Nuisance algae exploded !!!!

[Reeferbo619]

Nuisance algae exploded. Please help me diagnose and come up with a solution. I was testing my tank nonstop and getting 0 nitrates / phosphates so I made mistake and dose brightwell/amino acid to avoid Dino’s from bottomed nutrients. It’s been like this for about 3 weeks now. I’ve messaged brs and they recommended REEF FLUX. I removed the carbon and dosed about 130ML as instructed and am now on day 5 which’s is supposed to be a 3 week process.
I’m concerned about the health of my fish and corals at this point and trying to decide if I should stay patient and allow the treatment to go through its process or opt for a different method. Open to all advice, tips, ask questions. Anything would help

Nitrates 4
Phos 0
Alk 9
Ph 8.2
Salinity 35ppm

100 gallon display
40 gallon sump
Protein skimmer
Refugium
Filter socks
Carbon
I run 2 hydra 32 hd 1-9pm

 

[Knotyet]

I'm in the same boat right now. My tank looks exactly the same. Been doing water changes and trying to get as much outbbut just keeps coming back. I even got a sea hare but hasn't done a thing. I'm scared to put any chemical treatment in it.

 

[Reeferbo619]

I'm in the same boat right now. My tank looks exactly the same. Been doing water changes and trying to get as much outbbut just keeps coming back. I even got a sea hare but hasn't done a thing. I'm scared to put any chemical treatment in it.

Crazy part is I barely had algae about 2 months ago around the time my nutrients were hitting 0. Mine just keeps getting worse everyday it seems like I’m ready to go in and rip it out myself. It’s day 5 of the reef flux treatment. I have tons of hermit, snails, emerald crabs.
Check my thread hopefully somebody got some good advice. If you figure anything out relay it brother.

 

[NonstopSoda]

if its mostly GHA i would add a tuxedo/pincushion urchin! very good at clearing out loads of algae, but will put coral frags on their heads as hats so just be careful of non glued down corals getting moved.

 

[Bacon and Eggs]

Consider weekly/biweekly water changes. Manual removal. Take your tube and thumb pinch it off and vacuum it up. It’s not as painful as it seems. GHA often comes off pretty easy. It won’t be a quick fix, but it’s safe and will work.

Whatever though, I’m sure there are other ways.

 

[Reeferbo619]

if its mostly GHA i would add a tuxedo/pincushion urchin! very good at clearing out loads of algae, but will put coral frags on their heads as hats so just be careful of non glued down corals getting moved.

what about lighting schedule / intensity?

 

[Jshiloh]

What I have done with success is hydrogen peroxide. Turn off wave makers get about 10 percent hydrogen peroxide and a syringe and spray the anlge and do a little everyday / other day. Let the peroxide sit for 5-10 min then turn pumps back on.

 

[Lavey29]

Crazy part is I barely had algae about 2 months ago around the time my nutrients were hitting 0. Mine just keeps getting worse everyday it seems like I’m ready to go in and rip it out myself. It’s day 5 of the reef flux treatment. I have tons of hermit, snails, emerald crabs.
Check my thread hopefully somebody got some good advice. If you figure anything out relay it brother.

Bottomed out nutrients means your corals are starving to death and nuisance algae is out competing everything for what scraps are left. Harsh chemicals destroyed your biome and only make things worse opening the door for worse problems. Daily manual removal, weekly water changes, get nutrients up to proper levels, diverse cleaner crew with turbos and tuxedo urchins. Cut lights to 6 hours with blue and uv only, no whites for several weeks. Raise magnesium to 1500 it weakens GHA. Nightly prayer for help to get your tank looking nice again.

 

[Reeferbo619]

Bottomed out nutrients means your corals are starving to death and nuisance algae is out competing everything for what scraps are left. Harsh chemicals destroyed your biome and only make things worse opening the door for worse problems. Daily manual removal, weekly water changes, get nutrients up to proper levels, diverse cleaner crew with turbos and tuxedo urchins. Cut lights to 6 hours with blue and uv only, no whites for several weeks. Raise magnesium to 1500 it weakens GHA. Nightly prayer for help to get your tank looking nice again.

