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Scooterman, did you ever get the algae bloom problem under control? If so, what did you do.

I just had my first big algae bloom, like overnight. Water and all test out fine, but clean up crew can't keep up. I have sand bed, approx. 2". I see little worm tracks all through my sand, I haven't "stirred" it up. Sand is on the bottom, thin layer of CC on top of sand.

Anything I can do to cut down on the green algae? I recently upped the temp on the tank from 76 to 78 degrees.

I cleaned the glass yesterday, this morning algae back on glass, can see the tracks the shrimp have made cruising accross from one side to the other. Everything looks and acts pretty healthy at point. Do I need to worry?

Thanks,

Kathy
 
Well algae in my thoughts is something you have to be constant with. What I mean is it is always there waiting for your husbandry to slip lol, but yes there was a time that I had my DSB looking great it was a matter of learning how to keep it up properly, the set it & forget it theory I never found to be true. All systems require some type of husbandry, all have commonalities. For me to answer your question properly, we need to know a few things to help understand the cause. Here is a brief list that can help with that:
Age of tank, filtration equipment, lighting including age of bulbs, fish stock, corals etc? Feeding habits, amounts of food fed; your husbandry, how much water do you change, & how often, depending on the size of your tank, do you vacuum? Your sump & what's in it; test kits & sometimes brand names. Knowing and understanding each of these & how they function or used is very important to keep your system looking great, the learning is continuous but your system long term will progress along with that. One thing we see often is beginners that start off wide open moving to advanced set-ups and at first they come up with awesome reefs, the problem comes later when little things sneak up on them & eventually have major problems. On a good note, places like RS has really great people in our small community, that provide you with expert advice at the expensive price of Free, all you have to do is ask & these people will do their best to provide you with successful information. You can gain control of algae & keep it under wraps, but each tank is unique by design, which is very interesting to all of us.
 
O.K.
Tank is about a month old, 30g; w/30lb LR and DSB only for about 3 wks., never really had any big spikes in water. At that time only had the standard light 20W? aquarium bulb. I have since upgraded to the 96W daylight (10000k), + 96W actinic. Running W/D filter with built in skimmer, 600 out with 800 return. I am using the Saltwater Master test kit. It only tests for pH, Nitrite, Ammonia, Nitrate....these have been relatively stable. SG at 1023-24. Have done a couple of small water changes since setting up and recently did a 5 gallon water change. Have not vacuumed yet, thinking about how to do that without sucking up all of my copods and the like. Clean-up crew: 1-lg.nassarius (can't find them in my area right now), 1-Sand sifter, 4-turbo's, 1-Tequilla snail, 1-cleaner shrimp, 1-peppermint shrimp, 9-Astrea snails, 2-hermit crabs, 1-Queen Conch, 1-algae eater Blennie, 4-sm.black nassarius snails. 1-brittle star. Only fed cleanup crew 1 x week with small pc nori and tiny pinch formulat 2. fish: clown and dottyback, purchased 5/11 (these were my 1st fish). Fed small pinch Formula 1 Tues 5/12 and Fri. 5/14.

with the increase wattage of lights I may have had too long a photoperiod in the beginning, I have since decreased to starting with actinic mid morning and then turning on the daylight around 2PM, off with the daylight around 7pm, off with actinic 9pm. Oh yeah, have a couple of mushrooms, 1-tiny red ricordia, 1-RTA, 1-buttom polyp.

Have been reading here on this site, + additional books since before I actually had things going, trying to learn and understand. I am still trying to understand the phos.,calcium,alk., portion and do not have anything to test for these yet, not knowing what to get or how crucial they are. Started out going by KISS method, which says, phos. etc. is not really part of the KISS method if you have a good bio with DSB and filter/skimmer. I only use R/O and Instant Ocean
So, that's about it for now..........,

Thanks,

Kathy
 
Last edited:
Great, I wish everyone would post as through as you just did. Fist of all, a new tank so algae blooms is very normal; it is part of the cycling /bio process. A spike can happen rather quickly, more so in a smaller tank, it may be difficult to actually catch it. Seems a big improvement in lighting, normal lighting periods are around 12 a day, you seem to have a good photo period. Way to go on the RO/DI water, that shows some good reading, water quality, is very important. Vacuuming with a DSB has been debated, by design I don't think you are to actually vacuum your DSB. I think some more reading on DSB's will lead you to some valuable information; I'll have to scratch up some good links for ya, if someone doesn't beat me to it. The wet dry, is it full of Bio-balls? One thing about these filters, they must be cleaned very very religiously. Most reefers will eventually remove the Bio-balls and when using sock filters etc. they make sure to clean them often. I heard of the KISS but can't remember what it stands for, I'll have to look it up, or maybe someone will inform us. You seem to have a better start than I had (actually way better, your here loll), let me find some links, more tomorrow for sure.
 
KISS = Keep It Simple (Stupid), or the not so rude version is.....
Keep It Simple (at the) Start.


Thanks Scooterman, I haven't stopped reading, it has become part of my daily routine. My oldest said to me when they gave the gift of the tank set-up was, "I knew you always wanted one, and I knew you would research it to death to make it work". That is pretty much the way I start a new project........anyway,
makes me seem smarter than I actually am, to those that don't know any better, but it does allow me to ask some of the right questions to some of the knowledgeable people. Learning never stops.

I do appreciate your time on this matter. I had just thought I would see the algae bloom way before now, but then again, I have better light now then I did when cycling the tank.

Thanks, I'll be reading your posts.......

Kathy
 
Since were talking about husbandry, I thought I would show my vacuum system. Water goes from siphon tube in filter sock then back to the sump. Works great uses no water and you can take your time.
 
Your welcome, thats one of my hairbrained ideas that actually works very well. Should have got a patent.

Don
 
Nice Sailfin, small thank for him but nice fish, I had one, he got too big too quick. Still like your filter setup, I'm working on one since I saw yours.
 
80 gallons is to small? Just dont forget to put a ball valve in the bottom drain. Use a big one so it drains faster than you can fill it.

Don
 
Hopefully he's a runt. In the last 7 months he has'nt grown just got fat. My lawnmower and manderine on the otherhand are growing like weeds.

Thanks
Don
 
If you are constantly vacuuming the bb tank do you then filter the water to go back in the tank? I can't imagine the cost of salt if you did not return the water back into the tank.
 
Usually, I vaccum my BB everytime we do water changes. The trick is that you need to design your flow in such a way that it will blew all detritus or debris in one part of the tank so you only vacuum that part. So it takes less than the amount of water you actually need. And also you only use a small diameter tube/hose so that you dont drain your tank fast.
 
katchupoy get yourself a felt sock, clamp it to your sump inside and put your vac hose in it, you can use a bigger hose {better vac action} and you won't loose any water.
 
reefer said:
If you are constantly vacuuming the bb tank do you then filter the water to go back in the tank? I can't imagine the cost of salt if you did not return the water back into the tank.
Click to expand...


This is a great question, & two great answers right afterwards, that bucket Idea is a good way to remove the waste products & still keep your water. Also during WC (water changes) you can suck it clean. Even though it sounds like a lot, it isn't quite so bad; it gets easier after you develop a routine that is acceptable.
 
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