Purple Up and Green Slime Algae!?

[brandyrb]

My husband setup a 90 gal a couple weeks ago and used approx 40 lbs of LR so far. The rock sat in the sun for about a month to kill off all pests (mushrooms, gsp, algae, etc), then we cured it in a 40breeder for approx. 3-4 months before adding it to the tank. The rock was white! Anyway, my husband dosed the tank with purple up and now, the glass is covered in a green slime algae. As soon as it's wiped off, the water clouds up with the green algae, then sticks to the glass again.

Has anyone else experienced this? We have two test sps in the aquarium right now, a garf purple bonsai and a blue tenuis. Both have great polyp extension, but I don't want to add anymore corals just in case. Should we do water changes to get this stuff out of our aquarium or is it completely safe?

 

[ac7av]

Sounds like green slime algae.
Same as the red slime most people get just a different color.
I don’t know what’s in the purple up but sounds like what ever it is, it started a bloom in your tank. Your best bet will probably be large water change vacuuming out as much as you can and reduce the hours of lighting during the day for a while. I have personally had good luck in the past with RedSlime Control from Blue Vet Rx. Worked very fast and didn’t seem to bother the pod population or anything else I had in the tank.
Try and take a picture of it best you can so someone can ID it to be sure.

 

[brandyrb]

Maybe slime was the wrong word. It's more like a green film algae. It's nothing like cyano. I don't have a camera currently, but the green film algae on our glass looks like what this person experienced only worse...

http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=125203

My husband just wants to let it run its course, but I really wish he didn't add purple up. From what I've read so far, coraline has to be present before purple up will increase its growth (Not sure if this is true, still searching). I don't know where this green algae came from though as it wasn't on the rock either.

 

[ac7av]

In ether case its going to be a high nutrient content in the water that is causing it most likely. Is there a chance that there is a problem with your lighting?

 

[brandyrb]

Well here's the info for purple up from Dr Fosters website:



Directions: Shake well before use. Add 1 capful (5 ml) per 50 gallons no more than once daily. Place in the sump, near a powerhead outlet, or any high flow area of the system for rapid dispersal. Purple Up will cause some temporary cloudiness. Check calcium levels regularly. Adjust dosage of Purple Up to maintain calcium levels between 380 ppm and 420 ppm (380 mg/L to 420 mg/L). Do not exceed 420 ppm on a regular basis or significant precipitation will occur. (IMPORTANT! Wait at least 1 hour after using Purple Up to test calcium levels or erroneously high calcium levels may be indicated). Factors for Best Coralline Algae Growth:

• Purple Up does not contain coralline algae. Some coralline algae must already be living on rocks or aquarium glass.
• High dissolved phosphate levels inhibit the growth of coralline algae (and corals) and favors the growth of nuisance algaes. Check phosphate levels and use Phos-Buster or other products to lower phosphate levels if necessary.
• Carbonate hardness levels should be maintained at natural seawater levels or higher.
• High nitrogenous waste levels encourage nuisance algae growth, keep nitrogenous waste levels in check.
• Keep pH in the range of normal seawater (8.2).
• Light spectrum in the range of 5500°K or higher favors the growth of coralline algae.
• Grazing animals such as snails, tangs, and reef friendly hermit crabs encourage coralline algae by consuming competing fast growing nuisance algaes.
• Coralline algaes have a life cycle that determines the speed of formation of new colonies. Different species of coralline algaes may grow at different rates. It is not unusual to take several months for pink and purple coralline algaes to reach rapid growth rates.

Testimonial By: Testimonial:William Jimeno
Cooper City, FL
I have been using this product for about 1 month now. It works great and helps maintain calcium levels where they should be.
Submit Testimonial | Ask Customer ServiceChris Parker
Jacksonville, NC
This is a great product. It works fast, I could notice a positive change in 3 weeks.
Submit Testimonial | Ask Customer ServiceSteven Fettig
Castro Valley, CA
Good stuff. Coraline was growing within a few weeks.
Submit Testimonial | Ask Customer ServiceChuck Wiley
Ranger, GA
I wish I had gotten this stuff months ago. My tank is covered in different colors of algae. I recommend this to beginners and experts, thanks.
Submit Testimonial | Ask Customer Service
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[brandyrb]

In ether case its going to be a high nutrient content in the water that is causing it most likely. Is there a chance that there is a problem with your lighting?

