Help Request from aweeks236

[dakar]

The following message was sent via the Captive Reefing Contact Us form by aweeks236.

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I tried to fidn where i could post this question at, but i coudln't find it. I have
red/burgundy algae growing on the sand of my tank when i attempt to clean it with a
gravel filter all that happens is it clumps together and makes a even bigger mess. I
have a 20 gallon tank with a green brittle star fish, emerald crab, 2 clown fish,
and 3 turbo snails. My question is, how do i get rid of the algae, it is really
starting to make the tank look quite ugly. Thank you for any help

[flame]

You can use a syphon hose and vacumn this from the sand. You may need to add another powerhead or two to increase the flow. This should help with this problem.

[Fatman]

Possible thats its red slime?

[Fally]

When I had a small problem with this algae I used a turkey baster to suck it out. It worked quite well, just go slow.

Good luck!

[Reef_Angel]

That definitely sounds like Cyano that's rearing it's ugly slime! We are always happy to help anyone out, so feel free to ask anything here. If you don't get an answer right away, do a "search" within CR, and I guarantee you'll find answers right away! We have all experienced cyano, the algae that is the worst & ugliest IMO. We don't recommend products/chemicals to solve the problem without some other side effect. Anything with copper in it is an absolute NO! There are a lot of great tips from all the other reefer's that posted a response to your question! Cyano has been a question asked about so often, and we gladly help out reefers who are experiencing for the first time. Believe me, I've gotten slimed more times than I care to talk about. For even more info, check out this page in one of the forums. This particular forum post talks all about Cyano and some super & complete answers to your problem! What one person doesn't mention, another person will, as you'll see in the post simply named Cyano. The how to's will help you rid your tank from it naturally! Let us know how it turns out, and don't forget to share a picture of your tank too! We love pictures here! :)Good Luck!

http://www.captivereefing.com/showthread.php?t=581&highlight=cyano