How to tell if live rock is dying

[JaredCBell]

So the new cured live rock I got from the LFS that had a thick layer of red algae is starting to change color after a few days. It was a deep maroon or burgundy, now half of it is changing to a pale-ish green color. This is the algae dying right?

also, about how long down the road does new algae start growing?

tank was 1.016 for months, just recently converted it to full SW (1.024) and added about 15lbs of LR (Still need to get another 15 but this stuff is freakin expensive!)

[saix88]

No idea on the algae, thought it could be a sponge, but they are bright red and will die off since they hit air. I don't know why algae would be dying, dark red algae is usually there if there is no flow, so I'm taking a guess now since it's in your tank you have some flow and it's taking it off showing the underlying area?

You will probably start to notice an algae bloom around the 2nd week if you have been leaving your lights on.

[JaredCBell]

No idea on the algae, thought it could be a sponge, but they are bright red and will die off since they hit air. I don't know why algae would be dying, dark red algae is usually there if there is no flow, so I'm taking a guess now since it's in your tank you have some flow and it's taking it off showing the underlying area?

You will probably start to notice an algae bloom around the 2nd week if you have been leaving your lights on.

i have one 17W stock florescent light for now since I am not doing corals for awhile. Should I be leaving this on 24/7 in the beginning stages of the tank?

[saix88]

As long as their are no fish in the tank I would do that till your algae bloom is over. * Of course there will still be algae growing constantly after*

[saix88]

And yes live rock really does add up! Also depends on your store and what grade it is. If your doing fish only you can lower your salinity to around 1.020 and when you have corals have it higher at 1.024-26, but it's fine to keep it at 1.024 anyways.

[AABatteries]

That would have been red slime algae.

No way it could've been a sponge, because if they are out of the water for even a few seconds, they will die.

Your tank is just going through a natural cycle. You will go through a few stages algae before the worst of it clears up.

[oldhead]

There is no need to run the lights 24/7.

[JaredCBell]

ok maybe you guys can explain this. I tried researching it but brackish tank discussion and research is hard to come by.

When my tank was fresh water I had tons or brown algae. Then when i went to brackish (1.016), months later I got a huge green algae bloom. It took over everything and I had to clean everything manually. When i asked other brackish owners about green algae, they all looked at me like I was crazy. They said they all only experience brown algae.

Could this have been a marine algae bloom? What other color algaes should I expect to bloom through the cycle?

[AABatteries]

What is the current SG?

[JaredCBell]

What is the current SG?

um 1.023-4

[oldhead]

A green algae bloom in my experience is tied to excess nutrients in the water and a prolonged photo period. In a marine tank the most common algae bloom that people fight to controld is the red cyano. You will see that come and go a few times as your tank matures.