sick of green algea

[ZOOT098]

ok so i did my third big water change (25gallon) and the tank is clear for 1 day then you cant even see through it the next

i wouldnt mind it so bad if the water wasnt always cloudy, dont know what else to do

within 8 hours i have a green film on all my glass

i dont think 1000 snails could keep up with it

do i just have to wait it out?

put my zoos in my fuge which isnt suffering from the algea problem:frustrat:

 

[sen5241b]

I'm a noob and been battling algae since I started in January. You need a multi-pronged attack: floss/carbon filter, cleaner crew (snails, crabs, etc.), water changes, less light, turkey baste the LR and let floss catch the crap (this one takes a ton of nitrate producing detritus out of my water).

Algae loves light, phosphates and nitrates. Somehow those things are getting in your water and feeding the algae.

 

[jcegt87]

how many fish do you have in it is it still cycling what kind of water u use ??

 

[ZOOT098]

i have 4 green chromis they are small, about 3/4" each
1 lawnmower blennie
about 20 red legged hermits
1 sally lightfoot
4 red collar snails


ive used RODI water since first fill

 

[Piggy]

Are you feeding frozen food? Are you running any type of phosphate media? How many hours are the lights on? Do you have enough LR? Looks like you coulld use more snails.

 

[ZOOT098]

im feeding frozen food, just the solids

im not running phosphate media

100 pounds of LR

my lights have been running about 8 hours a day

im going to switch to just the actinics for a while per fatmans advice to another reefer

 

[ladypheesh]

I agree that you could use more snails. Ours are a little behind and we probably have about 20-30 in our 75 gallon. Some people have as many as 1 per gallon. not saying that will instantly clear up your problem but it might help.

 

[ZOOT098]

what kind of snails are you using???

 

[ladypheesh]

we have a mix of black turbos, cerith, astrea, and a couple of nassarius. I think the turbos are the best algae eaters of the group but I don't know that for sure.

Biff just reccomended the mexican turbos, those gigantic ones that are like the size of your fist. She reccomended a couple for our 75 so I'm sure it wouldn't be a problem in yours.

Some people use sea hares but once they eat all of the algae they can starve.

 

[ZOOT098]

I will stop by my LFS and see what they have in stock

I have lost 2 of my red collar snails 1. i think the tank may be too warm for them 2. they dont last long if they end up on their back overnight

how many snails is enough in a 90 gallon???
or better yet how many is too many?

 

[RyanG]

While you are at the fish store grab some kind of phosphate absorbsion media. If you have a filter put it in there if not find a spot where the water will have to flow trough it and not around it. It will work as well or better than the snails you need to find out where the phosphates are coming from and eliminate them. If you your LFS has some Cheatomorpha macro algae get a wad of that too and put it in your sump. You just need to outcompete the green algae for its food source(phosphates). Hopefully you can get it under control. Happy reefing.

 

[IraqVeteran]

I always use the mexican turbo snails for my tanks....especially right after the cycle. The brown algae always come right about that time and those little guys do the trick.

 

[jcegt87]

I always use the mexican turbo snails for my tanks....especially right after the cycle. The brown algae always come right about that time and those little guys do the trick.

really WOW lucky you 2 me it seems that only AFTER my 2 snails died(were on back of tank laying upside down) did my brown alge dissappear