lazerbeam Posted May 26, 2007 Share Posted May 26, 2007 what critters eat this stuff i have just added phosfate granels in thanks mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
illcssd Posted May 26, 2007 Share Posted May 26, 2007 Sea hare's aka: gremlins, will mow it down pretty well ime. Also lettuce nudibranch's do a pretty good job. Foxface rabbit fish will sometimes eat it, scopas tangs, and big turbo snails. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
izzypop Posted May 26, 2007 Share Posted May 26, 2007 I've tried it all and along with what illcssd said I also have seen my tuxedo urchins munch on it. good luck it is not easy stuff to deal with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Piero Posted May 26, 2007 Share Posted May 26, 2007 better perhaps to address the root cause of your alga bloom, rather than using animals as a band-aid...but certainly a multi-faceted approach is most effective. But be patient. Alga blooms are a result of excess dissolved nutrients in your water column. Minimize nutrient import, maximize nutrient export. I.e water changes, stop feeding, check your water source tds...I'm probably forgetting something too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lazerbeam Posted May 26, 2007 Author Share Posted May 26, 2007 hair alga is algone reef safe and does it work i have all soft corals mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
siskiou Posted May 27, 2007 Share Posted May 27, 2007 Do you know what kind of hair algae it is? Bryopsis, Derbesia, something else? Does it come off the rock easily, or is it difficult to pull off? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
powdertang05 Posted May 27, 2007 Share Posted May 27, 2007 sea hares are great jason at coral reef has lettuces Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lazerbeam Posted May 27, 2007 Author Share Posted May 27, 2007 hair alga thankyou foe all the help i have been doing this for 5 years and never had this problem mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Mbeef61 Posted May 27, 2007 Share Posted May 27, 2007 cooking rock is the best surefire way i think....other that that you really have to get AS MUCH OUT AS YOU CAN by hand. then take ALL precautions to stop it from continuing....ro/di water, skimmer, less light time, resins, overall detritus siphoning, and the natural consumers like snails, and my fav rabbitfish, and sea hares rock but you may need to take him out once problem is under control. hth ps...chems should be a last resort Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Holly Posted May 27, 2007 Share Posted May 27, 2007 IMO removing the source of the hair algae's food is the key. "If you starve it, it will leave" ..Toss a bag of PhosGuard in the sump sock and get a phosphate reactor with Pura Phoslock media (or something of that equivalent). That's what I did when my phosphates flew through the roof last year, and it worked famously. I haven't had an issue since. (Kudos here to Patrick at Saltwater Fanta-Seas!) (clap) I had off-the-charts phosphate levels. We put in a reactor similar to this one: http://www.marinedepot.com/aquarium_filters_kent_marine_phos_reactor.asp?CartId=. I kept Pura Phoslock in it full-time, changing it regularly. (There are other brands you can use, but I've been told that these reactors are best with fine-grain products due to increased surface-area-per-granule; makes sense) It worked so well that I keep it in use full-time now. I haven't had any tank problems since. **knock on wood** I also keep a small bag of PhosGuard in my sump sock all the time now, as well as reef carbon. I check stats regularly to make sure it doesn't leach out minerals, salt, etc, but I've never had a problem. Just my opinion... Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
illcssd Posted May 27, 2007 Share Posted May 27, 2007 Great advice holly! Sounds like stuff i hear Patrick say all the time lol!. For sea hare's, i know we do it, other stores might, we have a trade in process, for "used" sea hares, where once they clean the tank clear they can bring back the gremlin and we will give have the price back lol. It works great and i have one on a 8th tank. He eats everything, except my bryopsis lol. Basically gremlin(sea hare) recycling. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
siskiou Posted May 27, 2007 Share Posted May 27, 2007 Does he stay away from the powerheads, though? I could use a "rental" sea hare, but Eugene is a bit too far out of the way... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Mbeef61 Posted May 27, 2007 Share Posted May 27, 2007 yeah they come with these awesome radar gps systems to avoid them lol....im sure eugene has trade ins too Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Holly Posted May 27, 2007 Share Posted May 27, 2007 I had a sea hare once. Died after a few weeks. No idea why. Now that you mention it, mine never got near my powerheads that I know of either... Wonder why that is..? (scratch) Can't say the same for a gorgeous 2" slug I got at FantaSeas. I put it in the middle of the tank and went into the kitchen for a few minutes. When I got back, it was sucked flat across the intake grill of my Tunze. It took less than 10min for that idiot slug to make a beeline for a far-away powerhead and committ Tunze suicide.(flame) Shoulda saved the trouble and just burned the $20. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
illcssd Posted May 27, 2007 Share Posted May 27, 2007 Hmm, our rental gremlin has stayed away from the seio's and such. Sorry holly! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tidalsculpin Posted May 28, 2007 Share Posted May 28, 2007 How about trocus snails? Not as glamourous as a slug with long "ears." The right amount per gallon would do the trick. Kinda depends on your other snails in the tank. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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