Many new saltwater aquariums suffer from red slime algae and this leaves many aquarium owners wondering how to get rid of red slime algae in a saltwater aquarium.

Red slime algae is a common occurrence in marine aquarium systems. It is very common in newer saltwater tanks that have not yet reached a biological balance. If your tank is under 6 months old you can almost expect it to grow in your system. In older more established tanks it maybe a sign that something is wrong and the system is out of balance.

What Causes It

Generally it is caused by a build up of nutrients in the aquarium. These nutrients are nitrate and phosphates.These nutrients are put into the tank from fish waste and food. In most new systems that are correctly stocked and filtered the problem will normally go away on its own in a few weeks, it just takes patience on your part.

In older systems you may need to clean your filters more frequently, reduce the number of fish in the tank or give the tank a real good cleaning. A good cleaning would involve vacuuming the gravel thoroughly and blowing of any live rock work you have with a small power head to clean off any settled waste.

How to Get Rid Of Red Slime Algae In a Saltwater Aquarium

Because red slime algae is a natural part of the aquatic system it is not recommended that you use chemicals to kill it off. What normally will happen is that the nitrates and phosphate levels will spike when there is no algae to absorb it. Then when the algae reappears it will come back more severe do to the excess nutrient build up.

You can however try some nitrate and or phosphate absorbing filter media to starve the algae of its food source. But you need to find the actual source of your nutrients first. Surprisingly many times it is the tap water you use to make the saltwater that is the cause.

Many cities and towns add phosphate to the water to stop the pipes from rusting, so every time you do a water change you are adding more algae food into your tank. To avoid this you can buy a reverse osmosis water treatment system or use distilled water from the store.

Many saltwater aquarium keepers have also reported that red slime algae does not like high water flow so you can also try to increase water flow into the problem areas and see if that helps.

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Red slime algae in a reef aquarium can detract from the overall look of the tank. It can also pose a threat to some corals, if they are not strong enough to fight it off it can eventually smoother them and cut off their light.

What Causes Red Slime Algae In a Reef Aquarium

This algae is not an actual algae but a form cyano bacteria. Many reef experts are unsure as to the exact cause of it but it is believed that like any normal aquarium algae it needs excess dissolved nutrients to feed on and grow. And like other algae it needs an adequate light source for photosynthesis

How Can I Get Rid Of It

Red Slime algae has proven to not like high water flow and by simply increasing the flow in your reef tank you maybe able to get it to regress. It is also very easy to remove by hand by simply scooping it out.

There have been some theories that older light bulbs may cause it to appear out of no where so if your bulbs are more then six months old changing them may have a positive affect.

There are also some animals that other reef keepers have claimed eat it. These animals are the red legged hermit crab, the cerith snail and some reports have claimed that bi-color blennies will eat it as well.

Like anything in a reef tank it is hit or miss when adding animals to control algae, they may devour it or they may ignore it.

There are also chemicals that are marketed that claim to reduce or remove red slime algae in the reef aquarium. But like any chemical it will only mask the problem and is not a long term solution. And even if it claims it is reef safe there is a chance that any chemicals added to your tank could also kill sensitive coral or invertebrates so proceed with caution when using chemicals.

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Many saltwater aquarium keepers panic at the sight of reef aquarium algae and do everything in their power to eliminate it from their tanks. But that is almost an impossible task because algae is part of the natural ecosystem and without it your tank would fail. The key to success however is to keep it to minimum levels so it does not over take your reef tank display.

How To Control Reef Aquarium Algae Easily

Natural Predators- Everything on the reef has a predator and algae is no exception. By employing snails and crabs to eat it your algae growth should stay contained. There are even some colorful and useful algae eating fish like tangs, blennies and some angel fish that can assist the snails and crabs.

Use Pure Water- Nitrates and phosphates are the prime causes of algae in aquariums. Many times your tap water is already full of these compounds so when you do a water change you are making it worse! To avoid this a good reverse osmosis water treatment unit will supply you with 99% nutrient free water to use in your tank.

