dark grean powder algae

[redadeath]

[attachment=2:2qccuti8]1.jpg[/attachment:2qccuti8]i have now using the scrubber for 2 month and all iget is very dark to floursent dark green " like pickles" i have 2500 litre pump with screen 10 inch with copact floursent 23 watt on each side and it is loose not strong algae it looks like paper not hair
[attachment=1:2qccuti8]2.jpg[/attachment:2qccuti8]
[attachment=0:2qccuti8]3.jpg[/attachment:2qccuti8]

the empty spot was a brown spot and i completely cleaned it

i have double plastic canvas" window plastic" i dont have plastic canvas in my region at all ... and i used sand paper to rough it... need to know the problem
best regard

[redadeath]

[attachment=0:3vdosk39]4.jpg[/attachment:3vdosk39]

[SantaMonica]

I don't see a problem other than the bald spot. The question, is how are N and P and nuisance algae in the tank?

Bald spots are caused by too much light relative to how much iron the algae is getting. The more light that algae gets, the more iron it needs too. CFL bulbs tend to make bald spots because all the light is concentrated in one spot, while the edges of the screen don't get enough light. Aside from switching to T5HO bulbs, here are your options from best to worst:

1. Get more flow. This will deliver more iron to the algae and let it grow again in the bald spot. Your screen needs to be very rough, however, to hold on to the algae in the higher flow.

2. Add iron, such as Kent's Iron+Manganese, per the instructions.

3. If adding iron did not fix it, and you can't add flow, then move the lights farther back. This will spread the light out more evenly across the screen.

4. If you can't move the lights back, then either use smaller bulbs, or reduce the number of hours that the lights are on.

[redadeath]

hi santa thnx for reply

the bald spot was brown algae and i cleaned only completely this spot before i posted the pics with two day

the problem is why my algae is not hairy type it is like paper or pieces that not so strong
nitrate is 10 mg phospaht = unfortunatly i dont have test kit
i also have red slim algae in my tank i stopped feeding flakes and am now feeding natural food like shrimp and clams to minimize phosphate i am using ro water
120 gallon with sump > live rock and it is not heavy stock tank

[SantaMonica]

First, remember that all algae does filtering, including very dark or black growth.

Dark growth is caused by high nutrients and weak scrubbers. Since the scrubber can't grow fast enough to get the nutrients down in a day or two, the growth that does grow is dark. A stronger scrubber would get the nutrients down quickly, and the growth would start turn to green by the end of the week.

But you don't need to change your scrubber; most scrubbers will get to green evenually, as long as they are not too weak. The trick is to clean the screen more often; every 3 days if the growth is a dark oily or black growth. After the growth turns to a lighter brown, switch to cleaning every 5 days. After you get some green, switch to 7 days.

Of course, anything you can do to make the scrubber stronger will help speed up the process.

[redadeath]

thnk u santa i will wait and see

[redadeath]

hi santa here is my results after 7 days the green algae is not yet hairy type
and still dark green
i also found some dark red green algae in the middle spot ? is it cyano as i have cyano in the main display
i aslo added foil reflectors two days ago before scrubbing
please analyze my results
[attachment=0:r4ml3hcd]alg2.jpg[/attachment:r4ml3hcd]
[attachment=1:r4ml3hcd]alg1.jpg[/attachment:r4ml3hcd]
best regard

[SantaMonica]

Looks good. Now that nitrate and phosphate is coming out of your tank, it will start growing greener next time.

[redadeath]

some body told me that i am over feeding
cause i feed them too much srimps twice a day in addition to pellets and flake
my nitrate is very high = 25
should i reduce feeding

[SantaMonica]

The scrubber will take care of it. Give the nitrate 4 weeks to come to zero.

[redadeath]

thnk u santamonica
do i have to make lees feeding or keep it the same quantity and what about the cyanobacteria??

[SantaMonica]

Keep the same for a few weeks.

[redadeath]

hi santa i replaced on of my bulb with this lamp and increased the flow so it is now 3000 l per hour pump
is this lamp goodhttp://www.ecat.lighting.philips.com/l/catalog/catalog.jsp?userLanguage=en&userCountry=sa&catalogType=LP_PROF_ATG&_dyncharset=UTF-8&categoryid=LP_CF_IP38CB_EU_FA_SA_LP_PROF_ATG&productid=923810844210_EU_SA&title=PAR38%20Cool%20Beam%20120W%20E27%20230V%20CF L%201CT&ctn=923810844210_EU
my old one was 23 compact floursenct
is thiis better

[SantaMonica]

No can't use that... it is not fluorescent.

[redadeath]

can u tell me why santa ???

[SantaMonica]

Incandescents get too hot, and don't put out enough light.

[redadeath]

so now i am intending to put new bulbs i have two cfl 23 wat on each side
i will change them to 36 watt on each side is it enough????

[SantaMonica]

How much are you feeding each day?

