Need an ID on red algae in the fuge.

This is my first adventure into a refugium. This is a 300 gal RM300 refugium/sump that is about 29 gals or so 36x12 in my new 120 gal upgraded tank. I have a 6" deep sand bed that was seeded with a few cups of sand from my old tank and some live rock and I put some cheato in about 2 or 3 weeks ago I noticed this red algae building in the fuge and now growing on the eggcrate that I use to keep the cheato from falling out into the filtration part of the sump. I know that I should expect all kinds of weird things in the fuge but I just wanted to be sure that this is ok. Any help would be appreciated. I was going to go initially with nothing but cheato in the fuge but this method was recommended by my LFS

 

OK, I just read in another similar thread that the red algae goes away and that it is brought about by too much light. I run my light 24/7, should I change it to go on with my moonlights or my daylights or should I just leave it alone?

 

Looks like cyanobacteria (red slime). It feeds more on nutrients in your water than light. That being said, I would never run lights 24/7 on a refugium. The plants need to "rest" in order to photosynthesize properly. Also, I don't know of any "good" refugium that doesn't have some cyano in it so as long as it's not in the main tank, I wouldn't worry about it.

 

Ditto...Get those lights down to reverse daylight....minus a few hours.
LG

 

looks like cyano, make sure you don't overfeed, and you should be fine. Get your lights on a daily cycle.

 

Thanks everyone. I thought it was cyano. I put the light on the timer with the moonlights 9PM - 10AM. Is that ok for hours? Let me know so if I need to I'll get a separate timer.

 

Question? Does having a deep sand bed really help matters? Would I be experiencing this if I had no sand bed at all?

 

Cyano doesn't need sand to grow. A deep sand bed in the refugium is definitely an asset. I wouldn't put one in the main tank though.

 

red slime algae is fine for a refugium, there are even some organisms that feed on red slime algae in your refugium. in terms of having sand in your refugium, that can't be harmful and once your chaeto starts getting its growth, trust me, next thing you know, the sandbed won't even be exposed to light.. i wouldn't chinze on the light for your refugium, i think having a proper light for your chaeto growth plays a big role in keeping a successful refugium

 

But, what would I do if the red slime enters the main tank? I would have a fit to say the least. Would my diamond goby, snails or hermits eat it?:-/