So fed up with algae!!!

My 80 gallon reef (well, was a reef before ich recently killed all my fish which i've had for a long time) is infested with algae! And the algae just keeps on coming back!
It all started with the refugium that my mangroves were in. I had a 6500K CFL directed at the mangroves to keep them alive which I believe also sparked the red slime and hair algaes to take over my tank. After spawning in the refugium, they quickly spread into my main tank. At first only the red slime appeared and it coated patches of my LR and LS. At least once a week I would go in with a toothbrush and get a big swipe of algae, throw it in the trash can, and repeat that process until pretty much every bit of algae was gone. But 7 days later it would all be back to what it was. I got so fed up i took all my LR outta the tank and scrubbed it. This only kept it clean for a couple weeks. Algaefix barely did anything and my frogspawn didn't respond well so i stopped using that.
Well finally i bought "red slime remover" (a yellow powder) and dosed my tank twice. That resolved most of my red slime problem. But the problem was i couldn't run my protein skimmer for about a week and soon after hair algae overtook my tank. I think the dying red slime released enough phosphates and all that good crap for the hair algae to kick in, especially since the skimmer wasn't running. I bought phosguard and put that in my canister (phosphates read .5). So here i am 2 weeks later battling hair algae all over my LR, green slime(?) on my glass, AND brown slime on my sand!
I'm buying someone's 50 gallon reef for pretty cheap soon and combining both of our tanks (i also want to downgrade into their tank because my 80 looks kinda ghetto) but i need to get rid of these stupid algae problems first! I'm on a budget so i can't just go out and buy an RODI (my a$$hole dad threw out my old one) so for now i have to stick with dechlorinated tap. I am doing another one of those scrubbings today.. Any suggestions? and i cant just put the rock in a dark rubbermaid or something because most of it has coral attached to it. Thanks!

 

Until you stop using tap water, you will always have this problem. Also, if your hair algae is as bad as you describe, and you're still registering .5ppm of PO4 (API I assume), then your tank actual PO4 number is MUCH higher. Can you get RO/DI from your LFS? You can get it at some grocery stores (self fill).

 

First off, slow down. Algae problems take a while to fix. Your first job is to save money for an rodi. Period. So, unless you're buying that 50g reef for under 150, there's no reason to not buy yourself an rodi unit.

Second, relax man. It takes time to get things where you want them and damn near ocd tendencies to keep a routine.

My results may not be typical, but my skimmer is an older CPR Aeroforce hob. So it waterfalls back into the tank. Well, my algae problems are just about gone due to the waterfall on that skimmer growing algae. I remove the growth each weekend. Other than one small 10g water change 3 weeks ago, I haven't touched it.

Like you I was ready to tear my eyes out 4 weeks after buying this setup. Now, I'm pleasantly content to let it ride. I still have some red slime clinging to a rock in an area of low flow, but a second powerhead will take care of that.

 

I'm not new to reefing and i know i need an RO unit. But for now will the phosguard at least help in controlling my phosphates? Ive been battling this stupid red slime for over a year and the hair algae outbreak is the worst I've ever had.
And yes my LFS does have RO water but I can't always go there when i need to top off/water change my tank.

Actually ya thats exactly how much i'm paying. It comes with 3 LED fixtures, a pair of maroons, lots of leathers and zoas, an engineer goby, blue damsel (not gonna keep him!), peppermint shrimp, LR, filters, etc etc. Plus i already have a MH and T5.. a bit overkill maybe.
I'm going to be buying their tank in a week or two. Do you think I should start taking my tank down and scrubbing the rock now?

 

Well, good on ya for scoring a 50G w/ everything for under 150! But, you're still basically shooting yourself in the foot for not getting an rodi unit. Hell, even a cheapy like I started off with would be fine for now. This one actually: PureWaterClub.com

Is it the best? hell no. Does it make 0tds water? At the moment, yes it does. Will it last years? Hell no. But it'll get ya going for the first year so you can save up for a good rodi from spectrapure or BRS, etc.

The other thing you can do is build an ATS (algae turf scrubber) that will help control (not elilminate) nitrates and phosphates much better than phosguard can in the long run. As FoD said above, you're phosphate is probably sky high and is what is feeding your algae problem.

I know I sound like a broken record, but until you get an RODI, you're gonna be bashing your brains out against a wall dealing with algae issues.

Course, you could always go show some leg on the corner for some extra cash. Lolz, j/k.

 

Buy their tank, part it out and sell it for a profit and buy your ro unit.

 

There ya go. That's not a terrible idea either.

 

When did you last change you mh lights? On my tank I"d have the same problem, then I would check to see how old they were. And being cheap (I know wrong hobby to be in if your cheap) they would over due.