How much light is to much?

[ohioboy12]

Hello all. I’m new to this hobby and believe me I’m in love. But being new I’m still trying to grasp the ropes. Definitely a learning process. I have a Fluval Evo tank. I’ve had this tank with fish in it for 2 months now. I’ve been struggling with this hideous algea red and green. On my rocks and sand bed. However it peels off in few pieces normally, i find it tiresome. The fish, anemones and corals have been doing great! My Xenia is growing and my anemones as well. I’m still running stock lights and no they aren’t on a timer. I turn blue lights on before bed (8pm)and day lights on at (5:30am.). Well i had the day lights off today and noticed sunlight from the window in room going into the tank. Would the light from the tank plus the light from the window cause this much algea? And would i be okay without the lights on during the day and only have them on at night? Maybe it’s just a case of the new tank uglies I’ve heard about. I’d love to hear suggestions from people with this problem. Thank you in advance!

 

[Montiman]

Welcome to Reef2Reef!

I would highly recommend you put your lights on a timer. Having the lights turn on and off at the same time each day leads to stability which is one of the keys to success in this hobby.

The light may have triggered the algae, but my guess is it is not the root of the problem. Cyanobacteria is blooming in your tank which is common in new systems and sometimes in older systems as well.

My Cyano removal routine is to first siphon and remove as much as possible from the tank then add a cyano remover like Chemiclean for 2 days. Then do another water change to remove the treatment.

You may find that the cyanobacteria still comes back. I believe this is because there is a Niche in your system for some kind of bacteria that consumes phosphates and nitrates and the Cyanobacteria does this and is present in the tank, so if you kill most of it the conditions are still perfect for it to regrow. In my experience after you remove as much as you can from siphoning and an over-the-counter treatment, you want to add some form of (good) non-ugly bacteria to the tank so that this good bacteria can replace the ugly cyanobacteria in your aquarium. I like to add Microbacter 7 from Brightwell but there are plenty of other bacterial supplements that will work just fine. Adding the bacteria has helped me a lot with keeping the cyano away.

 

[thatmanMIKEson]

There are several ways to take care of that issue, but it is cyano bacteria, if that starts you in the right direction

 

[Rmckoy]

I second needing a timer .
12 hours light per 24 hours period is plenty .
ideally you want lights on to promote photosynthesis but like everything in life , rest is eventually required .
You will notice ( if you’re testing ph ) it will naturally drop when lights are off . As the ocean does the same .

 

[ohioboy12]

Welcome to Reef2Reef!

I would highly recommend you put your lights on a timer. Having the lights turn on and off at the same time each day leads to stability which is one of the keys to success in this hobby.

The light may have triggered the algae, but my guess is it is not the root of the problem. Cyanobacteria is blooming in your tank which is common in new systems and sometimes in older systems as well.

My Cyano removal routine is to first siphon and remove as much as possible from the tank then add a cyano remover like Chemiclean for 2 days. Then do another water change to remove the treatment.

You may find that the cyanobacteria still comes back. I believe this is because there is a Niche in your system for some kind of bacteria that consumes phosphates and nitrates and the Cyanobacteria does this and is present in the tank, so if you kill most of it the conditions are still perfect for it to regrow. In my experience after you remove as much as you can from siphoning and an over-the-counter treatment, you want to add some form of (good) non-ugly bacteria to the tank so that this good bacteria can replace the ugly cyanobacteria in your aquarium. I like to add Microbacter 7 from Brightwell but there are plenty of other bacterial supplements that will work just fine. Adding the bacteria has helped me a lot with keeping the cyano away.

Great advice! Thank you!!