New 10 Gallon, (Recurring Theme)

[OCCFan023]

Green Hair Algae

Well as the title says I have a problem with green hair algae in my tank. It was on one peice of live rock (my emerald took care of that), but now it is in the back of my tank in the sand. I cant really see it at all and to be honest with you I dont mind it. BUT I was reading ealier that green hair algae can trap debris and such and break it down into more nitrate and such. My question is do I need to worry about it? I just figured everyone took it out because they didnt like its look, but will the algae actually have consequences on params and the health of my fish?

 

[dbacksrat]

no the algae shouldn't cause much of a problem...it does produce a tiny bit of oxygen though...and it will also help reduce your nitrate levels

 

[OCCFan023]

O it will help redice my nitrate? I thought the opposite thats good to hear. Although now cyano is starting to show its head in the green hair so I gotta watch it and make sure it doesnt progress. Thanks

 

[wayne]

It will reduce nitrate by effectively 'eating' it and using it as a food/fuel source. Without any nitrates algae is unlikely to form.
If you really want to get killer algae then have inadequate flow and let debris settle into the 'hair'. There it can break down and be easily and immediately availale to fuel more growth. As this new growth will trap more debris, this is a bit self fulfilling.

 

[OCCFan023]

What is the waste product of the nitrate eating, is it just oxygen (like Mushroomman said?, is that the bi-product)

I really have no idea wheir the nitrates came from to fuel the start of it in the first place. But all of the hair is growing under all three of my filter intakes where I dont think theres alot of water flow, so that explains its position just in the back.


I dont want too much to grow so Ive been stirring it up when I do water changes so it shouldnt get any worst.


I think it could be pretty cool if it was like a carpet almost of it in the back for my hermits and emerald to munch on but I dont trust it to not get out of control fast so Ill be watching it closely (especially this damn cyano now, I really dont want that crap starting)

 

[lordroad]

Hey OCC, I'm having similar problems in my ten, hope you don't mind I piggy back onto your thread, heh heh

Frankly the last week or so has been frustrating. Bryopsis is covering the back and left wall, as well as my largest rock where the coraline hasn't encrusted, and I have some red hair algae too-- it's like nasty red threads, individual, on parts of the glass, rock, and a little bit of the sand.

Last night I scrubbed and got a lot of it out, and I also moved my powerhead to an adjacent wall. This is giving me better flow, but I had a disaster this morning--some rock shifted and I was late starting work fixing it. Real PITA as you can imagine.

Just did a nitrate test and it reads under 5... checked out the water a week or so back at the lfs and my readings are accurate.

My powerhead needed a good cleaning and the flow was weak for a good while, so crap had begun to settle in the hair, and man, it got nasty.

I've had algae before, but just not this bad, and not so late in the game. I guess it's just part of the saltwater arena, though, especially in the first year.

Hope you get it cleared up OCC and I hope both our systems stabilize.

 

[OCCFan023]

Hows your tank doing Lord? is the algae still a problem with you? My green hair stopped spreading and is just in areas where I dont mind it and it looks interesting. But theres a part in the back where there isnt green hair and I can really see some cyano really showing up and IDK what to do. Next cleaning I think I may just remove all the sand with the cyano becasue I dont want a outbreak of this stuff again. Ive also been fitting with encrusting snails that my bumbleebees brought in.. but like ya said its the salt water arena I guess. Now all I got to do is figure a way to get rid of my 46 gallon so I can put full interest into my salt but IDK how my mom will like the idea of selling that tank.

 

[lordroad]

OCC, what really helped me with the cyano was a combination of the nassarius snails, baby cerith snails, two new crabs, and mainly, the aquaclear powerhead. This killed all the cyano hair algae and also eliminated the nasty cyano mat algae that was collecting under my powerhead.

My tank still looks kinda rough, but here's a shot of it...

Got some blue mushrooms and you can see the scroll algae is back like a bad sequel... I now trim it with sciossors every week to keep it at bay. It's also helped in cutting back the hair algae... but as you can see, I still have it, but it's contained.

How's your nano doing?

 

[OCCFan023]

your tnak is lookin awsome, youve got some awsome coraline going on the glass. All the corals look like there thriving and enjoyin life ha.

My tank is doing good, I dont have any fish in at the moment, Im seeing what can happen with my 2 cleaner shrimp (ones about to lay eggs), and I dont want to have any predators in the tank. Overall I feel the tank is too plain for my approval but I am very weary about going with corals since college is on its way, I dont know how they would fare. I got the green hair algae out manualy and it hasnt returned, but I see some cyano appearing on the back wall and sand (I have to do a water change tonight so Im gonna try and take it out before it spreads).


All in all its doing good justt a little plain as I said before. Im looking forward to adding some fish if my shrimp plan doesnt go the way I was hoping.

