[junglejonny]

Im having a green hair alge and maroon alge??problem and im kinda stressin out about it.My tank was once a beautiful thing now its a green nightmare. i do water changes about every 2 weeks (r?o salt mix) bought 50 scarlet hermits and a lawn mower blenny and it doesnt seem to be getting any better any help would be greatly appreciated.

a couple other q's
1, how do you know if its dying
2 whats with ithe red alge
3 should i fire the lawnmower blenny
4 how do i clean the infested rocks?

thanks a bunch, looking forward to hear from you

[Reefland]

Jonny,

As mentioned, you have a nutrient problem. Test for both Nitrate and Phosphate and let us know the results. Also, what kind of filtration do you use, including skimmer? How much liverock and what kind of sandbed?

[junglejonny]

i use a red sea protien skimmer and a rena filostar cannister
i have about 25-30 lbs of live rock and a crushed coarl base

[scubadude]

Hi junglejonny
Welcome to Reefland!

As Scott mentioned we need much more information about your system then you have provided. It is good that you stated some information, but you need to be much more specific and explain in detail as much as you can about your tank/equipment/problem etc. The more detail you give us on the situation then the more detailed of an answer you will get wich will benefit you much better

You mention Red Sea skimmer....well Red Sea makes MANY different skimmers, they make a prism, prism pro, prism deluxe, berlin HOB, regular berlin etc etc....I hope you get the point

Is your skimmer producing some nasty skimmate? How often do you clean it?

You really should get a good combination test kit, one that will test Ammonia, Nitrites, Nitrates, PH, and Phosphates....and let us know the results.

[zhenya]

Originally Posted by junglejonny

i use a red sea protien skimmer and a rena filostar cannister
i have about 25-30 lbs of live rock and a crushed coarl base

Hi Johny,

Welcome to Reefland!
Judging by this post I suspect that perhaps your filtration method could be the culprit here, and especially the substrate in your tank.
How deep is that crushed coral bed? It has been known to contribute to nutrient accumulation problems, i.e. trapping detritus.
Another suspect would be that Rena canister filter. This types of filters require constant maintanance and cleaning/replacement of the meadia, so i would check those two suspects and try to remedy it.
But, I have to agree with Rocky and Scott, more information is needed if you want more detailed answers.

[junglejonny]

thanks 4 all of your input i did some reserch. I bought a test kit and did a 10 gallon water change. found out my nitrates were at 160 ppm!!!!(oops) so im gonna let it circulate tonight test it tommorow and clean out my rena.(i have the ceramic balls and stars in my cannister, and was told that they dont go bad)???(p.s. i think i put all my tank specs on my profile) (i have the prism delux, about a 2 inch base of crushed coral and a cant find a phosphate test kit 4 the life of me but ill keep searching and keep yall posted thanks again

[Samper]

Those balls and what not aren't gonna go bad but the stuff that accumulates on them will go bad. I was having the same problem you're having a long time ago and it was due to a crushed coral bed. I suspect if you got rid of the canister or kept it cleaner and got all that CC out your problem would be much easier to deal with.

[ldrhawke]

I second get rid of the canister filter.

The problem with getting a system out of balance is that it is normally a slow process that is done over months. Once it is out of balance it is a slow process getting it corrected. If it isn't you often cause more harm that good.

With nitrate that high you need to start with 30 to 40% water changes once a week for a month or more, and then start looking for the source of nutrient release. Canister filters should not be used at all unless you are going to change media daily. Look for and remove pockets of waste, algae, and detritus. Both your substrate and rock are both probably leaching phopshate and nitrogen back into the tank; they will take a long time to clean up. Cut your feeding schedule and quantity in half or less.