[redadeath]

feeding 2 times flakes food and one time pellet food
2 cm*2 cm nori sheet for the tangs 2 time perday
3 or four days perweek i put piece of shrimp for the regal angel
my nitrates is 25

[SantaMonica]

Change to CFL fluorescent.

Cut feeding in half.

See how it looks in 4 weeks.

[redadeath]

ok but what about the 36 watt compact flors. on each side is it good??

[SantaMonica]

Depends on how much you are feeding. A pinch or two of flakes each day, yes. A spoon of pellets, yes.

[redadeath]

i red a thread in the forum about the dark green powder algae issue and how it is related to the silicate in case of sand substrate
know my base is sand do i have the same problem??
and is this problem will last forever?
does this green powder doesnt absorbs phos and nitrater (ineficient) algae??
thnx santa

[SantaMonica]

Yours is not powder. His was powder. Yours is slime, which is normal.

[redadeath]

thnk u santa "king of the green"

[redadeath]

hi santa i did all u said but nothing new i think it is worth
i increase the flow and the lighning from 26 watt to 32 watt on each side and here is the results
the brown algae is more and nothing changed to green hair algae
[attachment=1:33u67a6i]phplrMdhsPM.jpg[/attachment:33u67a6i]
[attachment=0:33u67a6i]phpVwYUVWPM.jpg (1).png[/attachment:33u67a6i]

so plz analize the problem

[SantaMonica]

There is no problem. Just clean a little more often until it turns green.

[redadeath]

do i completely clean the double screen or clean one and leave one

[SantaMonica]

Clean it all.

[redadeath]

now the slime is red and it is thicker every week
but my nitrates is very high

50 ppm
what should i do sanata i am very upset!!!!

[SantaMonica]

Thicker means it is working. Clean it completely, every 5 days, for now.

[redadeath]

wht do umean by completely
remove also the inbetween the double screen (make it white)???

[SantaMonica]

A single screen would be better, especially for dark algae. But for now just clean everything including between.

[redadeath]

so that means i am going to start a new screen???

[SantaMonica]

Would be best. Otherwise, just clean everything off of your current screen, including the dark stuff between the screens.

[redadeath]

so how long would the new screen will take to make algae again????
and does mechanical filtration affects the working of scrubber???
does any one run algae scrubber in his system need to addy pyhtoplankton or what the scrubber produce is enough???

[SantaMonica]

7 days

Only affect feeding of corals and small fish.

Depends what you are trying to feed.

[redadeath]

this is the maximum cleaning i can get
the rest of algae is stucked between screens
is that cleaning enough?? or it will make problem??
[attachment=0:24ovks83]phpRisCpKPM.jpg[/attachment:24ovks83]

[SantaMonica]

Looks good. Do that every five days for a few weeks and see if green starts.

[redadeath]

hi santa
i changed my whole scrubber and make it in a bucket
new screen and added two extra bulbs

no i have 3000 litre /h pump
2 compact flourcesnt 2700 kelvin 30 watt on each side
so it is all 60 watt on each side + 120 watt as whole
so is that better and if it is powerful when it will be excepected to see the green algae?
do i have to add some alga from the old one ?
and wht is the tips do i have to do ? when to clean now ?
[attachment=2:bx7a79kl]1.jpg[/attachment:bx7a79kl]
[attachment=1:bx7a79kl]2.jpg[/attachment:bx7a79kl]
[attachment=0:bx7a79kl]3.jpg[/attachment:bx7a79kl]

[redadeath]

i also make it one screen instead of the old double screen

[SantaMonica]

Let's see the screen in 7 days.

[redadeath]

so how long to leave the light working
18 on an 6 off ???

[SantaMonica]

Yes

[redadeath]

do i have to put some of the ld algae on new screen t oboost the growth??

[SantaMonica]

No

[redadeath]

thnx king of the green

[redadeath]

hi santa this is my results after 6 days
plz analyse
am i going right????
my nitrates is over 50 ppm now
[attachment=2:2d7qsavw]1.jpg[/attachment:2d7qsavw]
[attachment=1:2d7qsavw]2.jpg[/attachment:2d7qsavw]
[attachment=0:2d7qsavw]3.jpg[/attachment:2d7qsavw]

[SantaMonica]

No, it does not seem to be working at all.

Can you lift up the screen and show the flow off of the bottom?

Are you turning the lights off for 6 hours each day?

Are you using any medicatiions in the water?

[redadeath]

no i dont use any medications i have lps in my tank soft corals i just add sera additive ( mag -alk-coral liquid-stroitium-iodine - magnesium-trace elements)
may be the lamps are hot??!!!
yes i make it off for 6 hours some time 5 hours

i send the video for the flow but it is good flow
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7B5-sC7tVik

[SantaMonica]

Can you increase flow?

If not, let it grow another 7 days.

[redadeath]

so do u think i would put fan ?

why it is not working?
do i have to wider the slot?

[SantaMonica]

Looks like there is not enough flow.

Just wait 7 days and see how it looks.