O yea I only have astrea snails and bumblee snails no nassarius. I recently noticed coraline beggining to grow on my powerheads and glass, so that was uplifting.

thats about it from here

 

[OCCFan023]

What do you guys think of a Coral Beauty Angle Fish in the 20L? I saw one at my lfs and really liked his look. Since flame angels get too big I thought the Coral Beauty would work. I was reading up a little on him and he looks to be hardy, and should work well in my tank.


If I didnt get the angel would he be th eonly fish I could have or could i fit another (maybe two) fish in the tank, or is that asking for trouble?

 

[lordroad]

OCC, I say go for the coral beauty. I've never had one but I think you could make it work.

If another fish could be squeezed in, what kind are you thinking about?

 

[OCCFan023]

If I could squeeze one in it owuld be a royal gramma. I really like the royal grammas and think there real interesting.

 

[lordroad]

Royal grammas are cool. That would be a neat combo if you could work it.

Planning on buying the fish soon?

 

[OCCFan023]

Ill get the angel as soon as I can make a trip out to the lfs (and they have one in stock).


Ill keep him for a while and then make sure all is well and everything is going good, then think about adding the gramma

 

[CAPSLOCK]

Um, don't coral beauties get a bit bigger than flames... to like 6 inches?

Go for a little pygmy angel or the like (flamebacks or similar also)... they max out at 2.5 inches or so. You could probably fit a gramma with one in a 20g, just make sure to get the angel first (grammas are very territorial little fish, and pygmy angels are shy).

 

[OCCFan023]

I read they grow to max out at like 4inches, and ussually are around 1.25-2 inches when bought. Ill have to check up on some websites and Ill get back on that one.

Ill deffinitly add the angel first, because like ya said the agression factors and everything.

The coral isnt a 100% yet but im pretty confident on it at the moment. It will either be a type of angel or a fish that catches my eye at the pet store when I go (which I doubt, but will do research first if it comes to that).

ill get back on the first question of size

 

[wayne]

I've never seen a 6 inch coral beauty. 4 inches seems right to me.

A dwarf angel is quite capable of roughing it with a gramma. In such a small tank I wouldn't mix them - too similar

 

[OCCFan023]

I've never seen a 6 inch coral beauty. 4 inches seems right to me.

A dwarf angel is quite capable of roughing it with a gramma. In such a small tank I wouldn't mix them - too similar

Yea Im gonna hold off on the gramma and just stick with the coral beauty, and get him all settled.


***Update 10/23

Well I headed out to my lfs today and got my Coral Beauty. I was real excited to find out they had one, I was looking for a good 5 minuets then in the bottom of my eye saw on on a bottom tank, and he was a great looking specimin: very energetic, vibrant colors, and no signs of stress or injury, so I jumped on him and got him for 39 bucks.

I acclimated him for about 15 minuets in the tank to get the temperature right, then preformed a drip for about a half hour, and hes now introduced into the tank, and has already found a cave to call home and is constantly checking out his surroundings.

Hes about 21/2 inches and has awsome colors. Hes very active and things are looking good.


As for food I picked up some frozen Marine Angel Formula for a good meaty substance to his diet, http://www.marinedepot.com/md_viewItem.asp?idproduct=ON6515
And I also have marine algae sheets to put in there for him. One question I was wondering is with those two variety of food I think heell have everything he needs, but will he heat pellets? I have some marine formula one pellets (two different sizes large and small). I dont think hell be able to eat the large ones so Ill tyr the small ones but do you guys think hell eat them? I throw to large pellets in for the shrimp so hell have a chnace to try them so that will be atest to see if he oculd eat the large ones, but will he eat pellets?

As for mizing up his diet, do you think I should make the algae sheets a regular food source? Or should I go pellets (if hell eat them) 3 times a week, algae sheets 2 times a week, and the frozen angel formula 2 times a week to keep his diet varied?

Im real excited to have him, hes a awsome fish, so I figured Id share the update

 

[CAPSLOCK]

Angels, especially dwarf, (from everything I've read) need lots of algae in their diet... like 50%. I feed a variety of stuff (mostly frozen, also flakes and refridgerated daphnia), something different every meal. None of my fish will eat the SW pellets (but they might be too big for the angel). I add a little square of algae sheet every other day or so, in addition to the other food... the angel is the only one in there that isn't carnivorous. It also lets the angel pick at it's leisure.

Keep in mind that I'm certainly not the most experienced with SW.

I definitely read at liveaquaria.com that coral beauties hit 6 inches, apparently they lie.

 

[OCCFan023]

As for feading, Ill try the pellets but I think after that will try my flake food (I got some for my inverts, and its a algae based for algae grazzing fish) so hell have alot of algae in his diet with the flake, sheets, and meaty frozen cubes.

Hes out alot now and Im really getting a chance to see his color, unfortunetly Im battling a cyano problem and have to constantly move htings and deal with it and am stirring up alot of stuff so my water wont be at my likeing for a while to really enjoy him in peace, but hes already a awosme addition and by far my favorite fish.