Nope, I'm running 2x 250W HQI Ballasts with XM 20K bulbs and two VHOs. The bulbs were ran for approx. 1 month before being used on this aquarium. It must be something in this purple up stuff that caused the green film algae.

 

[ac7av]

Well it does say a couple of times that your problem could accrue if you don’t check and lower phosphate levels if necessary. Did you check your levels before using purple up?

 

[Skimmy]

didnt you say you just set this system up a few weeks ago??
then of course your going to go through an inevitable algae bloom at the ending of your bacteria cycle. here's where people buy too many clean up crew, only to have half of them die off after the algae bloom dissapears, thus stimulating more algae...lol so dont fall into that trap.

also, I wouldnt use purple up in the first place... stupid product.

just keep dosing calcium, magnesium, and alk and your coraline algae will grow. but first you will need to seed some coraline from a couple pieces of live rock with it on it.

as long as you are; skimming well, running carbon, have enough flow, cleaning up accumulating detritus, throwing the purple up(or "noob up" as it is sometimes referred to) into the garbage, and not overfeeding, your algae should take care of it's self. you might want to employ some GFO or bacteria products if it lingers too long though.

 

[vinny2261]

Sounds like a algae bloom, What cycle do you have your lights set at? Maybe with the "new" cleaned rock it is just cycling. Besides being unsightly, your corals should love the extra food.

 

[brandyrb]

Yeah, the tank is new, but the rock was cured for 3-4 months in another aquarium of ours before we added it to this tank, so the rock was cycled past the nitrite and nitrate stages.

Mike added a refugium with chaeto from another system and the tank appeared to clear up over night from what he said. I haven't looked at it yet. I know it's an algae bloom, I was just wondering where the algae came from as we completely killed the rock before re-cycling it.

Odd, anyway, I'm not a fan of purple up, lol.

 

[vinny2261]

Sounds like the Chaeto used up some of the extra nutrients and the bloom will stay gone. Just might check and make sure it is not getting 12 on and 12 off lighting

 

[brandyrb]

Nope, same as all our aquariums 9 hrs for supplemental (VHO) and 8 hours of halide.

 

[vinny2261]

Well besides being partially new and hopefully sounds like a small cycle on the new addition, do you dose with Phyto? I know I have had that bloom in my tank before. Anyway I hope that problem is solved by the addition of the plants into the system. So is this another frag tank or are you guys expanding you selection?

 

[brandyrb]

No we don't dose Phyto. The only thing that has been dosed was the purple up, but Mike's not using it anymore. The 90 is going to replace the 40breeder we have up and running. It will be another display. So we'll have the sps 300gal display, a mxied reef 90 gal display and a 40breeder quarentine. We decided to leave frag racks in the displays for frags as it's just easier.

We can't have acans, zoas, etc in the 300 (emperor angel) which is why we have the 40breeder which will be replaced by the 90.

 

[vinny2261]

nice!!! Those damned beautiful fish eat such pretty stuff!!

 

[brandyrb]

Yeah, we recently rehomed a foxface that killed one of our acans and two chalices. The first foxface we had and sold to Stephen didn't nip at anything. I guess it just depends on the fish.

We're going to be really careful about what goes in the 90. We've dealt with a bubble algae, grape caulerpa and aiptasia problem in the 40breeder for too long. So all the rock is/will be killed and re-cycled. It's going to be a long process though. We have to wait until the 90 is safe for all our corals and is populated with pods before we can take the 40breeder down. We have a lot of nice coral we dont want to lose and dragonface pipefish.

There's no fish in the 90 yet, just a few snails and two corals (that can be replaced if they die).

 

[vinny2261]

I would suggest a little pinch of some flake food, just a little. This will give your pods plenty to eat. If they have enough to eat they will breed like crazy. If they do not have enough food they go canibalistic and eat thier babies

 

[brandyrb]

We don't buy flake food, but we do feed our corals cyclopeeze, rodifers and prawn eggs.

 

[vinny2261]

I do not know if that is small enough food for the pods, kind of imagine it is since the corals eat it I have just seen a higher population faster if they have food to eat.

 

[brandyrb]

From what I read, copepods eat diatoms, bacteria, algae and plankton. I know amphipods will eat prepared food, but the pipefish won't eat the amphipods. There will be food in the system as we feed the corals though.