red hair algea question

[segen77]

I just got back from a 2 week vacation, and I have red hair algea covering about 3/4 the bottom of my tank. I picked out as much as I could, but there is some stuck in cracks, and little pieces that I can't get out. I am planning a 50% water change tomorrow morning. I also have a lawnmower blenny, and some snails and hermits in there.

Question:
can anyone tell me how to get more of the algea out?
is there anything else i can add to the tank to help get rid of it?

Thanks

Sorry the post seems so spacey, but I have been on the road for 20 of the last 36 hours.

[Sugar Magnolia]

Can you get a pic of the algae? It may be cyanobacteria. Your best bet is to suck out as much as possible with a turkey baster or use some airline tubing and create a syphon to suck it out. Do several large water changes throughout the week to reduce the excess nutrients/phosphates that it's feeding off of.

[segen77]

I can't send a pic, because I have already picked out most of it. I did about a 50% change today, and I plan on doing another in a couple of days. I tested the water, and the only thing that seems to be elevated are the nitrates. I have also cut my auto feeder back to once perday instead of twice. I'm just not sure why it keeps poping up. Thanks for the advice sugar. I'll continue to do what I am doing, and hope for the best.

I think I may add more hermits and snails to see if that helps also.

Thanks

[maxwellwhothunk]

Thats a good move turning the auto feeder to once/day, but ideally just get rid of the auto feeder -OR- if you can turn it to once/2days then maybe add a bit of food as youy feel necessary.

I mean really you dont want what, by your description, seems to be a nice tank and such an investment go down because of something like an auto feeder. IMO

It just might be something to consider

Goodluck to you!

[FishinInTheDark]

You're probably having a cyanobacteria outbreak. Search this site for "cyanobacteria" and "red slime" for a plethora of information on how to battle it.

[segen77]

Thanks for the heads up Conni. After a little research, it seems that I'm pretty muc doing everything that I need to be. I have cut my feeding back to once per day, but I may go to once every other day for a while. First I'm going to try uping my flow. I'm waiting on my new power head (maxi 1200) to arrive, and my hydor flo regulators. This will bring me up to 3 maxi 1200's (2 with the flo regulators to keep the water circling), one maxi 600. I also have the mag 9.5 return coming out of a split return at the top of the tank. I'm really hoping that changing the water flow along with my 20g water change every 4 days will help. A couple of questions for you:

Do you know if it's possible to change your water too much?

Do you have any idea how long I should keep this process up before I get frustrated and just add the cyno killer?

I have yet to add any chems, and wanted to avoid it, but I just want my tank to get back to it's prestine condition.

Thanks

[FishinInTheDark]

I can't remember exactly how long your tank has been running, but it is completely normal for these algaes to make appearances on and off throughout the first year. If your inhabitants aren't being stressed by your water changes, then you're not changing too much. Personally, I would never, ever resort to putting an antibacterial chemical in my tank, so my advice is to stick with it as long as you can. We have all been through this, and though it's a long process, you can beat it without chems, I swear.

[segen77]

Well, that works for me. It's only been cycled for abotu 4 months now anyway, so I guess I'll just keep up with what I'm doing. I just wanted to be sure that it's in good condition by the time I move here in the next few months.

Thanks again