Can't Get Rid of HA

[khrios]

I've had my current 50g system up for 5 months, after downgrading and moving from a 100g, which had been established since may 2006. I have always had some amount of algae in the tank, mostly HA. I left for a trip this past week, and got back to see the tank overrun with algae. Apparently, the person who was supposed to feed the fish forgot, so where could the excess nutrients be coming from? My amm, nitrtite, and nitrate always read 0 (salifert). I have good cal/alk levels, but haven't tested in a while. I supplement cal/alk with sealab blocks every 2 weeks. I have a lawnmower blenny, 6 line wrasse, sandsifting goby, and a few smaller gobies. Lots of various corals, all doing great. 6 bulb 48" T5 lighting (bulbs changed less than 2 months ago). I am just tired of the algae, but don't want to give up quite yet. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

[joeychitwood]

Do a search on raising the tank magnesium level.

[demonsp]

Whats your phosphate and your source of water? I dont think underfeeding would cause this. There is an underlying problem.

[khrios]

why would I want to raise the mag level is I don't know that it's low? I don't have a mag test kit. I haven't tested phos in a while, but it has always been 0. I use mostly RO for topoff and LFS saltwater to save time. I'm a college student renting a house, so I don't really have a place to mix/store SW.

[demonsp]

Phosphate in high levels can cause HA omong other things. Low flow and cleanup crew.But even with small amounts of tap water over time can cause problems along with trusting you LFS. I found the fighting conch snails loves green hair and is like a lawnmower but other snails will help.

[joeychitwood]

Raising the magnesium level can rid your tank of hair algae. The task is otherwise nearly impossible by other methods.

[Bono]

I had a huge HA problem and the only thing that worked was to turn off all lights and cover the tank for 3 days.

[khrios]

I just retested phos and it came up 0ppm. I'm going to retest nitrate, cal, alk, pH, and do a water change. I have tried turning the lights off for few days but it didn't seem to help that much. I am looking into the magnesium thing, but haven't seen much related to magnesium and HA yet.

[joeychitwood]

Take a look at this thread for information on magnesium levels and hair algae control.

[khrios]

Thanks for the info. I ordered a gal of Kent Tech M and a Salifert Mg test kit. Hopefully it does the trick. I will keep you all posted

[Shagsbeard]

The reason you're reading 0 phosphates is that your hair algae is a very efficient processor of phosphate. You need to eliminate the source of phosphate and the algae will starve. Have you ever TRIED to grow a plant? You have to feed it. If you cut off it's food, it will die.

[khrios]

I know. I have tried running phosban with little luck

[kashi410]

you can also try getting a hair algae slug from your lfs. The lime hair algae slug is smaller and nicer on the eyes but dont eat as much. I would go with the uglier monster looking one, they eat like pigs. In fact, you might want to ask your lfs if they will give u some credit back if you return the slug after it eats all the HA, as thats when the slugs usually starve to death. Good luck

[khrios]

I called my LFS just to price the Mg and they said they had never heard of anyone using it to get rid of algae. He suggested a sea hare, as well. I may pick one up this weekend to see if it helps or not

[joeychitwood]

The fact that an LFS employee has not heard of a particular solution to a reef problem should not dissuade you from trying it based on reliable reports here on RC. I've had LFS personnel tell me that I could have a Sohal tang in a 55 gallon tank.

[khrios]

I completely agree. My LFS owner tends to be pretty old school when it comes to reefs and usually completely disagrees with the information I find here. I have always had helpful info on here, and I don't see any reason to discard it now.

[Nanz]

30 Days of Night...

No wait.. thats the movie, heheh..

Try 3-6 days of night. I had about 5" of hair algea that was decimated by 6 days without light.

[Warmart]

And covering the tank glass to keep out ambient light is generally necessary too. Makes all the difference.

[khrios]

won't it be bad for the corals?

[ljosh]

Has anyone had luck getting rid of regular HA using Magnesium? I thought it was for Bryopsis.

[joeychitwood]

Originally posted by ljosh
Has anyone had luck getting rid of regular HA using Magnesium? I thought it was for Bryopsis.

In reading the various threads, I've seen photos of people eliminating both HA and Bryopsis with elevated magnesium levels.

Though many different fish and clean-up crews have been recommended for ridding a tank of HA, it's very hit and miss as to whether the individual critters will do so. I had a Lawnmower Blenny that ate a ton of hair in my tank, but once it was gone and the fish began eating flakes, it never touched algae again.

[khrios]

I started adding the Mg for a few days, but my test kit wasn't here, so I didn't want to overdo it. I saw a drastic reduction in algae. Finally, the company that I ordered the kit from said they didn't have it. Does anyone know where I can get a Salifert Mg test kit, or recommend another good brand? They seem to be backordered everywhere. So now, I don't want to add any more Mg before I get the kit and the algae is not all gone. Also, a few of my softies have turned pale/neon green, which has me a little worried about the Mg levels. My blenny eats HA, but not nearly enough to keep up. I am going to try a sea hare this week if I still can't get a test kit

[omacphe]

I just added 3 Black Turbos to my new 37 and was amazed at how quickly they went through the algae. They are pretty good looking too.


Cheers,
Owen