, so that the other half would be happy. Thanks for all of the help and information!

 

[NaH2O]

Mugg1977 - Welcome to Reef Frontiers! I hope you find the site informative and helpful!

When it comes to cycling a tank, the process has to go through its steps, and it just takes time to establish the necessary bacterial populations. Here is a thread on Nitrogen Cycle Explained, if you are interested in more information. As for going out of town, if you are very concerned about the amount of growth in the next couple of days, then perhaps you could reduce your photoperiod or turn the lights off completely while you are gone. Just a thought.

Good luck! Let us know how the tank comes along.

 

[Mugg1977]

NaH2O,

Thanks for the info on the nitrogen cycle. I have set my timers for 1hr actinic, then 8 hrs actinic and flourescent, then 1hr actinic. If there is a large algae growth, then I guess I will have a fun Sunday cleaning it up, but my snails got roughly half of it overnight. I hope they don't get full, or I could come home to a green tank Sunday. Thanks for your help.

John