[redadeath]

i am putting a pump 3000 litre/hour !!!
how is it not enough???????????????/
it is covering the whole screen with water

[SantaMonica]

Then your screen material must not be very rough. Somehow algae is not sticking to the screen.

See how is looks in a week.

[redadeath]

am bothering u with alot of questions santa >> but u still the king of the green

so why i just have the brown algae stiking on the screen
i know it is not plastic canvas but i searched the whole country for it
i dont have it can u give me a good substitute or any other materia i can make it for screen ?? ???

sorry for bothering u again

[SantaMonica]

There is very little sticking to the screen. Let's see if it gets better in 7 days.

[redadeath]

i discovere something strange in my water the colour of some plastic was changing into red
i finally dicovered that flake food of sera is making red rsediue in the tank so i stopped it
does this affects the scrubber working????

[SantaMonica]

no

[redadeath]

hi santa i ordered plastic canva from amazone will arive during week
my scrubber is making ligh brown algae have bad smell sea air
how long i have to clean it ?
or should i leave it whole week?

[SantaMonica]

If you smell it, the flow is too low.

If you are going to replace the screen, you do not need to be growing this one.

[redadeath]

i smell it when i clean it only it has strong smell

[SantaMonica]

Yes, when you clean it. Just use running water in the sink, and let it go down the drain. Or you can clean it under water.

As the growth gets more green, the cleaning will smell more like the beach.

[redadeath]

i use tooth brush but it removes all the algae
do i need to remove all of it
i clean it every 3 days

[SantaMonica]

All of it.

[redadeath]

i cleaned it now
but i wonder how it will change to green if i completely remove it???!!!

[SantaMonica]

Dark does not ever change to green. You remove enough dark, and green starts growing fresh.

[redadeath]

hi santa i discovered that the flow of the pump was working with half it's effeciencey because the tube was very narrow that connect the scrubber to the pump

now i change all of that and i have 4000 litre / h flow and very strong flow
is excess flow bad ???
[attachment=0:1ljr7gam]phpZFlKesPM.jpg[/attachment:1ljr7gam]

[SantaMonica]

More flow the better.

[redadeath]

hi santa
please take a look on my design
i added to acrylic to prevent splashing of water on lamps and a cooling fan
i scrub every one day dark algae
give me ur opinion about this design and water flow
thank u
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=979go2PB ... r_embedded (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=979go2PB8u8&feature=player_embedded)

[SantaMonica]

Looks good.

[redadeath]

hi santa
today i recieved my plastic canva
and i roughen it using wholesaw but without the dril manuwally with my hand is that right?
the slot is splashing water
how can i make the slot ? what tool do i use to make it straight?

[SantaMonica]

Tilt the hole saw and scrape it sideways.

Best way to make the slot is with a table saw. Next best is with a Dremel moto-tool:

http://www.radio-media.com/fish/SpraybarDremelSmall.jpg

http://www.radio-media.com/fish/SpraybarDremel.jpg

[redadeath]

hi sanata i inserted the plastic canvas and after 5 days there was brown growth and after i cleaned it now 3 days and there is no any kind of growth even the brown
is the flow very strong???

do i have to increase the lightning time?

[redadeath]

also does the filter sock effect the growth

[SantaMonica]

Remove the sock.

Post a pic after 7 days of growth.

[redadeath]

hi santa this is after 4 days from the lst cleaning
i cleaned all of it now
please tell me is that normal
[attachment=1:2vccn6v3]phpBkdHRDAM.jpg[/attachment:2vccn6v3]
[attachment=0:2vccn6v3]phpmnniszAM.jpg[/attachment:2vccn6v3]

[SantaMonica]

Before or after cleaning

[redadeath]

this pictures is before cleaning
this is second time to clean and the same growth is the brown algae
i clean it every 4 days

[SantaMonica]

That is no growth at all. Let it go 10 days.

[redadeath]

so do i have to clean this thing or leave it ten days?

[SantaMonica]

10 days.

[redadeath]

this is the result after 4 days
can u tell me what is this???
[attachment=1:1a3bmqot]phpINqDYLPM.jpg[/attachment:1a3bmqot]
[attachment=0:1a3bmqot]phpXTAnUSPM (1).jpg[/attachment:1a3bmqot]

[SantaMonica]

OK for 4 days... let's see it at 10 days.

[redadeath]

hi santa now it is 8 days and lokk at this growth it is slime growth i think
should i clean or wait another 2 days
[attachment=0:12wzadr4]phpXdik8OAM.jpg[/attachment:12wzadr4]

[SantaMonica]

Are you sure you have NEW bulbs, at least 0.5 watts per gallon? This really looks like weak bulbs.

2 more days.

