Bacteria bloom after dosing Fergon tabs

[redfishsc]

I mixed up a batch of Fergon iron supplement per Randy's formula. I modified it for easier measuring for dosing in a nano. Instead of 50ml of RO/DI water, I used 150ml. One tab, totally dissolved.

I dosed about 5ml of this mix in a 10g nano system, dosed in two shots over two days. The system actually holds about 10g of water. This was for boosting the chaeto. It's too early for the chaeto to respond much (visually).

Anyhow, I was aware that the Fergon tabs contain a good bit of carbon (sugar), which might be enough for a bacterial bloom.

Now I am having a bloom of slightly-cloudy water and some snot strings all over the tank. On the powerhead, on coral, rock, and even snails. Looks A LOT like the snotty strings produced by vermitids--- except I don't have any that I know of-- and it would take a lot of vermitids to do this.

Could this be bacteria using the carbon that was in the Fergon tabs? Do I just let it run it's cycle?





http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=13975073#post13975073

 

[HighlandReefer]

FWIW, I dose 5 ml in 145 gallons of just salt water. You have diluted your solution to 1/3 of Randy's mix. So you are dosing about 5X the amount per volume of water that I do. Randy's system is even larger.

It sounds like you are having a bit of a bacterial bloom. I would clean out as much of the slime as possible. Make sure you have your skimmer running as wet as possible. It should clear up reasonably quickly, as the bacteria are fast in braking the carbons down.

 

[redfishsc]

Do you suspect that these bacteria are also doing a number on the phosphate/nitrate? The levels of the two are somewhat low as it is, nitrate is well below 5ppm (lowest the API will go) and phosphate is under .5ppm (again API limit). Niether of those are at toxin-levels although I know the phosphate really should be lower.

 

[HighlandReefer]

I would suspect that your nitrates & phosphates will be reduced similar to dosing sugar. Just a tad bit of an overdose from the carbon source. Is everything clearing up today?

 

[redfishsc]

Yes, the water is actually crystal clear, more so than I've seen it since I set it up.... which is surprising to me b/c this tank is generally spotless anyhow. Water quality has always been good.


The strings of goo are still here and there, too small for me to try to knit-pick them out of the tank, but they seem to have "congealed" more than yesterday, almost looking like small strands of cotton batting.


All looks well.... just a bit "hairy".

 

[redfishsc]

Man, I am amazed at how clear the water is now. All goo is gone, without a trace. Water sparkles under the T5's almost like MH does. Beautiful--- I'm amazed at what a difference 24 hours makes.

I'll dose this stuff once more next week for the iron (at 1/4 what I was dosing) and see how the tank reacts to the carbon.

I have not tested nitrate/phosphate, mostly b/c it started out lower than the API kits can detect anyhow. I need to upgrade my phosphate kit to something more sensitive. Nitrate I couldn't care less about, I don't have anything in my tank that I suspect would care at levels under 5ppm.

 

[HighlandReefer]

Let us know how it works out.