Appreciate the direct advice. I do want to ask though how would water changes get my nutrients to proper levels? When my tank had little to no algae my phosphates were 0 I couldn't get them up so I stopped doing water changes and started to dose brightwell neo phos/nitrate, amino acid, oceanic magic to improve nutrients. I haven't gotten anything above 0 for over a month now. No I just have this explosion of algae still 0 phos but 4nitrate.

I asked brs for a solution they recommended reef flux which I added about 5 days ago it's supposed to be a 3 week treatment before doing water change, im considering bailing on this method and taking it out manually. tired of looking at it

 

[Jshiloh]

Appreciate the direct advice. I do want to ask though how would water changes get my nutrients to proper levels? When my tank had little to no algae my phosphates were 0 I couldn't get them up so I stopped doing water changes and started to dose brightwell neo phos/nitrate, amino acid, oceanic magic to improve nutrients. I haven't gotten anything above 0 for over a month now. No I just have this explosion of algae still 0 phos but 4nitrate.

In my opinion your nutrients aren't truly 0 because you have algae eating the source giving you false readings. I believe what Lavey is saying as far as water changes ( correct me if I'm wrong) but they are to improve your biome and overall health of your system.

How old is your system ?

 

[Lavey29]

Appreciate the direct advice. I do want to ask though how would water changes get my nutrients to proper levels? When my tank had little to no algae my phosphates were 0 I couldn't get them up so I stopped doing water changes and started to dose brightwell neo phos/nitrate, amino acid, oceanic magic to improve nutrients. I haven't gotten anything above 0 for over a month now. No I just have this explosion of algae still 0 phos but 4nitrate.

I asked brs for a solution they recommended reef flux which I added about 5 days ago it's supposed to be a 3 week treatment before doing water change, im considering bailing on this method and taking it out manually. tired of looking at it

How old is your tank? I had to double dose neophos and neonitro for multiple months before I got measurable numbers while still doing weekly water changes my first year. Have you done a recent ICP test to look at everything? Weekly water changes in newer tanks help maintain the overall water chemistry environment. They don't reduce phosphate really because it is bound in rocks and sand. They do reduce nitrates but only slightly because most do maybe 15% water change. You can increase nutrients levels by feeding your fish more too.

 

[Reeferbo619]

How old is your tank? I had to double dose neophos and neonitro for multiple months before I got measurable numbers while still doing weekly water changes my first year. Have you done a recent ICP test to look at everything? Weekly water changes in newer tanks help maintain the overall water chemistry environment. They don't reduce phosphate really because it is bound in rocks and sand. They do reduce nitrates but only slightly because most do maybe 15% water change. You can increase nutrients levels by feeding your fish more too.

My tank is almost 2 years old now. Super bummer! I started out with a bunch of coral and lost everything due to a razor blade that rusted out. I got the tank healthy and stable again but due to these late introductions to the tank I've had this algae explosion.
My usual routine is weekly water change 20% with manual removal of any algae and blowing off rocks.
I haven't done an ICP test

 

[Reeferbo619]

In my opinion your nutrients aren't truly 0 because you have algae eating the source giving you false readings. I believe what Lavey is saying as far as water changes ( correct me if I'm wrong) but they are to improve your biome and overall health of your system.

How old is your system ?

2 years old this September I did start with dry rock which has made this journey extremely difficult. My old system had much more micro biome and natural bacteria. This system is a whole headache!

 

[Solo McReefer]

it seems like I’m ready to go in and rip it out myself.

With all due respect

Why aren't you?

If you are a reefer, that's kinda your job(as a hobby of course)

What is stopping you from ripping it out
Suctioning it out
Siphoning it out
Brushing it off the rocks

Your tank is maturing

I have more tricks to getting it out if you're interested. Or search "toothbrush" under my name

With the maturity of your system
If you want a CUC to do it all, you would have to have so many snails and hermits, there would be no way you could keep fish and corals

I guarantee you, that when your tank is so mature, that all the rocks are covered in coralline and corals, you won't have to worry about GHA.