[redadeath]

ok tommorow i will buy new bulbs
there is bulbs that i trust that there wattage is really true and not only bare advertisment
but the one of them is 23 watt philips brand
so can i use 4 bulbs of them ?
are they going to be ok because these are the maximum wattage i can find in my market

[SantaMonica]

4 X 23 is good.

[redadeath]

today i cleaned the whole screen cause there is nothing new
i changed the bulbs here are them
http://www.ecat.lighting.philips.com/l/ ... 9552102_EU (http://www.ecat.lighting.philips.com/l/catalog/catalog.jsp?userLanguage=en&userCountry=aa&catalogType=LP_PROF_ATG&_dyncharset=UTF-8&categoryid=LP_CF_CTORESAV_EU_FA_AA_LP_PROF_ATG&productid=929689552102_EU_AA_LP_PROF_ATG&title=TORNADO%2023W%20WW%20E27%20220-240V%201BC&ctn=929689552102_EU)
but my lumen is higher than this in the web 1550lumen 70lm/w

no i played all the games i hope to see new growth i am so disappointed

after i cleaned the scrubber i see very tiny green algae on the canvas parts i dont know why it dont grow

[SantaMonica]

Let it run now for several weeks.

[redadeath]

several weeks with no cleaning every 7 days??

[SantaMonica]

Clean every 7

[redadeath]

hi santa i discovered that my light timer was adjusted for 11 hours only perdays the last 3 months
was that the reason that the turf didnt wotk well and that slime growth the last 3 months???

[Vannpytt]

It's a very good reason why it didn't turn green atleast. Less light/flow on a rough screen will not make it green. However, you probably need more lights initially.

[SantaMonica]

Less light will not let it get to green as fast.

[redadeath]

hi santa
now i am almost going to give up\
all i get is slime
i clean it every 4 days
the only green i get is under the light shield wich i can see green hair algae

do u think my flow is so strong than the light
what should i do
i made all the instructions u said
THERE IS SOMETHING WRONG

[redadeath]

I HAVE 2 23 WATT ON EACH SIDE
SO I HAVE 96 WATT TOTAL
my nitrate is 50
what if i doubled the light so it is 138 watt or more to be 184 watt???
do u think ther will be something new?????????????????????????????????????

do i have to close the skimmer??????? does it affect the scrubber

[redadeath]

waiting for ur reply
thnx

[SantaMonica]

What happened from the time of the dark brown growth, to now with no growth?

[Vannpytt]

It took me about 3 months t get it growing the way it should so don't give up just yet.

You need to remove the spalshscreen, add reflective material behind the bulbs so you get more light towards the screen, and first week let the lights be on 24/7.

If you have increasing nitrates while doing this, and you have no algae in your aquarium, you don't have enought phosphates, and in such case should either dose it or feed more.

[redadeath]

What happened from the time of the dark brown growth, to now with no growth?
no i still clean dark growth every 3 days brown growth with very strong smell

[redadeath]

It took me about 3 months t get it growing the way it should so don't give up just yet.

You need to remove the spalshscreen, add reflective material behind the bulbs so you get more light towards the screen, and first week let the lights be on 24/7.

If you have increasing nitrates while doing this, and you have no algae in your aquarium, you don't have enought phosphates, and in such case should either dose it or feed more.

if i removed splash screen it would splash on the bulbs
i have strong flow 4000 litre per hour

i have nitrate 50
do i have to increase the light???
or leave it work 24/7

[Vannpytt]

How is your phosphate?

[Vannpytt]

And if you get splashing on your bulbs without the acryllics you have a different problem all along. It should be rushing down the screen, not spray all over the place.

[redadeath]

i dont have phosphate test but i dont have any algae in the display
my shield are working good it is just make splashes on the lamp i dont like

i am suspicious about the flow
i think my flow is very strong
look at this picture
after i removed the shield i found green algae under the shield !!!!!!!!! wich is away from the light???!!!!!!
and the rest of the screen is only brown algae
this is very weird
can u analyze please?
thnk u for ur time
[attachment=0:1k9kp4rs]phpwEvrUMAM.jpg[/attachment:1k9kp4rs]

this is 3 days result

[Vannpytt]

if you don't have any algae in dt, with that high nitrate your problem is lack of phosphate wich will make it hard for you to grow algae, much like it would be hard for someone with phosphates to grow corals and coraline algae.

At this point I won't be the one to tell you to feed more, simply because I do not know how much phosphate you really have, but I suspect adding some would do you good, and it would probably also explode your algae growth beyond recognition untill your nitrates come down along with phosphates. Then again, it's an estetical question really. Adding phosphates to grow algae (both in DT and scrubber in the start) is not dangerous in any way, quite the oposite, but it does not look good.

[redadeath]

i reduced the flow with 3000 lperhour pump insted of 4000
i removed the acrilics
i added two bulbs 32 watt
now total ligh is 160 watt with foil reflectors
the flow is solid flow and i hope to see something new

[Vannpytt]

If you don't have phosphates it won't grow optimal, unless you add phosphates one way or another.

[SantaMonica]

Looks to me like you are not turning your light off for 6 hours each day.

