Red Slime!! Phosphate Is At Zero..

[noelskii]

i have a 54 corner RR tank...about 100lbs LR 40lbs live sand 250watt mh 130watt actinic 2 powerheads a fuge and a skimmer...nitrates nitrites phosphates is at 0 but im still growing red slime...whats wrong? and what do i do? i use RO water...i have corals, 2perculas, 1 damsel and 1 yellow tang..... heeeeeelpp

 

[ellebelle]

What test kits are you using? Unless you are using something lab grade (LaMotte or even better a Hanna Meter), your phosphates being at "zero" isn't really zero. So there is still stuff for the cyano to use to reproduce.

How long has your tank been set up? What is your flow like?

 

[Craig]

what brand test kits are you using? how old is your tank? how much flow are the powerhead pushing?

 

[ellebelle]

Wow, Craig, it's like we're both mind readers.

 

[noelskii]

i use that satwater master liquid test kit thing from the lfs...the powerheads are aquaclear 50s...my corals are doin fine btw i just hate the red slime...

 

[Craig]

Wow, Craig, it's like we're both mind readers.

great minds think alike? :approve:

 

[Craig]

what's the flow rate on those powerheads? how old is your tank?

 

[noelskii]

flow rate? umm 50gph? well the rocks and sand are about 10months old? i used to have a 75gal fowlr tank but when i got my halides in 2months ago i changed about 60% of the water to RO and transferred to the 54gal...

 

[loismustdie]

not enough flow. Try lowering the powerheads. You can try to manually remove some, but a lot of time with red slime, it's just a cycle and corrects itself.
I can assure you your levels aren't at zero.
Lissa, you know I'm going to say "dump the fuge":shhh:

 

[Craig]

i'm going to take a guess here...bear in mind only a guess


could be high phosphates combined with a lack of flow.

 

[noelskii]

50gphX2...what do you mean dump the fuge? and and and i should move the powerheads lower in the tank??

 

[loismustdie]

Ignore the dump the fuge part. Private joke.
A lot of time, red slime grows on the sand bed due to lack of flow. You can lower the powerheads in the tank and see if that helps.

 

[Craig]

50gphX2

Not enough flow for a 55.

 

[noelskii]

ok i just inscreased the flow rate by adding another 50gph powerhead...now what do i do? do i just wait it out? or scrub them off? i stirred up the sandbed but there are still some on the rocks...

 

[Craig]

try not to disturb the sand bed. let your cleancrew keep it clean it. i think you could use much more flow than 150 gph

here's a quote from Mike Paletta which should put this in perspective:


Problematic algae
Most algal blooms result from excess nutrients being present. In reef tanks, these patches of algae usually are in spots where there is little to no water movement. As a result, detritus settles in these spots. That is why, if algae are plucked from these spots, a cloud of detritus is usually raised as well. In order to reduce this "algal oasis," it is necessary to get more water movement over these areas. Therefore, one of the goals of good water movement is to keep the detritus in suspension long enough so that much of it can be removed by the filtration system, or so that it can settle in the sump, where there is little light, and can be removed later.

 

[loismustdie]

Just stirring it up doesn't help anything. Probably makes it worse. It should be removed from the system if possible. I agree with craig. You need more flow. Remove some with a water change (a waterchange won't hurt) and slow down. Nothing good happens fast in this hobby.

 

[ellebelle]

Siphon out all of the red slime you can. I'd put even more flow on a 55g tank - I have more flow than that on a 29g. Watch for dead spots and try to aim the powerheads to get rid of them.

What kind of skimmer do you have on that?

 

[noelskii]

anyone wanna sell me a decent power head then? all i got are aquaclears...and my return pump is a mag3

 

[ellebelle]

You can get a Maxijet from Marinedepot for less than 20 bucks. I'd go with at least a 900.

 

[noelskii]

i dont really have a clean up crew either...all i have are snails....