a little help with hair algae?

[Rais]

I have a 29 gal tank that's had hair algae issues since it started (over half a year ago). I'm looking for a solution that's not requiring me to buy a RO/DI unit. My tank's got a large bed of caulerpa prolifera, and C. Mexicana macro algae. As those grew I noticed the hair algae growth slowed tremendously, but there's still small clumps I have to try and pull out every once in a while, and more that I can't get to.

Are there any reef cleaners you guys could recommend that would snack on my hair algae and leave the macros alone? I don't have a whole lot of scavengers right now. There's a turbo snail, a peppermint shrimp, a few nassarious snails, and a few blue leg hermits.

[CMOS]

You're going to be very limited if you eliminate the RO-DI water usage. Most likely your Phosphates are elevated, and there are only so many ways to reduce this. There are some phosphate absorbing products that you could use, and if your levels are only slightly elevated, this may work.

Do you have livestock that can withstand a reduction of lighting time?


CMOS

[Rais]

yeah, nothing is lighting dependent other than the macro algae. I am planning on getting an anemone sometime soon though.

But then again that will still just slow its growth rather than eliminate it.

[Reefing Madness]

yeah, nothing is lighting dependent other than the macro algae. I am planning on getting an anemone sometime soon though.

But then again that will still just slow its growth rather than eliminate it.

Your Anemone will not survive in those water conditions. Anemone need very strong lighting, and prestine water conditions. You have an abundance of phosphates in your tank, using tap water.
In your 29g tank, you should get about 5-8 Turbo Snails, possibly a Sea Hair, Bumble Bee snails, Astraea Conehead Snail, Banded Trochus Snail, Nerite Snail.

[Rais]

Thanks for the cleaner suggestions. But am I right in saying there is not an abundance of phosphates ,as the very large bed of macroalgae (2/3 of the tank floor) use it up. I know I get test readings of 0 for nitrates, but haven't tested phosphates.

[Reefing Madness]

You don't have to have an abundance of phosphates to get hair algae. But yea, your right. Your bed of algea is gobbling up the phosphates.

[fishschool]

My conversion to LED Lighting made a big difference in the amount of nuisance algae I had to fight.

Reduced wattage. Better quallity light.

And the LEDs focus the light downward. I get very little algae anywhere other than on my live rocks where the LEDs are pointing.

Jim