[redadeath]

yeah that's right
but can u tall me why??
is it good to boost starting with keeping light 24 /7

[redadeath]

If you don't have phosphates it won't grow optimal, unless you add phosphates one way or another.
i am feeding with food full of phostphate i doubled feeding today

[SantaMonica]

No.

That's why it was only growing under the light shield.

Change to 18 hours.

[Vannpytt]

I started first week with 50% light and 24/7. Worked wonders for me.

[redadeath]

hi santa

please give me your opinion about that sitiuation

when i clean the scrubber then make it work i found tiny fresh green algae
then after one day it turns yellow then brown do u think the light is so strong for the flow???
should i decrease the light period???

[SantaMonica]

The light is not strong enough.

[redadeath]

do i increase the light period ???

i have 2*23 watt on each side
+ 30 watt on each side

= 152 watt
how it is not strong??!!!

[SantaMonica]

Just let it run

[redadeath]

[attachment=1:1403upaj]phpaxQt94PM.jpg[/attachment:1403upaj]hi santa now i am back with new design 45 degree angle scrubber from over flow water directly without pump
no i have 85 watt 6400 kelvin cfl lamp

now i have green hairy growth
any idea to make the screen full faster
please analize
[attachment=1:1403upaj]phpaxQt94PM.jpg[/attachment:1403upaj]
[attachment=0:1403upaj]php9Md5r7PM.jpg[/attachment:1403upaj]

[SantaMonica]

85 real or equivalent watts

[redadeath]

real watt

[SantaMonica]

Post a pic of the whole scrubber and light

[redadeath]

[attachment=1:2b70m9sl]phpaPvX55AM.jpg[/attachment:2b70m9sl]
[attachment=2:2b70m9sl]php6OKWCNAM.jpg[/attachment:2b70m9sl]
[attachment=0:2b70m9sl]phppeqIkhAM.jpg[/attachment:2b70m9sl]

[redadeath]

[attachment=0:m566hboa]phpVY0M5RAM.jpg[/attachment:m566hboa]

this is after 2 days of cleaning
i feed one tea spoon of pellet per day only
please analyze

[SantaMonica]

Ok. You have one single bulb, on a big wide screen. As you can see it's green already near the bulb, but not in other places. So, the other places are not filtering. 85 real watts is a very big bulb. Much better is 2 or 3 or 4 small bulbs, especially for that large screen.

You can let it run the way it is, and see how the growth will only be near the bulb. You may also get a bald spot near the bulb, because it's too much wattage in one spot. An 85 watt bulb should be about 10 inches (25 cm) from the screen to prevent this. It's very hard to get the light from a single bulb to cover such a large screen.

At some point, now or later, you will have to smaller bulbs. The best would be 4 bulbs, each 23 real watts, with a reflector on each one, so that the whole screen is covered.

Also, your overflow is only pouring into one spot. See if you can spread the flow out, by putting a piece of plastic across the flow. This will get the flow to the sides of the screen.

Horizontal screens are very hard to make efficient, for these reasons.

[redadeath]

i am afraid of making any changes now so algae die

what about 6400 kelvin it worked good

the light can be free moving i can make it away from the screen as i like

[SantaMonica]

Ok make it 25 cm, and let it run...

[redadeath]

thank u santa
now what about feeding should i increase or decrease feeding
i feed one teaspoon of pellet only perday
i also add phytoplankton every week and additives
is it good for algae or bad

[SantaMonica]

I don't think you are in a position to feed liquids. You need to get your screen to have solid growth from end to end.

[redadeath]

ok what about feeding fish
do i increase feeding
i add one tea spoon of pellet food
should i increase feeding or not

in addition my screen is bigger than what i need for my tank i just make it beigger to trace any growth

[SantaMonica]

Feed fish the same.

A bigger screen does not do anything unless it has flow all the way across, and bulbs all the way across.

[redadeath]

thank u santa i will update my pictures after 3 days to see the growth develepoment

[redadeath]

[attachment=0:24ejpgsd]phpquzMMqAM.jpg[/attachment:24ejpgsd]hi santa this is 6 days result
please analyze my results
why my nitrates is still 50 ppm
my salinity is 1.031 is this bad to corals?
[attachment=1:24ejpgsd]phpoqJimZAM.jpg[/attachment:24ejpgsd]

what can i use to scrub and do i scrub in the water direction or against it??

[SantaMonica]

Clean it all off, edge to edge, including the back side.

Like I said before, your design is going to be weak... horzontal, too big for one bulb, limited flow. This is what happens... it has trouble getting nutrients down.

I think for reef you want .026 salinity.

