[rgall]

I have a 24G nano, a few months ago I got a nice rock covered in button polyps. Now this rock is covered in hair algae. It was spreading about 1 1/2 months ago to other rocks. I took them out, cleaned them all off and they are fine.. I use distilled water. I even used some phosphate remover since then. Everything else in the tank looks fine. All my levels seem OK. NO fish, 2 snails, a few hermits, and a few corrals. ( tons on pods swimming everywhere that i just noticed last week) No other rocks in the tank are have the algae. The hair algae keeps growing from only that one rock. I cant get rid of it. Any ideas? I am thinking the lights may need changed because I bought the tank used around Dec. This is the only thing I can come up with.

[unclejed]

Hello, I wouldn't suspect the lights for the simple fact you should be getting hair in other places if it were the lights. What type and how old are they? I have had that problem on a rock with polyps. Next time you are doing a change, use the water you take out and take that piece out and gently scrub with a new soft bristle tooth brush. You can even get between the polyps, don't worry, they are very tough, you won't kill them. You say you have a few hermits, in my 14 gal. bio I have at least 18. Once you scrub the rock the hermits can get in there and keep it clean.

[pogodzib]

Have you taken the rock with the polyps on it out of your tank and cleaned the hair algae off using a toothbrush while rinsing it under water? The polyps won't have any problems if they get ran under your faucet water for a couple minutes while being brushed to remove the hair algae.

[rgall]

I will next try to scrub the rock with a tooth brush. I didnt know if this would hurt the polyps because the hair is growing between them and they are pretty close together..