New Tank up 10 days and cycling I added 70 pounds of live rock and huge algae bloom

[Transformation]

I do not like the looks of this its growing like crazy every day....
It started on the tops of the live rock and now is all over in the overflow and spreading across the substrate.....

70 pounds of live rock
30 pounds of live sand
40 pounds of crushed coral (not live)

I have a sump with a 2 socks, a bak pak protien skimmer and an 1800 gph pump

Here is a pic
Should I be concerned??
What should I do?



Looked into the sump just now both socks are colored with the algae the floor of the sump has a partial cover of algae as you can see in the photo



I do not have the skimmer running right now as I am trying to trace the source of some micro bubbles.....

[DevonM]

The algae, which appears to be cyanobacteria, is pretty normal for a new tank, part of the cycling process. Was your live rock actually alive with bacteria, cured, or was it dried "live rock"? If it was dried there could be excess nutrients leaking out and if it was alive, there would be some die off that would also feed the algae bloom.

Regardless I would do some research on starting up a new tank (www.wetwebmedia.com is one of my favorites) so you know the "Dos" and "Don'ts" of the startup period. I'm sure a partial water change would help to start things off and getting your skimmer started up.

Have you tested your water for ammonia, nitrites, nitrates and phosphates? Checking these levels, and researching them, will help you see where your tank is in the cycling process. If you can maintain a high water quality, keeping fish and corals is easy.

On the micro bubble point, does raising the level in your sump cure the problem?

Congrats on the new tank!

Devon