Why isn't my coraline algae growing!

[Timbits]

So I have a 40 breeder mixed reef, mostly LPS, zoas, palys, softies, and a few sps. I have around 50 lbs live rock i think and 50 lbs live sand. Tank has been running for around 5 months.

I haven't had any coraline algae growing since my tank was set-up. My rocks look so ugly! Rocks look pretty much the same as when i introduced it to the tank and no coraline algae growing on the glass! Added some coral with coraline algae that covered the rock it was on but it seems that they are fading away.

Don't really know what's going on. I really want the coraline algae to cover my rocks, they look so bare and ugly. Checked my calcium and alk and ph and everything was good with calcium maintaining at 440.

I know my tank is a bit new but i thought coraline algae grew faster than this. Does anyone have any suggestions or comments? Thanks.

[jtbadco]

IME it tends to catch on quicker if you add pieces of LR that already have coraline on it.

I also used a product called Purple Up to encourage growth. I believe it adds other elements that are necessary or helpful in growing coraline. It worked in my first tank.

[lockrookie]

my 90 has been running 3 years and noto all the rocks have corline on them and i used 3 bottles of purple up... it takes time and patience.

[Reef-Geek]

did you test KH? I used to have the same problem and when I start dose 2 part the problem is solved

[FragIt Dan]

I observe the best coralline growth under high flow and lower fluorescent light. A couple of brands/color temperature combinations of HQI bulbs have strongly inhibited coralline growth in my tanks. I could see the algae surviving where it was shadowed from the lights and see it bleached out where it was exposed. Silt will also inhibit growth. Try getting a clean turkey Baster and jetting some water on your rocks. If silt blows off of them you will probably have problems growing coralline in that location due to low flow. Having said that, I also get good coralline growth under my Hamilton 250w14K and Phoenix 250w14K bulbs, but more so in higher current areas.


FragIt Dan

[Money pit]

I get good growth also using Phoenix 14k bulbs. You could try crushing some Coraline and putting it into a high flow area to get it to seed other areas of the tank.

[Timbits]

IME it tends to catch on quicker if you add pieces of LR that already have coraline on it.

I also used a product called Purple Up to encourage growth. I believe it adds other elements that are necessary or helpful in growing coraline. It worked in my first tank.

I've heard of this product... how effective is it?

[Timbits]

did you test KH? I used to have the same problem and when I start dose 2 part the problem is solved

Yes, KH is good. what did you dose to fix the problem? was your KH low before?

[Timbits]

So i just remembered that the rock in the tank, i got it from some guy and he told me that it was from a medicated tank.... or something like that

Would that have anything to do with it??

[globaldesigns]

Too funny, everyone wants coraline, and even buy supplements to encourage its growth. In my world, I want it gone... It is beautiful stuff, but I have a purple/red/pink and even some green, as my tank is one big purple monster. I just have too much

I even have 5 urchins that devour the stuff, as I think so much coraline is smothering my LR. They are doing a great job, but I think I need another 5 urchins.

[lockrookie]

So i just remembered that the rock in the tank, i got it from some guy and he told me that it was from a medicated tank.... or something like that

Would that have anything to do with it??

define medicated.if copper wasusedthrow the rok out nothingwill grow in thetank period corals or coraline

[Reef-Geek]

Yes, KH is good. what did you dose to fix the problem? was your KH low before?

my kh was low, around 6-7. to me coraline will grow quickly if water if stable
I dose this (http://www.jlaquatics.com/phpstore/store_pages/product-info.php?product_ID=esv-155) and my coraline goes crazy.

[Timbits]

Too funny, everyone wants coraline, and even buy supplements to encourage its growth. In my world, I want it gone... It is beautiful stuff, but I have a purple/red/pink and even some green, as my tank is one big purple monster. I just have too much

I even have 5 urchins that devour the stuff, as I think so much coraline is smothering my LR. They are doing a great job, but I think I need another 5 urchins.

I wish i have this problem LOL

[Timbits]

define medicated.if copper wasusedthrow the rok out nothingwill grow in thetank period corals or coraline

I was afraid of that... I'm not sure it could very well be copper.

I did get growth on my corals though, some of them are growing like crazy so could it not be copper?

If it's not copper but some other medication than is it ok?

Thx

[Timbits]

my kh was low, around 6-7. to me coraline will grow quickly if water if stable
I dose this (http://www.jlaquatics.com/phpstore/store_pages/product-info.php?product_ID=esv-155) and my coraline goes crazy.

Thx i mite try it

[FragIt Dan]

So i just remembered that the rock in the tank, i got it from some guy and he told me that it was from a medicated tank.... or something like that

Would that have anything to do with it??

That might have something to do with it, particularly as lockrookie said... if it was medicated with copper (I too would not use the rocks in a reef tank if this were the case). There are a multitude of factors that may be contributing to your decreased coralline growth. It is likely a combination of things. Your low dKh would likely be contributing as well.

