Hair algae growing on Caulastrea skeleton

[Penguin]

What is the best way to remove this without damaging the coral? Toothbrush? Siphoning? Grazing organism?

I don't have any problem with hair algae in the rest of the tank, just this coral. When I first bought the coral it had a few remnants of algae in one spot on the skeleton but now they have grown. Should I try shading the skeleton with a rock or something to prevent the algae from growing? There are also a few zoanthids that came in on the skeleton of the coral and I'd like to avoid killing those if I can.

[kevinpo]

A tooth brush works well. Just pull the coral out of the tank and hold it over a bowl of tank water with the top of the coral pointed down. Scrub the skeleton with the brush and shake the coral in the bowl to remove the loose algae.

HTH,
Kevin

[Penguin]

Thanks, I'll try that.