Good Tank Maintenance- Doing frequent water changes and keeping critical equipment like protein skimmers clean will go a long way in reducing algae feeding compounds in your reef aquarium.

You can also take a small power head and blow debris off the rock work right before a water change and remove it when you siphon out the water.

Maintain good lighting- Old light bulbs tend to shift to the red part of the color spectrum which will cause reef aquarium algae to grow much faster the normal. To avoid this color shift change your light bulbs every 7-9 months as part of your regular maintenance program.

Have Good Circulation- Having adequate reef tank circulation will not only increase oxygen in the water but will also keep debris like uneaten food and fish waste suspended long enough to be caught and removed by the tank filters or protein skimmers.

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Marine aquarium algae is a common and annoying problem for many saltwater fish keepers and one that seems to take on a life of its own. having an understanding of how and why algae grows will give you a better chance of keeping it at acceptable levels.

Main Causes Of Marine Aquarium Algae

Most people panic when they see a little spot of green growing in their tanks. The usually try liquid chemicals, filter medias and other attempts to keep it at bay.

But what they fail to realize is that algae is a naturally occurring part of any aquatic ecosystem so you can never remove it completely, you can how ever hold it at bay.

Excessive Nutrients- In most tanks the algae starts to grow from a high level of algae feeding nutrients like nitrate and phosphate in the tank. These nutrients come from excessive fish waste, over feeding and overstocking the aquarium.

You can try bigger filters, more efficient protein skimmers or reduced feedings but bottom line is if you have to much waste in the fish tank you may have to consider removing some fish to bring everything back into balance or increase the amount and frequency of your water changes.

Not Enough Oxygen- marine aquarium algae thrives in low oxygen environments. Low oxygen can come from poor circulation and overstocking of the tank. low oxygen levels are often associated with PH levels under 7.8

To raise your oxygen levels try pointing some filter outputs at the surface of the water to cause it to ripple, you can also add an additional power head to cause surface agitation and increase oxygen.

But if you find that you simply cannot bring oxygen and PH levels up enough because of your saltwater aquariums fish load you may have to remove a fish or two to get your levels back up to acceptable levels.

Old Lighting- As aquarium light bulbs age they tend to shift more toward the red light spectrum. Unfortunately the red spectrum is the one that marine aquarium algae prefers and thrives under. So if you notice a sudden spike in excessive algae growth you may want to try and replace your lights if they are more then 7 months old and see what affect this has on your tank.

Any type of saltwater aquarium algae is frustrating for aquarium keepers to control and eliminate. But if you can get to the cause of the problem it can be a easy battle to fight.

Causes Of Saltwater Aquarium Algae

Algae is a naturally occurring part of any ecosystem so you can never eliminate it entirely from your aquarium, but you can control it. The fist step in controlling algae in the saltwater aquarium is understanding that algae’s role in the ecosystem is to ensure that nutrients never reach toxic levels to other animals in the environment so if you have in in excess you have  system that is out of balance.

In most cases causes of aquarium algae can be traced to two main situations and those are as follows

Excess Nutrients- Having to many fish in a tank can cause nitrate and phosphate levels to rise to levels that will cause an environment where algae can thrive and grow.

The nitrates and phosphates come from fish waste as well as to much food being introduced into the system.

Some saltwater fish keepers that have over stocked tanks try and compensate for this with bigger filters and protein skimmers but in the long run you are going to have to reduce the bio load of your tank to make the red slime algae go away.

Low Oxygen Levels- If your tank is over stocked or has low circulation you could have a build up of C02. This excess C02 will spark an algae bloom in your tank, this is your systems way of kicking in to keep oxygen levels high enough to keep fish and coral alive. A sign of low oxygen levels is a PH level that is under 8.0.

If you think you have low oxygen levels the best thing to do is increase your flow levels and surface agitation in your tank. If after a week there is no improvement in PH or algae levels you may have to start reducing fish load to increase oxygen levels.