Alage Issues!!!

[Patrick76]

My 29 g setup it's about a month old but can't seem to win against brown algae on the sand, when the lights go on in the morning you can't find it but at the end of the day is covered with it , I feed only once a day.

 

[cthegame]

what kind of water do you use? Tap or RO? How often to you do water changes?

 

[Patrick76]

Once a week 20% change. Using tap with the conditioner stuff you up in it that makes it safe.

 

[cthegame]

Switch to RO or Distilled water and keep up your water changes. Algae will eventually go away. You can buy RO water from super markets.

 

[Patrick76]

how much is to water and where in supermarkets? Also just start to water in water changes? Or replace about half my tanks water? Also could me not having a skimmer yet be the problem? I have a canister filter.

 

[cthegame]

You can get RO or distilled water at walmart (most large supermarkets should have them). You dont need to do a 50%water change. Just start using RO or dist. water from now on when you do water changes.

Yes, a skimmer will help with the algae and is highly recommended as primary source of filtration (along with LR). I would ditch the canister and use a skimmer instead.

Do you have live rock?

 

[yote]

Games got you covered.
The RO water at wal-mart (at least here) is 33 cents a gallon.Thats out of the machine where you fill your own jugs.I think the distilled is about 70 cents a gallon.

 

[claq50]

I had this same probelm with both of my tanks. My first as a Nano 10 gallon and my New tank and a 75 gallon. I cured this problem by uping my water changes to once and week and cutting my lighting time to only 4 hours a day. This was before i added corals. Within a week it cleared up. I would try that and see if it works for you.

 

[Bifferwine]

Tap water is definitely not helping any. Using the water conditioner makes it "safe" for the fish, but it doesn't take out any of the algae-causing compounds that are commonly found in tap water.

You can also get RO water at grocery stores or water filling stations.

 

[Patrick76]

Thanks i am going to try that out this week and see if that starts helping. I will let you guys know.

 

[Patrick76]

Started using ro water looks like its helping right now it has cleared up a ton.

 

[blazk]

Good to hear that you have it under control. I too had used tap water to start my tank and i was having a nasty brown algae outbreak. Finally bought a 5 stage RO unit and now have red algae but slowly getting that under control too. A battle can be won with persistence.

 

[project5k]

yep, i told almost exactly the same story in another thread, started the tank with tap, the stuff grew everywhere, then switched to RO water(i get mine from the culligan machine at walmart for $.27/gal) and within 3 days, i'd say 95% of it was gone...

THERES SOMETHING IN THE WATER!