cyano bacteria battle

[E_rock]

Tom I have been reading your posts ever since I joined this forum, and I dont know what you do for a living. But I hope your some kind sciencetist or something. Or at least a reefkeeping author.:hmm4:

 

[tmz]

Thanks I appreciate the compliment. Very glad you enjoy the posts.

I 'm retired. I've been asked to write for the mag but spend too much time posting and playing with my tanks and haven't published anything other than the November 2011 tank of the month article.
I raise corals and keep fish to fill my time along with studying the relevant science and posting. and spending time with family. I love learning about what I'm seeing and keeping reeftanks and healthy animals. This hobby is endless in terms of what you can learn, the mistakes you can make and the beauty and satisfaction you can acheive. But it's not easy.
My backround is not in the hard sciences, although I've spent the last 8 years trying to master them as they relate to reeefkeeping. I have a BA in liberal arts ,major in political science and an Master of Science in public administration with a concentraiton in health care.Spent over thirty years as a public adminsitrator culminating as the CEO of a NYS state agency serving 10,000 developmentally disabled individulas with a staff of 2400 folks and a 300million dollar budget. That was after 3 years in the military. Reefkeeping keeps some of my skills in tune. It's a great hobby.

 

[Gary Majchrzak]

I'm just glad Tom agrees with me that the 'lights out' approach isn't the way to go :lolspin:

 

[saltwaterpicaso]

ive done the black out thing once for a week about a year ago before i had any corals. i wouldnt do it again now. it did work but not for long maybe a month. i think if i would of had the equipment i have now that i would have never of had this problem. i was way over stocked with a very poor skimmer. i started vinegar dosing today im hoping for the best

 

[tmz]

I'm just glad Tom agrees with me that the 'lights out' approach isn't the way to go :lolspin:

How did that happen?:eek1:
You must be slipping.

Or it could be me acting like the proverbial blind squirrel that even finds a nut now and then

 

[Foody]

As you are figuring it out, try getting a conch. They are amazing little creatures and all they do, day in and day out, is seek and eat algae. All algae.

 

[saltyscotsman]

a blind squirrel you are not but you are good at finding nuts when it comes to reef science

 

[tmz]

Hi Norman, Thanks. How is your tank doing? Just noticed I missed a pm from you. I don't keep up with them very well, sorry.

 

[saltwaterpicaso]

alright i bought 2 hydor in tank pumps the 750 gph ones to go along with the 2 450gph ones i already had. i bought a watchman goby who is really messy right now hopefully it settles down i also replaced the three filters in the ro unit with filters i found at lowes one is setiment filter and the other two are carbon type filters. is there any way to buy di resin locally im in the rome, utica area i would travel to syracuse or somewere around there to get it. all in all hopefully this does the trick. o and i also raised the water level in my skimmer to very close to the neck it doesnt skim as dark but there is def allot more

 

[reefboarder]

Bulk reef supply is an online company that will have anything you need for your rodi unit. I'm not sure about anyone locally.

 

[Gary Majchrzak]

i also raised the water level in my skimmer to very close to the neck it doesnt skim as dark but there is def allot more

if you run a skimmer "wet" and don't replace removed salts your SG will drop and the cyanobacteria problem can actually worsen.

Kicking detritus into suspension with a goby and powerheads is all well and good. It allows your filters to remove PO4 from your system... however... I already made my suggestions

 

[Jstn]

I know that low SG is bad for various reason, but how does low SG 'help' the propagation of cyanobacteria?

 

[Gary Majchrzak]

I know that low SG is bad for various reason, but how does low SG 'help' the propagation of cyanobacteria?

low SG does not actually help prop cyano- it renders a skimmer less effective. Protein skimmers become less efficient as salinity decreases.

Incidentally- queen conchs eat cyano but don't actually help to reduce PO4.

The key to beating cyano (and nuisance alga) is nutrient export. That means removing (or "locking up") nutrients from the system. "Old timers" know this but many noobs don't understand it.

 

[Jstn]

Fair enough, I should of figured that out on my own. Thank you for clarifying.

 

[Gary Majchrzak]

Fair enough, I should of figured that out on my own. Thank you for clarifying.

no prob. The open discussion helps others that might not understand.

Limiting input and exporting nutrients is THE KEY to controlling nuisance alga and cyanobacteria. There are various methods. All are means to an end.