green algae

[clownvan]

hi

i am not sure if this is the correct forum. this is my first post, so pls move it to the right one =)

I have a Fluval 32g with Kessil ap9x. livestock is live sand, about 20lbs of live rock. it had a bunch of livestock but due to crappy lighting and not enough attention, all the livestock died. So I switched off the lights and let the pump run for three years with no water changes. After three years, I decided in Jun to get it restarted. So I added a protein skimmer and a hygger wave maker. Then I added one RBITA, gsp on the back wall, snails, hermits, a couple of emerald crabs, a pair of peppermint shrimp. I was doing weekly water changes. The water container had green algae in it and I did not think it would fall into the tank but it did. I would try to pull it out and I certain that I did not get all of it.

Current status. The shrimps and one emerald kicked the bucket. I have since switched the water container to a new one. My tank has a tiny bit of hair algae starting to pop up. The back wall has a red film but it is not cyano. The sand has a reddish brown coloration, again not cyano since it is not a film. I keep siphoning it off the sand. By the fourth day after water change, the red coloration starts to appear on the back wall and the sand. I keep pulling out the rock and scrubbing it and replacing it. I am hoping between that and using a newer container, the hair algae will disappear. I also added quite a bit of chaeto in the hopes that the nutrients will be used up. ap9x has been reduced to 5% intensity. nem is happy. gsp continues to grow.

I ordered a phosphate and nitrate test kit. so will have those numbers soon. so my question is what all should i be doing? here are some options that i am considering.

1. move the anemone and some of the gsp to another smaller 5g tank that needs to be cleaned, etc.
2. get rid of the rock (and the phosphate). i read that rocks have a lot of phosphate
3. get rid of the sand since it has a lot of dead bodies still buried there
4. get an ATS but i am unemployed, so definitely not considering that
5. look into getting a mangrove shoot
6. get more clean up crew. why did the shrimp die though?
7. i read about the ''ugly'' phase here. is that what this might be? i have never experienced the ugly phase before...perhaps as a child =D

The current plan is to keep doing weekly water changes and scrubbing the rock and monitoring the algae for at least a month. get more livestock when i get money or use the money towards one of the above solutions. thoughts?

 

[psidriven]

What do you mean by container? Your ato reservoir?

 

[clownvan]

What do you mean by container? Your ato reservoir?

the container i was using to buy salt water from the LFS. the container was contaminated because it was sitting outdoors for three years. i cleaned them but could not get some of the algae off which looked like it was almost glued to the inside. i am sure some tiny bits and pieces came off of the containers. yes, i have no excuse.

one of them also broke in my living room whilst it was full of saltwater. yes that was a ton of fun.

 

[derek_SR]

Welcome! There is a lot to unpack here.

Things I would definitely NOT do:

• do not pull rocks or sand (you want things to continue to stabilize - rocks and sand are not your enemy right now).
• do not add a mangrove (??? you've got your hands pretty full already)
• do not add any expensive livestock
• do not add an ATS - without getting into the efficacy debate, it's probably not your priority in terms of spending
• do not continue spilling random containers of liquid into your tank
• do not worry about brown stuff on the sand, the ugly phase, or anything else right now

things I would do:

• continue with reasonable water changes
• have an LFS test your salinity and focus on keeping that stable #1
• have an LFS test your water for the other basic parameters, report back here
• check your temp, make sure it stays in the 73-83 range, if it's swinging outside that range you will still be OK but it's another problem to solve before adding coral.
• if your salinity is good and stable, add more cheap clean up crew and potentially a couple cheap, hardy fish (maybe clowns)
• feed the fish a small amount once or twice a day

Then make no other significant changes until your CUC and fish are surviving and healthy and the tank works through some of the kinks. That should be your only goal right now.

The only way you should really think about algae control is with snails and hermits, urchins are great too but I wouldn't invest in that $$$ until your tank is a little more stable. Don't start obsessing over nutrients, you aren't even to the point where you want to worry about sensitive coral, and CUC and simple fish will tolerate nutrients just fine (whether at zero or super high).

 

[clownvan]

thank you!!! this is super helpful!

Salinity - 1.025
Temp - 70F with lights off. 74F with lights on

Is it okay if I test the parameters or is LFS needed?