Help

[saltyfishgirl]

Hi im a newbie at saltwater reef tanks and i have a 29 gal bio cube. I have 15lbs of live rock, live sand, some soft coral, one clown fish, a blue/green chromie, a firefish, some crabs and snails. My tank has been up for three months and im doing my water changes, but lately im having an issue with this red slime that is bulid up in my live sand. I have takingthe net an scooped the top layer of the live sand off getting all the red slime off but then I turn around and it is growing back again. I asked the experets at my fish store and they said that it is comin for a new tank and that im over feeding them. Im only feeding them a very small pinch of food once in the moring and once at night. Im also have my reef lights on for 10hours. They also recomend me to have them on that long. If anyone could help me it would be greatly appriciated. Thanks

[Reeftanker3295]

I think that may still be feeding them too much, most stores reccomend to feed them the least possible so that the fish will be active and you wont have algae problems. I do this and i still get hair algae all over. Try getting an urchin. i have the same tank as you by the way with pretty much the same fish

[hng]

Welcome to TRT! I agree, twice a day feeding with commercially prepared fish food is way too much. Red slime is frequently a sign of poor flow and too much nutrience in the system. Basically, more stuff going in than going out. So, we know what's going in, now we have to figure out what's coming out. How often do you do your water changes and how much do you change? Do you use a protein skimmer? Do you use a filter of any type? Do you use activated carbon? If water changes are your only method to remove wastes, then a few extra changes may be enough to help the red slime go away. Try to avoid using chemicals to remove red slime if you can. Finally, do NOT add another critter like an urchin to your system. It does NOT fix your underlying issue and may even make things worse. Ultimately, nutirent export is your solution to a stable and healthy tank.

[bella d]

Correct me if i'm wrong but slime tends to become most invasive when the pH is <8, this can be a localised pH in a dead flow area if there isn't sufficient circulation.

[saltyfishgirl]

I do my water changes every other week. I take out about 10% or about 3gals. I have a protine skimmer and a wet dry flitration system, and a uv/powerhead steralizer. Also the bio cube has a carbon filter also. Thanks.

[Loverotties]

Welcome to TRT! Get rid of the balls!Your LR is your filter and the balls just produce Nitrates.