Expect it to take a few months or more, and a lot of water changes if you don't want to start investing into other nutrient removal equipment and/or processes; i.e -Rowaphos,etc

[My2heartboys]

Originally Posted by Samper

Those balls and what not aren't gonna go bad but the stuff that accumulates on them will go bad. I was having the same problem you're having a long time ago and it was due to a crushed coral bed. I suspect if you got rid of the canister or kept it cleaner and got all that CC out your problem would be much easier to deal with.

Just another thought, here. Try doing another water change, but get your siphon down onto the gravel and even letting the gravel get up into the wide end of your siphon (or gravel vac). Once it is in the wide end of the hose you can shake it around a little and encourage extra detrius matter to go up the siphon while your gravel settles back down onto the bottom. If you do this the night after taking a turkey baster and squirting stuff off of your rocks and coral--it should help immensely.

You might also want to take the "balls and stars" our of your canister filter and give them a good rinse in R/O water or you could use a mild vinegar/water solution with a soft brush and gently give them a good scubbing and then rinse in R/O water.

IMHO-this is where I would start, although I could be wrong.

Anne

[junglejonny]

thanks 4 all yalls input i gonna stay on the water chances, clean out my cannister and hope 4 the best!!!!! p.s.any one know where to get quality hvo's whith out having to take out a second morgage????(lookin to do a sps tank soon!!!!!i cant wait!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Poseidon]

Johnny if you clean your canister and Vaccuum your gravel at the same time, heck within the same month, you stand a very good chance of throwing your tank into another cycle. That will raise your NH3, NH4, (ammonia) and NO2 (Nitrite). You may eliminate your NO3 (nitrate) but cause all kinds of other problems.

I agree with the others about the canister, it must go! You have to do it right though, if you just yank it you will cause problems as well. Take it slow, remove the media over the course of a week or even two, once the media is all gone, you can take it away...

[My2heartboys]

Mike I agree. If you yank it-do it slow. Don't vacuum your gravel AND clean your canister all at once. Do it about a week apart.

Anne

[junglejonny]

WOW good thing i didnt gravel vac yet cause i cleaned my cannister yesterdat it was NASTY full of brown sludge.I took all the water out of it and rinsed the ceramic cylinders and bio stars off with ro-salt and replaced it all withe new water. I hope i didnt shock my tank too much. Just tested my water Ammonia=0 ppm Nitrate=80 ppm (worried) Nitrite=0 ppm (???) and ph=7.8 I dont know if this is good or not I would like to see my Nitrates come down considerably. I know Ammonia at zero is good. But the ph and Nitrite has me a little confused. Any input on this would be appreciated.

[My2heartboys]

Originally Posted by junglejonny

WOW good thing i didnt gravel vac yet cause i cleaned my cannister yesterdat it was NASTY full of brown sludge.I took all the water out of it and rinsed the ceramic cylinders and bio stars off with ro-salt and replaced it all withe new water. I hope i didnt shock my tank too much. Just tested my water Ammonia=0 ppm Nitrate=80 ppm (worried) Nitrite=0 ppm (???) and ph=7.8 I dont know if this is good or not I would like to see my Nitrates come down considerably. I know Ammonia at zero is good. But the ph and Nitrite has me a little confused. Any input on this would be appreciated.

You might want to do a water change and monitor your pH. Hopefully doing a w/c will help line up your pH. What is your calcium, magnesium and alkalinity levels?

Anne

[junglejonny]

I dont have thoes test yet all i have are ammonia nitritr nitrate and ph right now. What should my ph be???? And is nitrite a 0 good or bad???

[junglejonny]

Sorry

[junglejonny]

lso if I where to get ride of

[junglejonny]

oops what iu was trying to say is what woul i use instead of the cannister????

[My2heartboys]

Originally Posted by junglejonny

I dont have thoes test yet all i have are ammonia nitritr nitrate and ph right now. What should my ph be???? And is nitrite a 0 good or bad???

Around 8.4. Don't bring it up too suddenly though. You can try Kent Pro-buffer or kalkwasser (not sure on this one you might ask one of the more experienced reefers.

Anne