I have been doing water changes once a week in my 24 gallon tank. I do 4 gallon changes every time. Any ways, my algea keeps getting worse! And i even have 2 turbo snails! Now its on my glass and its green and i CAN'T take it off! i even scrub it with my nails! Its starting to get hard looking in my tank! Please help! Thank you so much!
2007-06-26 20:06:59 · 4 answers · asked by Anonymous in Pets ➔ Fish
A couple of ideas for you:
You might want to try larger water changes - 4 gallons is only 1/6 of the volume of your tank and you should try to change 1/4 each week. This is hard for me to predict, because I don't know how much of the total tank volume is live rock (I think you use it), so 4 gallons might be 1/4 of your water volume.
Are you doing the changes with tap water or RO water? The RO might help you out because it contains less chemical compouns. Tap water can have phosphates, and these are more of a algae fertilizer than nitrate. At the very least, get a phosphate pad for your filter.
You may want to increase the number of your snails and possible add another type - not all snails eat the same things. Maybe you could try some trochus snails for ones that would have the most different "appetite" (nerites and ceriths eat pretty much the same types as the turbos). If it's a really tough diatom type algae, you might need to use a razor to scrape it off, if you need to clean it off the glass yourself.
Do you use a protein skimmer on the tank? This could also help some with the nutrient control. As always, make sure you aren't overfeeding and creating more of a problem.
2007-06-26 21:06:11 · answer #1 · answered by copperhead 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
A 24 gal. saltwater tank should have AT LEAST 10 -15 DIFFERENT TYPES of snails to start.
Use RO/ DI water only, To prevent any phosphates to the warer.
DO NOT OVERFEED your fish.
You may want to cut your lighting back an hour or two and see if that helps.
Do NOT overstock your tank.
10-20 small hermit crabs will help in a 24gal tank.
1 red sea star will help.
1 or 2 Emerald clabs will help.
If you can't scrape the algae off, it may be CORALINE algae which is a sign of good water quality and good lighting.
You will need a razer scraper to get rid of it on your front glass but leave it grow on the back of the tank
Try all of the natural meathods (More snails, Crabs, Sea stars...less lighting time...)
2007-06-27 06:37:34 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 2⤋
I was having major algae problems as well. I switched to using a RO/DIO water filter and added a phosphate absorber in place of one of the carbon packs in my filter as well as a phosphate pad in place of one of the sponges in the canister filter. this worked really well. i still have algae but it is now dieing faster than it grows back. another thing is 2 snails may not be enough for a cleaner crew in that tank. So try the phosphate sponge filter media and the pad. RO units can get pricey but so does everything with saltwater tanks.
2007-06-26 23:19:56 · answer #3 · answered by craig 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
use RO water, no phosphates. try a few more snails and a phospahte removing pad or resin, give it a few weeks or more to make a real difference
2007-06-27 04:12:18 · answer #4 · answered by michael_j_p_42503 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