As for Purple Up... I am under the impression that Brightwell Aquatics Elemental product is the same, so if you are not able to get one then try looking for the other. You will still need to maintain Ca, dKh, Mg lighting and flow, but using Purple Up or Elemental (will increase your Ca and dKh simultaneously but not proportionally) have been reported to promote coralline growth more than standalone Ca and dKh supplements, although you will likely still need to dose the individual components for fine tuning.

One other thing to note... although both of these products report to contain other elements (Mg, Sr etc.) they are in such low concentrations I would treat them as if they were not present.

[Aquattro]

as I think so much coraline is smothering my LR.

That's my thought on it as well. If it builds up too much on the rock, it blocks all the pores we paid money for. This is where the denitrification takes place, so covering it isn't a great idea.

[Timbits]

That might have something to do with it, particularly as lockrookie said... if it was medicated with copper (I too would not use the rocks in a reef tank if this were the case). There are a multitude of factors that may be contributing to your decreased coralline growth. It is likely a combination of things. Your low dKh would likely be contributing as well.

My dKh is good and stable, it is not low. I'm getting growth on my corals, so do you think it is not copper? if it was another medication that was used, would it be ok?

[Timbits]

That's my thought on it as well. If it builds up too much on the rock, it blocks all the pores we paid money for. This is where the denitrification takes place, so covering it isn't a great idea.

That makes sense lol, i guess there is a up-side and a down-side

[Reefie]

I had the same thing in my tank when it was about 4-5 months old.

Purple Up won't really work unless you had a bit of Coralline to begin with.

You need to "seed" the tank with a bit of Coralline to get it going. Try getting a shaving of Coralline from another tank or even your LFS, then chop it up into as small as you can get it and drop it into a high flow area of your tank. This will spread the Coralline throughout your tank, if you have sufficient Calc, Alk, Mag it will grow.

[FragIt Dan]

My dKh is good and stable, it is not low. I'm getting growth on my corals, so do you think it is not copper? if it was another medication that was used, would it be ok?

Growth on your corals is a good indicator that copper is not a problem. I would not worry about the rocks in this case. Also, if your corals are growing then I think you just need to give it more time. The suggestions on seeding your rocks with crushed coralline from other sources is a good one, I am going to give this a try for my frag pucks.


FragIt Dan

[Timbits]

OK so i'm pretty sure the rock i got was in a tank that was treated with copper.

I believe this was 2 years ago and the rock has been out of the tank and dry for a year before i put it in my tank.

I have a starfish, cleaner shrimp, and various CUC that are doing well. The cleaner shrimp has molted twice and has trippled in size. They have been in the tank for 5 months. Corals seem to be doing well too got some good growth, polyps extended. Some seem to be not doing as well as others though, like my zoas - i got good growth in the beginning but then now i think they are slowly melting away and some dont seem to open all the way, only half way. not sure if that is the recent change in lights or could be the copper from the rocks. Maybe there is very little trace amount of copper in the rock so not too detrimental to the health of the animals but big enough to stunt their growth overtime and maybe that is why i dont have any coraline growing.... I think that is why i get good growth when i first introduce the coral but then it growth slows down due to the copper over time.

What do you guys think? I really hate to have to shut the tank down and start over... Tank is pretty full now and all my hard work will go down the drain. :cry:

If i do start over, is everything contaminated now? Do i have to get rid of everything?? OR can i just throw away the rock?

[Timbits]

What do you think of my theory "that there may be very little trace amount of copper so when i first add a frag, i get good growth but then it slows down later on?"

OR if copper is a problem, would i not get growth at all right from the beginning and the coral will just die?

I have a paly that started with 1 polyp that has over 100 polyps now that has been in the tank since the beginning... :confused:

[ReefOcean]

I get good growth also using Phoenix 14k bulbs. You could try crushing some Coraline and putting it into a high flow area to get it to seed other areas of the tank.

+1. Scraping it off the glass works too

[FragIt Dan]

What do you think of my theory "that there may be very little trace amount of copper so when i first add a frag, i get good growth but then it slows down later on?"

OR if copper is a problem, would i not get growth at all right from the beginning and the coral will just die?

I have a paly that started with 1 polyp that has over 100 polyps now that has been in the tank since the beginning... :confused:

IMO, if Cu was your problem you would see problems right from the get go, but in this case there is a good chance I am wrong :). Chronic low levels can bioaccumulate and cause issues with time. It sounds like your symptoms would point towards this, as unlikely as it may seem. You could do some research on Cu LC50's in the marine environment. I actually did some undergraduate work on this exact topic. Have you tested for Cu yet? If it does turn out to be Cu, you would be better off converting the tank to FOWLR. With a great deal if effort you can leach copper out of things like glass and plastic, but the rocks should go to someone with a FOWLR tank with an appropriate warning about the Cu content. I might see if I can dig up some of my stuff on Cu, but that was a few years ago.


