At wits end with hair algae. Help!
- Thread starter stoneriff
- Start date
Ok. Thanks Russ.
I try to, but there are a lot of hard to reach areas.
- Location
- NY
Jesse, don't touch your sandbed. Leave all sand husbandry to your sand sifting critters. When you disturb the sandbed you release gases from the anaerobic zone into the water column.
I won't touch it. Thanks Russ.
1 sea hare did a fantastic job in my 265. There are some types of hair algae he didn't touch though. Then he laid eggs and died. Then a month later I bought another one and he didn't touch the same stuff the first one skipped,,not briopsis, just brown stringy fuzzy hair, and they were 2 different sea hare, first was a blue spotted and the other was rock looking
I'm thinking of using Nualgi but am scared of it
I'm thinking of using Nualgi but am scared of it
Thank you. I just ordered one.
- Location
- Baiting Hollow Long Island NY
Unfortunately as you found out, none of those things will eliminate hair algae but the rumors keep persisting. Those methods have been around since the beginning of this hobby in 1971 (I think it was on a Tuesday about 2 or 2:15 in the afternoon)
Also urchins, seahares, snails and manatees won't help permanently unless they can get those creatures to poop outside the tank. Changing water may even make it grow faster as that is the first thing people will tell you to do. Does that ever work? No, it does not. You probably noticed that it grows in new tanks with all new water, rocks, sand and lights faster than in an old system. How interesting.
If changing water or lowering feeding worked, there would be no hair algae.
Hair algae is actually a healthy algae that grows on every healthy reef. Yes I know we don't want to grow it on our corals but if we eliminated everything that lets it grow, we would also eliminate our corals. I also realize I am in the vast minority with this and know you will continue to lower your light cycle, feed less and throw in slugs. If hair algae wants to grow, it will grow no matter what you like, and it will all of a sudden stop growing and disappear for no apparent reason which is the reason for all the miraculous "cures".
If you want to take a little advice, and you don't have to as it is only my opinion, add a lighted refugium or better yet, an algae scrubber. This way the algae can grow to it's hearts content (because as I said it is healthy) but it will only grow where you want it and not on your corals or in your display.
I took this on a remote Hawaiian Island, guess what it is? Yes, hair algae. If it grows in Hawaii, it should grow in your tank. For some reason all the tangs and slugs disappeared from this reef.
See this picture? Same reef but this part was taken over by urchins as you can see them everywhere. You don't see any algae because they ate it, but as soon as they leave, it comes back. Remember they are pooping in a larger body of water than your tank so it won't work in your tank. Put in an algae scrubber or just wait and eventually the algae will exhaust whatever it needs and stop growing, then you can thank a slug, urchin or sea hare.
My nitrates are about 90 and there is no algae growing in my tank. I have the lights on 12 hours a day and overfeed because all my paired fish are spawning. But it is growing like crazy in my algae scrubber where I want it.
Wow, I just realized this is a very old thread
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I picked up 2 Mexican turbo snails at the suggestion of Pets Warehouse. Worked out nicely, almost all gone. Maybe a tiny piece here or there but that's fine. Only thing is that the Mexican turbo snails can knock over a bunch of stuff.
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