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algae bloom excitement

I

Inquisitive

so you know I'm in the middle of the cycling process wiht my new tank...I got my first algae bloom....looks like brown diatoms and on the top of one rock (closest to the top and the T5 lighting) I have some green algae that looks like strands of seaweed....am I right to be excited about this?...yes, it looks like crap, but I'm assuming it means that the new tank is well on its way through the cycling process...yes?

tested the water on the 19th...will likely test later this evening or tomorrow....haven't done any water changes yet....waiting for everything to hit 0 and then will do a 50% water change....I top off about a gallon of rodi water every other day or so

temp- 78.1
ammonia- .25
nitrite- .5
nitrate- 50
ph- 7.8
alk- 1.7-2.8
SG- 1.025
 
R

rgarofalo

you can get a ph buffer, I think backing soda will do it also
Check the baking soda out I think its right but not positive
 
qwik

qwik

The diatoms are part of the cycle,the green hair algae is part of a nightmare . ;D
Try to get the green hair under control asap before it takes over . In a new tank you can manually remove as much as possible until you can put some grazers in there . I would try a water change to raise the pH , additives are not natural and don't solve the cause of the problem . Check the new waters pH before adding it . Good luck on the new system,the fun is just beginning .
 
I

Inquisitive

thanks guys...for the opinions and advice.....

retested just now

didn't add or change anything

temp-78.4
Am- .25
nitrite- .2
Nitrate- 20
PH- 8
alk- 1.7-2.8
SG- 1.026

I don't plan on adding any livestock for at least another week...waiting on all levels to get to 0 or the ammonia and nitrite at the least to get to 0...then, will do a 50% water change and wait another week or so before adding the CUC...this sound good?
 
C

calaxa

Inqy,

Are you running lights right now? You can help kill off the diatoms/hair algae by going without lights for a few days. Also, this is a good time to try to adjust your pH. Baking soda (not powder) will raise pH and alkalinity.
 
I

Inquisitive

hey cal....yeah...I run the lights for like 4-5 hours a day...I thought I was supposed to be happy about the algae outbreak since it means the tank is cycling right, yes?....I mean, granted, it does look like crap...I hope it doesn't stay around...you guys can see what it looks like in my tank build thread...going there now to try to post some pics of the tank..wish me luck...haven't posted a pic on this site yet
 
D

ds4x4

All part of a new tank.. currently the green micro algae has a grip on mine and diatoms in the big tank. Mexican turbos should eat the hair algae i think most snails and hermits don't touch cyano
 
C

calaxa

Well diatoms is the only algae that I think cannot be avoided in a new tank cycle. Everything else, you don't need to have in a normal tank cycle and with no livestock in there, it's best time to fiddle around and see if you can fix. The only reason we said you should wait was because you wanted to do a big water change at the end. That probably can fix some of the hair algae issues, though once established, you might need those tweezers.
 
J

JerseyWendy

calaxa said:
...Also, this is a good time to try to adjust your pH. Baking soda (not powder) will raise pH and alkalinity.
Click to expand...

Nathan, like supermarket Baking soda? How do you use it in the tank? Do you premix it? If so, with salt water or RO/DI water? And how much do I use safely? ;D
 
C

calaxa

Yes supermarket baking SODA not powder (ie Arm & Hammer brand). The correct way is to bake it (but I don't) for an hour at 300 degrees F so it's dry and hard. The corect way is to premix it (I also don't bother). You can be very very liberal with it as it takes quite a lot to make a change especially in your 180. Consult the reef calculator if you want to be exact but you can pretty safely add tablespoons at a time.
 
C

calaxa

Wendy,

I was just thinking about this again....why do you need to raise pH or alk? Don't you dose kalk (which would already raise pH and alk)? I only use the baking soda for freshwater dipping and maintaining pH in QT/hypo tank. Most of the time, I'm trying to get pH down in my normal systems.
 
J

JerseyWendy

Nathan, no, I don't drip Kalk. I use either B-Ionic or Tropic Marin Bio Calcium to up my dKh and CA. I was "going to drip" Kalk, but chickened out. :-[
 
C

calaxa

Oh maybe you might want to look at alternatives. Those prepackaged additives add up. But it looks to me like your system is working very nicely as is. Hard to recommend changing things up unless you wanted to save a buck.
 
M

Mbodell

I just read the title of this thread and had to laugh as I am also excited as my tank is starting to cycle. I thought I was the only one who gets excited by things like this.
 
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