FragIt Dan

[Timbits]

IMO, if Cu was your problem you would see problems right from the get go, but in this case there is a good chance I am wrong :). Chronic low levels can bioaccumulate and cause issues with time. It sounds like your symptoms would point towards this, as unlikely as it may seem. You could do some research on Cu LC50's in the marine environment. I actually did some undergraduate work on this exact topic. Have you tested for Cu yet? If it does turn out to be Cu, you would be better off converting the tank to FOWLR. With a great deal if effort you can leach copper out of things like glass and plastic, but the rocks should go to someone with a FOWLR tank with an appropriate warning about the Cu content. I might see if I can dig up some of my stuff on Cu, but that was a few years ago.


FragIt Dan

Hey Dan,

Thanks for your help, I really appreciate it. Been pretty stressed about this... I haven't tested for Cu yet but I will do that ASAP.

Do you think i can get away with just taking the rock out and adding fresh live rock?

[daniella3d]

My tank was healthy as can be with sps growing 1" per month and everhthing thriving, but I have near zero coraline algae..and I am extremely happy about it.

I keep my calcium at 420, mag at 1400 and alkalinity at 8. I dose trace element, amino acids and coral food...no coralline.

So the lack of coralline growth is not an indication of the tank being unhealthy. I noticed that some of my rocks have plenty of it and the majority of my rocks are totoka and that does not have a single bit of coralline on it. I guess the type of rock has a big influence.

[FragIt Dan]

Hey Dan,

Thanks for your help, I really appreciate it. Been pretty stressed about this... I haven't tested for Cu yet but I will do that ASAP.

Do you think i can get away with just taking the rock out and adding fresh live rock?

Great news! Keep your rocks and setup as is... after having done a bit more research I think you are going to be fine, even if copper is the problem, in fact you might want to hope it is the problem as this should fix it... Two media used to remove copper in exactly your situation:

1) CupriSorb by Sea Chem - http://www.jlaquatics.com/phpstore/store_pages/product-info.php?product_ID=sc-cur0250

2) Poly Filter Pad - http://oceanaquatics.com/store/product/2127/Poly-Filter/

Neither is expensive and both should allow you to keep your rocks and tank setup without disruption. I would test for Cu before and after to see if you can find a 'smoking gun'. Given the possibility of Cu leaching out of your rocks for a while, you might want to run one of those media every couple of weeks for a day or two, depending on how your tank is reacting. I am under the impression one or both of those media may suck out trace and possibly some minor elements as well, so they may in fact have detrimental effects if used chronically. You may want to dose a Trace Supplement after removing the Cu absorbing media as well, or just do a water change and that should replenish your trace elements too.

Were I in your place my treatment plan would be as follows:
1) Maintain your tank as you usually do (i.e. water changes, dosing etc)
2*) Test for Cu
3) run the CupriSorb for a couple of weeks
4) remove the CupriSorb just before you do one of your regular water changes
5) Run CupriSorb for a day or two before each of your water changes for the next few months
* - If any Cu shows up I would test again each time just before and after integrating CupriSorb back into your filtration in step 5 to see what levels your Cu has crept up to. You will be able to gauge how long you will need to keep this up by watching your levels drop with time. i would also record the test results as the trend will tell you how long you should expect to have to keep this up.

If you are doing regular water changes (no more than monthly) I would not worry about dosing Trace elements.

I have some sand out of a LFS that closed down that came from the fish side treated with Cu. I am going to test this method out in an empty tank to see how well it works.

[Timbits]

Hey Dan,

I did some research last night and found the exact same products too! Whew! I think im going to try the poly-filter, sounds like a great product that can remove other things as well like phosphates. Id be interested to see your results from your test! Maybe we can both post our results here. Ill keep you posted!

I might still change out my rocks though, I have a feeling that maybe the rock is too saturated with the Cu, thats why im not getting any coraline on it. and maybe even if i can remove the Cu with those products, the rock is still too damaged to be able have coraline grow on it.....
What do you think?

[FragIt Dan]

Hey Dan,
I might still change out my rocks though, I have a feeling that maybe the rock is too saturated with the Cu, thats why im not getting any coraline on it. and maybe even if i can remove the Cu with those products, the rock is still too damaged to be able have coraline grow on it.....
What do you think?

I would follow the steps I outlined, and if after several weeks you are still getting Cu showing up I might change them out. I think right now it is a big cost and disruption to your tank. You will need to change them all out at the same time, so I would be trying this as a LAST resort. I really think those products are promising, even for your rocks.


FragIt Dan

[Cubeman]

Just wondering how long this tank has been set up? I had a 90 gallon once that had all of the coralline on the newly introduced live rock turn white within the first few weeks of being set up. The tank looked sterile for 4 months and then by the 6 month mark it had 'purpled' up. Patience is often the key in this hobby.

[FragIt Dan]

Just wondering how long this tank has been set up?

...Tank has been running for around 5 months...


Patience may indeed be the best 'solution' to add to the tank... I am aggressively seeking a way to bottle it and get it onto store shelves :). Betcha can't wait for it!

FragIt Dan