[redadeath]

hi santa now i move to the horizontal design with the same bulb
this is the results
sorry for misunderstanding u before and thatnk for ur help

please analyze


what is the white dust come from scrubber after i shake it in the water of the main display before scrubbing
[attachment=2:2xqkdud7]01032011156.jpg[/attachment:2xqkdud7]
[attachment=1:2xqkdud7]01032011159.jpg[/attachment:2xqkdud7]
[attachment=0:2xqkdud7]01032011160.jpg[/attachment:2xqkdud7]

[redadeath]

[attachment=0:343xazw0]01032011162.jpg[/attachment:343xazw0][attachment=1:343xazw0]01032011161.jpg[/attachment:343xazw0]

[SantaMonica]

Screen is vertical (up and down) now? Pic of screen and lights.

[redadeath]

sorry santa my camera is not here now

the screen is vertical and the same old bulb 85 watt 6400 kelvin with foil reflectors

the same old design stuff but i changed to vertical instead of horizontal

is tha algae good or bad

[SantaMonica]

Post pics when you get a camera. Clean both sides every 7 days.

[redadeath]

hi santa
my nitrates dropped from 50 ppm to 25 ppm after my last scrubbing

what should i do to make it lower to zero??
should i increase or decrease feeding???

[SantaMonica]

Keep same.

[redadeath]

hi santa
please what makes the algae turns to brown????

[SantaMonica]

High nitrate and phosphate.

[redadeath]

hi santa
my algae is loosing it's colour it seems like it is dying >> some of the algae is green and the other algae is grey (( it loosed it's green colour))
do i have to change the bulb
my bulb is almost 3 month old

[SantaMonica]

Yes an old bulb will cause the green to stop.

[redadeath]

i changed the bulb today
when will be the results?

[SantaMonica]

Green should start again this week.

[redadeath]

there is growth but it is not thick and it is not fast as before

[SantaMonica]

Pic at 7 days.

[redadeath]

is it good or bad to make the flow stop every day for a period of time to make the algae breath?

and how long should i do ?

my nitrates is still 50 pp
should i increase feeding or cut it to half and does cutting to half affect the algae growth??

thank u king of green

[SantaMonica]

It is bad.

Cut feed to half.

[redadeath]

hi santa
here is my picture updates
it is not working good and i feel my algae is not growing fast as before
this is two bulbs old one at left the new one at right >>>i make adjustement by adding another bulb every one is 85 watt cfl lamp

please help me my algae is dying
[attachment=2:3eg8fgz7]23032011013.jpg[/attachment:3eg8fgz7]
[attachment=1:3eg8fgz7]23032011014.jpg[/attachment:3eg8fgz7]
[attachment=0:3eg8fgz7]23032011015.jpg[/attachment:3eg8fgz7]

[redadeath]

[attachment=1:50daem9c]23032011016.jpg[/attachment:50daem9c][attachment=0:50daem9c]23032011017.jpg[/attachment:50daem9c]

[SantaMonica]

Looks good to me; nice and green. You probably have already removed a lot of the nutrients from the tank, so there is not as much growth now as before. You can probably start feeding more.

Try feeding two times as much for a whole week, and the following week you should get much more green growth. This will tell you it is working good.

[redadeath]

how can i be sure that the place of the bulb away from the screen is the best ?
i am putting it away for 5 cm

also what do u means by nutirents?? i still have nitrates 50 pp

is nutrients means nitrate only or other stuff

[mikepao13]

...and phosphates as well

[SantaMonica]

Nutrients are nitrate, nitrite, phosphate, ammonia, ammonium.

If growth is green, and there are no burn spots, the distance is good.

[redadeath]

what is the best food for algae
ammonia <<nitrate ..nitrite ...phosphate????

[SantaMonica]

Ammonia

[redadeath]

when i look to my tank from the side i found the water is light green ?? what is that and is that good

when my nitrates will be zero???
i am stucked in this nitrate problem ad in the same time i am trying to feed more so my algae still grow
waht can i do for making the equilibrium of that process feeding more and keeping nitrate low ??

[SantaMonica]

Hopefully the light green is live phytoplankton, but with high nutrients it might be a bloom that you don't want. Either way it does not hurt, and only helps use nutrients, and feeds copepods.

Your tank is going to take many months to get the nutrients down, because your scrubber is not strong, and becuase you have lots of nutrients in the rocks, sand and water.

[redadeath]

this is fifth day
how is working now

i may add anothe bulb next to this one with the same wattage 85 wat so they will be both 170 watt is it goo idea or it will be excess light that kill algae
[attachment=1:15jnjle3]28032011022.jpg[/attachment:15jnjle3]
[attachment=0:15jnjle3]28032011023.jpg[/attachment:15jnjle3]

[SantaMonica]

Is looking good. It is not burning, so more light might help.

[redadeath]

when i clean sholud i leave some algae to regrow or remove it all

i use razords and tooth brush both of them is tah good or tooth brush will remove too much algae???

what will happen if i remove all the algae ??

[SantaMonica]

When you clean you should be able to see the screen material. Algae will remain in the holes.

[MorganAtlanta]

Congrats redadeath, it looks like you finally have good growth. Your perseverance is admirable. I think most people would have given up long before now.

