Hi all, Just thought I'd share some of my experience with this red terror!
Sure it's kinda colorful and looks nice in small tufts but when it gets goin it really goes!! It covered a few small rocks then showed up as tufts on the substrate,proceeded to the glass,powerheads and the rest of my rockwork! It started growing on my toadstool and killed it,and started choking some other corals as well.This wasn't a result of neglect either my levels were all good I run phosphate media and do waterchanges regularly.It's just one of those things that needs accidentally introduced into the system.
here is what I found:
Scrub it off- If you can remove the rock from your tank and scrub it this works.If you cant remove the rock forget it the little fragments that get lost just repopulate wherever they get stuck even filter intakes!
Increase Flow- No effect
Turbo Snails- They actually do eat the stuff but I swear it grows faster than they eat it! They often eat a path enroute to the glass or somewhere else for another food source.
Tangs- BINGO!! Problem solved I've had my yellow tang for less than a month and it has literally decimated the turf algae.It will graze constantly all day on this stuff.it squeezes itself into the smallest places it can in order to get to it!!He also likes caulerpa,dried seaweed,and frozen foods but he LOVES the red turf!
So I hope this helps anyone else with the RED SCOURGE. I'm not saying everyone should go buy a tang if you dont have a large enough tank for one.
Perhaps you can buy a tiny one and return it later or give it to someone with a much larger tank 75gal+? Or you can do as I did and switch your 20L into a 55 just to keep him for a while longer!!
here are a couple pix
Sure it's kinda colorful and looks nice in small tufts but when it gets goin it really goes!! It covered a few small rocks then showed up as tufts on the substrate,proceeded to the glass,powerheads and the rest of my rockwork! It started growing on my toadstool and killed it,and started choking some other corals as well.This wasn't a result of neglect either my levels were all good I run phosphate media and do waterchanges regularly.It's just one of those things that needs accidentally introduced into the system.
here is what I found:
Scrub it off- If you can remove the rock from your tank and scrub it this works.If you cant remove the rock forget it the little fragments that get lost just repopulate wherever they get stuck even filter intakes!
Increase Flow- No effect
Turbo Snails- They actually do eat the stuff but I swear it grows faster than they eat it! They often eat a path enroute to the glass or somewhere else for another food source.
Tangs- BINGO!! Problem solved I've had my yellow tang for less than a month and it has literally decimated the turf algae.It will graze constantly all day on this stuff.it squeezes itself into the smallest places it can in order to get to it!!He also likes caulerpa,dried seaweed,and frozen foods but he LOVES the red turf!
So I hope this helps anyone else with the RED SCOURGE. I'm not saying everyone should go buy a tang if you dont have a large enough tank for one.
Perhaps you can buy a tiny one and return it later or give it to someone with a much larger tank 75gal+? Or you can do as I did and switch your 20L into a 55 just to keep him for a while longer!!
here are a couple pix
