Brown algae or cyano? Need some help.

[LordDarth Bane]

OK, I saw the photos from another thread, that my tank is having the exactly same thing as Mr.Happy has had. Pics are quoted from his thread. (Thanks as my mobile camera failed to take pics in that good resolution)

http://zeovit.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=36322

What are these? Brown algae of cyano?

My tank started having it since April while I was 5 days not at home. Now it is under controlled but I can't get rid of it. I have to brush and blow the rocks every week during WC.

 

[LordDarth Bane]

Anyone? Could it be biofilm from carbon dosing? I am running the Prodibio.

 

[cubman20]

I have the same stuff i am dosing brightwell bio fuel. i want to know what it is to.It cant be dinoflagellates mine has no air bubbles and is not stringy. I suck it out with every water change.

 

[karimwassef]

I've had it too. It's brown hair algae covered in cyano... a partnership of evil

 

[LordDarth Bane]

Are you dosing carbon source as well?

I had been running the NeoZeo method back in around 2009-2012. From memory I had encountered biofilm problem. A different type though, brown as well, on thr rock and glass.

 

[karimwassef]

No. But I feed very heavily and use a scrubber so no algae grows in my display except that which is immediately consumed by life there. As a consequence, local dense zones of coral death due to coral on coral aggression or coral growing through the surface develop this inedible concoction. Mine are actually a black hazy fuzzy gel.

I've seen my urchins eat them but not intentionally. They're usually on the way to pink calcerous algae.

Chemiclean works on mine. It breaks up the gel matrix and the exposed fuzz is loosely attached and easily consumed by the scavengers.

 

[Fonn]

It looks like dead corallites algae to me. I had the same looking stuff when my whole tank was "cooked" by a bad heater years ago.

 

[karimwassef]

Mine was spongy and fuzzy, not hard

 

[Volcmreefer]

Following. I have the same thing! Tank has been up for a year now.

 

[Bill Nye]

I have something similar going on in my sump so I'm assuming its bacterial.

 

[Volcmreefer]

GFO and Carbon do not touch it. Has to be bacterial because my nitrates are low and phosphates are zero. Frustrating to say the least!

 

[karimwassef]

Cyano is able to locally fix Nitrogen and grows wherever there is a local source of N and P. So a local increase in inorganics will allow them to create their own environment to thrive.

 

[no1bubba]

Newer tank Crashed. All coral gone 7 surviving fish 2 clowns. Banging cardinal, kole tang, 3 chormies that started tank with. Now have patches of BROWN HAIR ALGAE. Started dosing vodka 2 days ago (too early to show any change). 1. Shuttting off lights (no coral)
2. Minimal feeding. 3. Removing each rock, digging out algae and puttin peroxide in the area then covering that area with coral glue. It worked once when removing GSP from the center of a blue tubbs colony, eventually tubbs grew over it and it was beautiful again. Any problems with this procedure?

 

[LordDarth Bane]

Looks like this stuff is bacteria/biofilm.

I have reduced the dosage of bacteria and carbon source and now they are declining. :lmao:

(From 1 x Biodigest + 1 x Bioptim per 2 weeks, to 1/2 x Biodigest + 1 x Bioptim per 4 weeks) :rollface:

 

[jda]

Suck it out when you change water. It will export the nutrients that are bound up in it rather than just putting them back in the tank.