[redadeath]

thank u morgan atlanta
i really worked hard and failed many times
but thanks to god and santa monica finally for the results

[redadeath]

hi santa tommotrow will be my 7 days
i will post the oicture before cleaning

but i have quistion
if the algae that is inder the green is dying becasue the green is blocking the whole ligh
so if i cleaned the green i will have only dead roots on the screen and i think there will be no growth
is that right??
i am afraid of cleaning so i remove all the green and i leave the dead attached to the screen

plesae correct my idea

thank king of green

[SantaMonica]

Remove all, especially the dead. It will grow back quick.

[redadeath]

here is my 7 days results

before and after


did i clean the right way or i removed too much ??
[attachment=1:agallhaq]29032011024.jpg[/attachment:agallhaq]
[attachment=0:agallhaq]29032011025.jpg[/attachment:agallhaq]

[SantaMonica]

Looks good.

As you can see, only the middle of the screen is filtering, because the light is concentrated there. If you can get light to all parts of the screen, it will filter even more.

[redadeath]

hi sanat
adding an additional bulb make exceleent results tomoorow will be 7 day i will show u the result

i wonder if i can clean half of the screen so the other half still filters
or what do u think ??

[SantaMonica]

Yes you can

[redadeath]

hi santa
today is my fisrt day to remove the skimmer completely
when should i notice increasing in copepodes and general enhcning in my tank and corals

[SantaMonica]

Pods: Right away, more white particles in water.

Corals: A week or two, if your phosphate is low.

[redadeath]

hi santa
today i got my 7 days result after adding another bulb please say if it is good ???????????????????????/
i cleaned half a screen and left the other
when i should clean the other half ??

[attachment=2:1xx7fodj]08042011035.jpg[/attachment:1xx7fodj]
[attachment=1:1xx7fodj]08042011036.jpg[/attachment:1xx7fodj]
[attachment=0:1xx7fodj]08042011038.jpg[/attachment:1xx7fodj]

[redadeath]

for the cleaned part ... did i remove too much???!!!!

[attachment=1:1c47wnsb]08042011039.jpg[/attachment:1c47wnsb]
[attachment=0:1c47wnsb]08042011040.jpg[/attachment:1c47wnsb]

[SantaMonica]

Now it's looking really good!

You don't have to clean half, unless you are getting nutrient spikes after cleaning. If you do clean half, it's easier to cut the screen vertically into 2 pieces, and clean one every 5 days. This eay each one will grow 10 days.

[redadeath]

my nitrate is 50
my phosphat is 2

when should i find difference in any of them

[SantaMonica]

After cleaning 3 times. Also cut feeding as much as you can.

[redadeath]

today iit is 9th day for the second half
here is the pictures
i found that adding two more days for the scrubber is doubling the algae so quickly
[attachment=2:ahm66awz]10042011044.jpg[/attachment:ahm66awz]
[attachment=1:ahm66awz]10042011045.jpg[/attachment:ahm66awz]
[attachment=0:ahm66awz]10042011046.jpg[/attachment:ahm66awz]

[redadeath]

[attachment=0:1np88f5h]10042011048.jpg[/attachment:1np88f5h]

[redadeath]

is going skimmer less dangerous santa??? fish may be stressed??

[SantaMonica]

No, fish are stressed by high nitrate, nitrate, and especially ammonia. Algae removes all of these. Skimmers no not.

[redadeath]

do cleaner wrasse eat copeods that ats provides??
will cleaner have better chance to live since i have ats and going skimmerless??

[SantaMonica]

Yes.

[redadeath]

hi santa
i have mess in my tank
all my fish are infected with oodinium fro a new fish
the are dying

in the same time my algae is growing very well but i still have nitrate high over 50 ppm and phosphate 2ppm
what should i do and should i make skimmer work again??

my docotr fish died too

i need a plan to make my nutirents down to zero in a week
should i stop feeding or change water or what????????????????????????????????????????

[SantaMonica]

You can always waterchange, and add RowaPhos, and add your skimmer for now.

An ultraviolet sterilizer (like a 40 watt Aqua UV) will kill the ick.

And feeding less for a few months.

[redadeath]

there is no salt in my area now for 2 month
could i get sea water directly

[SantaMonica]

Sounds like a hassle with sea water. Can't you just get some Granular Ferric Oxide (GFO) from your fish store? This would fix the phosphate, although it will stop the scrubber from growing.

Nothing will really get rid of the ick, except a UV. So you will probably have to remove the fish and put them in hospital tank.

You should ask your local reef club to help.

[redadeath]

thank u santa i got uv

[redadeath]

i increased the flow
i double it is it good??

[SantaMonica]

Yes

[redadeath]

i have great growth now very good
but nitrates still same
phosphate same
my screen size is 25 cm width 28cm hight my aquarium is 120 gallon is it enough
those pictures are day 5
[attachment=2:1po1hfl5]24042011055.jpg[/attachment:1po1hfl5]
[attachment=1:1po1hfl5]24042011056.jpg[/attachment:1po1hfl5]
[attachment=0:1po1hfl5]24042011059.jpg[/attachment:1po1hfl5]

[SantaMonica]

That is about as good as it's going to grow. Now you have a filter for the first time. Just give it time.

