[Davers]

Hi i am a newbie to this site and was wondering if any one knows how to get rid of hair algae as i am overrun, and apart form picking it out, am at a loss, Thanks in advance

[mrok12]

Run a skimmer. Decrease the photo period. But you are going to have to get in there and pic some of it out.. I had this problem a month ago and I did the following. Got 60 snails. 12 blue leg hermits. to go with the nassarius and cerith snails I already had. Did a 50% water change followed by 2 -20 % changes that week and cleaned out as much of that stuff as I could. I am now hair algea free.


MROK12

[bongobrian]

I agree with mike. Follow his advice. It's going to be a tough battle once hair algea establishes itself in the tank and starts to overrun the tank as you said. Pay close attention to your water quality and try to eliminate excess sources of nutrients. Are you overfeeding? remember that any decaying organics in your tank will just be fertilizer for the hair algea. Are you using R/O or distilled water? if you're using tap water, you could be adding a constant source of nutrients for the algea. The best option is to switch to R/O water or at least start buying distilled from the grocery store. Start growing some macro algea. A seperate refugium usually works best. This way you'll start giving the hair some competition for nutrients, and hopefully the macros will eventually out-compete the hair algea. Get some animals (as mike suggested) who will help clean up the existing hair. Tangs seem to love the stuff. I've seen purple tangs and yellow tangs chow down on it. Algea blennies are also famous for eating hair algea. Foxface fish will also be a good choice. Good luck, and get ready to have a lot of patience. It's not something that will fix itself overnight. Get some test kits, record your water quality results. Try to eliminate or control the source of the nutrients.

[Davers]

Thank you to both reply's,went to lfs today and all they had in stock were 6 hermit crabs, so i have purchased them, also 1 small urchin, black, and 2 turbo snails,am awaiting a delivery of a skimmer from US.

I use R/O water that i purchase from lfs untill i get my own set up,which i hope will not be too long.

I am not a lover of the tangs myself, and am loathe to put in what i don't really want, and the fox fish get too large for my tank, as it is only 55 gall UK.

As soon as i can get more creatures i will, and i will do a big change tomorrow.

I will take your advice and i will let you know how it is going.

Thanks again

[mrok12]

I have MAcro growing right in the tank. I did not have the room to plumb in a refugium. The skimmer will help and also getting in and getting as much out as you can will. Tuxedo Urchins do a good job as well. GOOD LUCK!

MROK12

[Davers]

Thanks for all your help guys i will let you know how it is going

[Bughead]

mrok--
How does your tuxedo do with the coraline. I'd love to have an urchin but the last time I had one he was extremely efficient at stripping the coraline and I took him back to the lfs. Is the tuxedo a little gentler with the coraline?

[organicreefer]

my tuxedo urchin eats the coralline in my 120-but i doubt you'd be able to tell the back is almost completely purple now @ 6 months.
i could add another ,i think ,and still have my coralline too but the one i have is already somewhat of a bulldozer as it is. so i think i may just stick with one.

[obring]

I was just browsing around, but i think i read you got an an Urchin... . welllll..... i dont know about you, but i used to be very proud of the coralline growth on my tank (i have allowed it to grwo on the back and the sides) and one day i doscover two tiny little Urchins on a piece of LR i got... and was tickled pink. Four months later my tank was not! The Urchins did away with just about ALL the coralline growth (two years in the making).

[Bughead]

That has been my experience in the past with a green pincushion urchin. That's why I asked, because I think urchins are really cool and would like to have one, especially if it helped with the hair and turf algae. But I like the coraline and I don'r want white pathways all over it. A friend has 3 urchins in his 300 gal and I can't see any where they've eaten coraline. Of course that's a very big tank.

I'll try one and if it proves to be a coraline glutten I'll give it to my friend.

[Chris Lakies]

I had the same problem - HAIR ALGEA! I have a 55 gallon sps tank so I use alot of light 2 175 watt metal halides and 3 110 watt VHO's. No matter what I tried, RO, great skimmer, lots of water movement, water changes, keep all of the trace elements up (alk, calc, ph). Although all of this help the cause nothing totally got rid of the hair. A month ago I introduced grape caulpera to my tank to eat the nutrients and now no trace of hair. If I would of had enough room for a refugium I would have. The caulpera is in my point of view, 100% better than hair algea. The hair algea is very hard to pull off rock and when you do you end up with floating bits which when the stuff wraps around a hard coral will strangle it and turn it white. Harvisting the Caulp is easy. Die hair algea Die!!!!

[Davers]

Good news all round, and a 2 question's ?

I now have no hair algae in my tank courtesey of 26 turbo snails 7 red legged hermit crabd and 12 blue and it looks fab.

My question is : how many of these critters should i now remove, and how many should i keep? because obviously they are running out of food,my lfs will be happy to take back what i don't need.also have a fox fish,a dwarf cherub angel,2 clowns and an urchin,2 cleaner shrimps, 2 blood shrimps.

Also would like a scooter blennie,will he go with all the occupants in the tank, and are they easy to keep feed etc

Cheers

[bongobrian]

If you say you have a 55 gal tank, I think you could keep them all. Definitely keep the snails, if you're going to get rid of something, I would ditch some of the hermits.. start with the blue ones.

[Elmo18]

Yeah, those Blue ones really like to kill those snails. I've witnessed some

- Elmo

[Bughead]

Ditto on those hermit crabs. Every time I see a snail in the tank it turns out to have a crab in the shell instead. Plus, they reproduce, so their babies take over the tiny nassarius snails too.

[Davers]

Ok i can get rid of the blue hermits tomorrow,thanks for all reply's much appreciated now if i could find out about the blenny would be great

[organicreefer]

i cant beleive all you guys saying to ditch the hermits(i have all kinds and no problems)-but its ok to have 26 turbo's in a 55

dont worry about the hermits killing them-theyll surely starve in time........

i would keep MAYBE ten of the turbos and return the rest.

[Reefland]

As organicreefer mentions, it is hit and miss with the blue hermits. Some people have witnessed them killing thier snails, others have had no problems. I for one never had a problem with hermits. Keeping some extra empty shells in the tank is a good idea if you do have them.

I would also say you could get by with 10 or so turbos. Now that your problem has slowed, 10 should do the trick. Get some of your money back or get some in store credit!

Scott Z.

[Davers]

Thanks guys you are all great,i will surely get some credit as my lfs are fab,now could someone "PLEASE" advise on the blenny,because i could get one of them with my credit,thank you in advance

[Bughead]

Absolutely on the lawnmower blenny. I have one in the 55, and even though the hair algae has gotten beyond his ability to keep up, he still does a good job. I have two in the 180, but that was sort of by accident. Don't put two together. Mine still chase each other a lot and I'm sure that if the tank was any smaller, one would be dead by now. A friend gave me his and I didn't know they wouldn't get along. I sure wish I'd put him in the sump, but I can't catch either one of them now.