Anybody else have this algae?

We get it from time to time but our sand sifting star usually takes care of it. It comes off very easy by hand you can usually just stir up the sand where it is and it goes away.

 

thats another good idea, hopefully my arm will be able to reach down there i wish i could have a starfish but think my tank is to small and not even room on the sandbed

 

I think you could have a sand sifting starfish, I have two and they have been doing good, and I have had them since day 1.

 

I have it in my tank too!

 

that cyano layer will form in any healthy deep sand bed. ugly, but does some filtration...I have never been a fan of it really. ceriths only eat it to 2 inches deep, but it usually goes farther down than that into areas with such little oxygen few dare travel. If the sand is well oxygenated it won't develop, but that kind of defeats the purpose of the DSB. You can wipe it, but when you do so make sure to be slick about it and don't stir it up too much. You want the sand bed to have good water transfer without too much disturbance. If you smell a rotten egg smell, I would stop messing with it together. The smell is likely hydrogen sulfide being released from an anoxic layer, and you will just want to back away from the situation and try to get good agitation in tank in the mean time until the smell dissipates. It isn't just an odor issue, hydrogen sulfide can be toxic.