[redadeath]

this is my 6th day harvest
i got quistion why the screen layer is always brown ?? and slime

[attachment=2:2uojuadf]25042011061.jpg[/attachment:2uojuadf]

[attachment=1:2uojuadf]25042011062.jpg[/attachment:2uojuadf]
[attachment=0:2uojuadf]25042011065.jpg[/attachment:2uojuadf]

[SantaMonica]

It just is. Looks fine.

[redadeath]

my screen is 25 cm width and 28 cm lenght with bulbs on one side
is it enough for my 120 gallon

[SantaMonica]

2-sided is always better than one sided. But since you finally got some green growing, keep it the same way for a few months.

[redadeath]

my tank water is light green when i look at the tank from the side

i have carbon filter does it help to make water clear ?

i also runing uv does it kill the food of the corals ?

[dota]

i think when the water turning to green, its not good.

but ur algae perfect i recon

[SantaMonica]

It's is just phytoplankton, like at the beach. The more there is, the more it feeds the zooplankton, which feeds the corals.

Carbon will reduce the phytoplankton, and UV will help too, but you will have less food for corals, and you will have more nutrients in the water.

Best is to let the phytoplankton live, like they do in the ocean and lakes.

[redadeath]

my test is the same now nitrate 50 ppm
my friend have turf scrubber he is cleaning it every 2 to 3 weeks and the test is zero
he told me to clean it after 2 weeks so it should eat the nitrates after it grow

i feed once a day only for 2 weeks now the phosphate is lower but nitrates the same
please should i do what my friend told me?

[SantaMonica]

Try 10 days.

[redadeath]

hi santa
this is my results for the last week
and this week i got the same results

my nitrates is 30 ppm
phosphate is 1 mg

[redadeath]

hi santa
this is my results for the last week
and this week i got the same results

my nitrates is 30 ppm
phosphate is 1 mg
[attachment=0:3rciq9f3]phpUn0N6TPM.jpg[/attachment:3rciq9f3]

90 gm of algae
my parameters is still not good??
please analyze

[SantaMonica]

Looks very good. Just do the same every week.

[redadeath]

hi santa this week my algae is 200 gm
see the results and tell me is it good ???
how long to be mature screen
[attachment=2:1t1qe0qv]10052011097.jpg[/attachment:1t1qe0qv]
[attachment=1:1t1qe0qv]10052011098.jpg[/attachment:1t1qe0qv]
[attachment=0:1t1qe0qv]10052011099.jpg[/attachment:1t1qe0qv]

[redadeath]

[attachment=0:1xroyj6w]10052011100.jpg[/attachment:1xroyj6w][attachment=1:1xroyj6w]10052011101.jpg[/attachment:1xroyj6w]

[SantaMonica]

Yes yes yes it's perfect. Just do what you are doing, every week.

[redadeath]

hhi santa
today i tried to make huge water change
but i got an accident
my sump was broken
i changed the base of sump

now my screen is in danger i cant run the scrubber until morning after silicon dry
so i am putting the screen in the main display
is that right ??to just preserve the algae as long as i can???

[SantaMonica]

Yes it will be fine there. It can stay there for 2 or 3 days.

[redadeath]

i fixed the problem and i am back to work

after i made hyge watre change my phospate level were 1 ppm
i added (phospate -e )remover and now it is 0.25 ppm after working on heavy skimming

does this will help my scrubber to boost and absorb the nitrates

my nitrates now is 25 ppm after the water change

[SantaMonica]

Yes.

[redadeath]

deos dosing carbon like vinegar will help ???

[SantaMonica]

No that might slow down the growth. If you want to do anything, I'd do waterchanges. However, I don't think you need to do anything.

[redadeath]

i hope it works
without any thing i have faith in algae scrubber more than any thing since it is part of nature this what make me trying and trying for almost year now even i didnt sucseed until now

i added another bulb on the otherside of screen today to make both side instead of one
i hope it work

[SantaMonica]

2-sided is much better than 1-sided.

[redadeath]

still scrubbing but nothing new
every week i remove more algae

is there a way to make it fast santa

how can i decrease inputs

should i remove all the fish and corals to other tank untill i got the parameters zero??

[SantaMonica]

How much nuisance algae do you have in display?

[redadeath]

nothing in the display at all

[SantaMonica]

Ok then it's working.

The goal is to have a clean display; not to see how much green you can grow. So let it run the way it is.

[redadeath]

but my corals are not healthy because high nitrates and phosphates

[redadeath]

how much phospate and nitrate may effect the corals

[SantaMonica]

0.1 phosphate

50 nitrate

[redadeath]

what is the time that algae consume oxygen
and the time that consume co2???

[SantaMonica]

Light: Consume CO2, and make oxygen