calvin Posted November 9, 2004 Report Share Posted November 9, 2004 Hi All, I have the following setup: 30Gal Tank (900x250x500) Glass Eheim Classic Filter (2213) Protein Skimmer 201 Powerhead Aqua One 36” light (One blue & 1 White tube) Livestock Coral Beauty Yellow Tang Bi-color blenny Occilarus Clown Fish Cleaner Shrimp Green Stap Polyp Bubble Coral I have had the tank for about 4 ½ months now. The fish were added about 4 weeks ago. I had a white anemone for the clown, but unfortunately the thing got into the powerhead the I have. The retailer never told me about the protection that I need to add. I have noticed in the past 2 weeks that I have some algae growing again. I will be changing the fine sponge in the filter this evening. Any other ideas???? Help with all the livestock will be highly appreciated. The more I can learn the better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wasp Posted November 9, 2004 Report Share Posted November 9, 2004 Calvin - Where to start... I think you posted because there is algae starting and you don't want the tank to get messed up. Algae is related to water quality, and water quality is at the crux of keeping a good aquarium. But there is so much to learn/know, it's impossible to put it all in one post. One important thing is phosphate control. Every time you feed, some phosphate is added to the tank, and you must have a means in place to remove the phosphate. Phosphate fuels the algae and also harms the tank in other ways. Much of keeping a successful tank revolves around keeping phosphate at the correct level. Keep the levels right and algae will not be a problem. I'd recommend going to this site http://reefcentral.com/ and using their search engine to search the word phosphate. But it's a huge subject. You will not get it all sorted in 5 minutes, rather, it will take weeks or months of reading before you have enough knowledge to implement a good plan for phosphate control. Others here will have more to add also, but from me anyway, Good Luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pies Posted November 9, 2004 Report Share Posted November 9, 2004 As Wasp has said, many things to consider. From your description perhapps different lighting/more lighting/new bulbs will help with the algae. As will more water circulation. But water quality is paramount, and a challenge in smaller tanks. Still sounds like things are still going well for you so keep up the water changes, keep your hands out of the tank and good luck Pie Ohhh how about some pics? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lduncan Posted November 9, 2004 Report Share Posted November 9, 2004 OK. Here is my opinion an algae "control". Reef tanks are all about equilibrium. When you change part of your routine, you upset the equilibrium which has previously existed. It then takes time for the tank to settle back down to another equilibrium. So as long as you are doing all the right things consistently, your tank will sort itself out given time. I have had outbreaks of diatoms, and hair algae. What have I done about them. Nothing, just let them be, and if your tank is skimmed well enough, you feed a consistent amount of food (whether it be a large or small amount is irrelevant), and water changes are consistent (again whether frequent, or not), then your tank will adjust to suit. When people recommend to do water changes to fix problems like algae, generally it's pointless. You are upsetting the equilibrium when you start doing more frequent water changes, but the when you settle back to your normal schedule again, you upset it again, resulting in the tank taking longer to settle than if you had done nothing. Having said this there may be times when things are so far out of wack, that a water change is needed. So I think the key is good general practise, and consistency in what you add and take from the tank. It took 6 weeks for my hair algae to disappear completely, similar for diatom blooms. Every now and then things out of your control can upset the tank. Just let it do it's thing. Layton Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RnB Posted November 9, 2004 Report Share Posted November 9, 2004 whats the PH Temp Alkalinity Calcium Salinity Phosphate levels how have these been trending........ I am trying to establish if this has a simple water based cause, when I started I totally underestimated the importance of checking everything..... Also Whats the Phosphate level in your RO/DI type evaporation make up water.... Fish can take an incredible ammount of "abuse" rock and corals so much less..... there is so much when starting Lighting circulation skimming fish coral compatibility water change routine ca,mg,salinity,ph, on and on, its easy to get TOO focused on a few and start to ignore something else, which can be ok for a while but the cumulative effects starts to impact the closed system..... I cannot say enough personally tho to regular 10-15% water changes.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
calvin Posted November 9, 2004 Author Report Share Posted November 9, 2004 I have been very lucky during my setup. My Nitrite and ammonia has been 0 for the last 3 months. Nitrate is on 20, salinity is on 21-22, ph is constant at 8.2-8.4. I started adding calcium about 1 1/2 months ago when I got my first coral and coral food aswell. My bubble seems to have shrunk a little bit and I would like your advice on feeding. What else can I give my tang and coral beauty to graze on. I have been providing brocoli once a week and they chow it down in about 2 days. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
calvin Posted November 9, 2004 Author Report Share Posted November 9, 2004 the algea that I tend to see is not hair algea though. It normally sticks to the glass and varies from a green to red color. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chimera Posted November 9, 2004 Report Share Posted November 9, 2004 he heee, sounds like you may have cyanobacteria, not algae... although on the glass? not usually - cyano is typically on sand and rocks. sort your nitrates out specifically before adding corals (0ppm preference of course, but at least 5ppm or less before you add corals) your stocking levels seem quite high for a small tank so you may find it difficult to maintain low nitrates. cyano is a difficult and still a debated topic about how it comes about. IMO, its due to a number of parameters, not just one thing. as above, number one priority is water chemistry. i also believe it to be caused by lack of water movement and poor (or getting poor) lighting. even in my tank (0ppm of nitrates, phosphates) i have cyano. some will tell you it's because of NSW - dont believe them i have cyano on my rocks now and my parameters are sweet. not sure why exactly, but its ever since i increased feeding (again, phosphates and nitrates are 0ppm) can you post a pic of it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
petplanet Posted November 9, 2004 Report Share Posted November 9, 2004 Keep the brocoli for yourself. Get some nori sheets from the supermarket (the ones you make sushi with). The tang will really rip into it. Keeps them nice and fat. They tend t eat a lot more algae when they are in good condition. I use JBL Phosex to keep my phosphate levels down. There is a really good Aquaclear quickfilter you can put on the 201 powerhead. I would put a surface skimmer on the cannister filter. Really helps keep the top surface water clear. Ehiem do one (real expensive) or there is an Atman copy that is really cheap. What tubes are in the lightfitting (brand). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brianemone Posted November 9, 2004 Report Share Posted November 9, 2004 more light for the bubble to give you an idea, i have a tank of slightly smaller dimensions and i currently use a 150Wmh on my smaller tank i was using the same light you are now, but found the corals were only surviving and not growing, also a tang in a tank that size is borderline imo. (even if it is a yellow tang) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
petplanet Posted November 10, 2004 Report Share Posted November 10, 2004 I take it by your measurements that your tank is 500 deep and 250 wide. It that is the case then you have a major lack of surface area. Generally saltwater tanks should be wider than they are deep as saltwater does not have the oxygen carrying capacity of freshwater. Did you buy all the gear new from the same shop? Which shop was it? Are the tubes the original ones that came with the light fitting? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.