It will get there, with patience, hard work, and time; there are people here with those tanks. And they have other headaches to deal with by then

Ps, honestly I wouldn't even bother testing Ns and Ps. Your test kits and testers will give you a false negative, and you know you have too much with your eyes

Test Ns and Ps when your tank is pristine, it will then give you valuable information; that this outbreak could start again soon

Lastly, you could be fortifying your micro biome, which has way of hindering these outbreaks

 

[Lavey29]

My tank is almost 2 years old now. Super bummer! I started out with a bunch of coral and lost everything due to a razor blade that rusted out. I got the tank healthy and stable again but due to these late introductions to the tank I've had this algae explosion.
My usual routine is weekly water change 20% with manual removal of any algae and blowing off rocks.
I haven't done an ICP test

I was guessing past a year due to coralline. Beef up your cleaners as I mentioned. Get your hands wet daily. Follow the steps I listed above. Plan for a 2 or 3 month battle. Coralline will overtake it. Avoid harsh chemicals. It damages your biome.

 

[Solo McReefer]

double dose neophos and neonitro for multiple months

How is this different or better than feeding your fish and corals?

If I want my Ns and Ps to go up, I would scoop in an extra scoop of Reef Roids or something

Is it because it's more discrete than food, "I just added 10mls of MagiPhos and that means X Y Z"?

 

[Solo McReefer]

I was guessing past a year due to coralline. Beef up your cleaners as I mentioned. Get your hands wet daily. Follow the steps I listed above. Plan for a 2 or 3 month battle. Coralline will overtake it. Avoid harsh chemicals. It damages your biome.

Exactly

GHA is easy to get rid of compared to other uglies

You really have to neglect your tank for it to adversely affect your corals

Crysophytes will grow on your corals and kill them. After you get that, GHA looks beautiful. Pretty sure they fill the same niche, if someone is experiencing both at the same time, I would love to see the pictures

 

[Reeferbo619]

With all due respect

Why aren't you?

If you are a reefer, that's kinda your job(as a hobby of course)

What is stopping you from ripping it out
Suctioning it out
Siphoning it out
Brushing it off the rocks

Your tank is maturing

I have more tricks to getting it out if you're interested. Or search "toothbrush" under my name

With the maturity of your system
If you want a CUC to do it all, you would have to have so many snails and hermits, there would be no way you could keep fish and corals

I guarantee you, that when your tank is so mature, that all the rocks are covered in coralline and corals, you won't have to worry about GHA.

It will get there, with patience, hard work, and time; there are people here with those tanks. And they have other headaches to deal with by then

Ps, honestly I wouldn't even bother testing Ns and Ps. Your test kits and testers will give you a false negative, and you know you have too much with your eyes

Test Ns and Ps when your tank is pristine, it will then give you valuable information; that this outbreak could start again soon

Lastly, you could be fortifying your micro biome, which has way of hindering these outbreaks

The reason I stopped pulling algae out manually is because when my tank was pristine my corals seemed to be starving out due to bottomed out nutrients. It was at this moment I stopped doing water changes and tried to dose bottled nutrients/bacteria which ultimately drove me into this problem.

The reason I haven't proactively went in myself yet is because a rep from BRS recommended using the reef flux method. It's supposed to be a 3 week treatment but i'm only on day 5 and running out of patience to let it complete its cycle.
How can I improve my micro biome?

 

[Solo McReefer]

Why aren't you feeding your corals?

Reef Roids
Half a dozen amino acid brands out there, pick a couple and dose
Phytoplan
Reef Chili
Frozen food juice
Frozen foods, I love it when my corals catch mysis, krill, whatever. Sure they can catch pellets(pellets don't have eyes)

Coral love fish poop
Corals love bacteria that eat fish poop

Coral food is cheaper than dog food, it can't be the expense can it?

 

[Solo McReefer]

"How can I improve my micro biome?"

Slowly buy a bottle of each bottled bacteria, that you can afford

And add half an ml each night, or a few drops

Even just a couple bottles to start. Say MB7 and Microbe Lyft to start. Next month get Dr Tim's, next month Prodibio. Zeovit Bac after that, And so on

Add jar of Galaxy Pods this month, a different brand of pods next month, etc

You'll see a difference