Dino's......Help before I give up.....

[chrishayes]

I cant even begin to say how sorry I am to hear you going through this, it actually hurts my heart and im pretty stoic...try everything possible prior to giving up. If you give up, you lose to snot! Thats pathetic, head up, march into that armory(grocery store) getcher fing gun(pickling lime) and go out there are get your fing tank back damn it! Im serious son, make us proud.

Hey, since youve just been pouting anyhow wastin time(J/K) why not raise the alk slowly over a few days before starting the kalk? Might save a few corals in the end...

 

[chrishayes]

At least the corals will get used to alk rising rather than bam all at once. Plus still frag some of your frags, at least the ones that cost you serious cash, whats the worst that could happen, you end up with two branches where you had one, then you can sell or give away the frags you made to get your karma meter back in line.

 

[texgv]

Hey John,

Are you using ROWAPHOS? If not, you should consider using it, change it every other week, it will absorb all the silica that is the major food source for the dinos.

Hope you beat those bastards!

 

[acroholicreefer]

What are you magnesium and calcium levels. From my experience, when you dose H2O2, you should have high magnesium and calcium levels. This creates more competition for surface area for the dinos.

 

[dzhuo]

The pH trick isn't guarantee to work. It's only known to work on a certain types of dino (and no one knows exactly what those are) because certain strains have poor internal pH regulation so external pH fluctuation breaks them down. Even if the pH trick works, dino will likely come back (you can't possibly kill all of them or without reintroducing them) if your tank continue to favor their grow. This is your second or third attempt of having them come back, isn't it?

The best way to combat dino (and cyano) is to encourage other types of algae to out compete them. This is the only long term solution and pretty much the only solution. A couple of questions for you John:

1. You have a fuge. How is it doing? Are the dino out competing the macro? What kind of macro do you have?

2. Are you still dosing any supplements other than 2-part? If so, which ones?

 

[oscarslr]

Dino free for over a year using PH method for that 3 day period. Have not seen a piece of Dino since. I consider that a permanent fix. Second time I got them was when I upgraded tanks.

 

[JG1]

I cant even begin to say how sorry I am to hear you going through this, it actually hurts my heart and im pretty stoic...try everything possible prior to giving up. If you give up, you lose to snot! Thats pathetic, head up, march into that armory(grocery store) getcher fing gun(pickling lime) and go out there are get your fing tank back damn it! Im serious son, make us proud.

Hey, since youve just been pouting anyhow wastin time(J/K) why not raise the alk slowly over a few days before starting the kalk? Might save a few corals in the end...

Thanks bro. I'm going to try my best

 

[JG1]

Hey John,

Are you using ROWAPHOS? If not, you should consider using it, change it every other week, it will absorb all the silica that is the major food source for the dinos.

Hope you beat those bastards!

I was using GFO a few months ago but stopped because my corals were starving.

 

[JG1]

What are you magnesium and calcium levels. From my experience, when you dose H2O2, you should have high magnesium and calcium levels. This creates more competition for surface area for the dinos.

Ca 460, Mg 1375

 

[JG1]

The pH trick isn't guarantee to work. It's only known to work on a certain types of dino (and no one knows exactly what those are) because certain strains have poor internal pH regulation so external pH fluctuation breaks them down. Even if the pH trick works, dino will likely come back (you can't possibly kill all of them or without reintroducing them) if your tank continue to favor their grow. This is your second or third attempt of having them come back, isn't it?

The best way to combat dino (and cyano) is to encourage other types of algae to out compete them. This is the only long term solution and pretty much the only solution. A couple of questions for you John:

1. You have a fuge. How is it doing? Are the dino out competing the macro? What kind of macro do you have?

2. Are you still dosing any supplements other than 2-part? If so, which ones?

Yes, I'm running cheato. The dino's are out competing the macro, yes.

Ok, I had a little bit of dino's about 6 weeks ago...not much though. I then started dosing Aquavitro Fuel, and while my corals loved the stuff, it seems like the dino's loved it as well. I have stopped dosing for a week now....only thing that goes into the tank now is two part, top off water, and roggers reef food.

This is my first round with dino's. I had other algae I battled months ago that I beat.

 

[deeznutz1]

If you're not doing water changes, you will not win. I know everyone says stop water changes. In my experience, 6 months worth of dinos. I tried every trick in the book.
I'm not sure what fixed it, but it wasn't until I started doing massive water changes did things turn around.

Since you are already dosing hydrogen Peroxide i would do the following as well. I dosed
15ml/day in a 260g total system.

Get a power head and point it towards your overflow. Use a tooth brush and scrub your rocks and loosen the stuff off while its going down your over flow. catch it with a sock. Now grab and turkey baster or power head and blow off the rocks. I forgot to mention have salt mix ready for a 10% WC. I did this twice back to back. and then once every other day. I changed approx 100g of water in my 260g system. So I did this about 5 times. I'm happy to say that I'm about 8 months in and things are looking great. Sps have never looked better.

I might add that I had cyano as well. I used red slime remover before I did the scrubbing and blowing of of the rocks. Sorry i forgot how bad my situation was. Yes i had dinos. A lot of people think that have dinos when its only diatoms. You know if you have dinos, and dinos i had in full effect. One way to really know you have dinos is, if you turn off all the flow in your tank, you can see them start to multiply in the water column. Kind of like strands of brown dust.

I was also at the point where everything I did was not working, lights out, ph, added flow etc etc. And I was posting my tank part out online. I was told by fellow members not to give up and give it one last chance.

I have to say that you have to stay committed, my wife was kind enough to help as well and that really encouraged me to succeed.

 

[JG1]

These are definitely dinos. Maybe I should do a 30g water change tonight.

 

[JG1]

I really only know one other reefer in the area, he is a member on here. I feel bad asking him if he can hold my corals because I'd hate to contaminate his tank with dino's.

The LFS...forget it, I'm better off taking my chances with an alk swing.

I have some REALLY nice frags...all top end stuff
Tyree purple monster
Oregon tort
$500 Efflo
Tyree Soli
Copps purple bonsai
ORA RP
ORA purple plasma
ORA borealis
ORA green birdsnest
Pink lemonade
Raspberry lemonade
Rose mille
bubblegum mille
Setosa
Miyagi tort
blueberry/raspberry prostrata
seasons greating monti
superman monti
30k lokani
rocket pop/ice hyacinthis
ice fire ench
ORA pearlberry
WWC Blueberry
A. Caroliniana
Red Robin
Birds of paradise
and a few more I can't remember.

Then I have some really nice LPS pieces.....beautiful red/green blasto wellsi. 10 eyed pink boobies chalice. Beautiful, RARE, LE space invaders pectinia.

If I lose any of these it's gonna brake my heart.

 

[chrishayes]

Man, I feel for you. Thats a hell of a list you got there! Id be inclined to continue the battle with that much invested...perhaps throw the gaunlet down and try everything in steps. Go for anything thats worked for others before going the kalk route. Try red slime x try the chemical sponges try a CO2 scrubber and airstones to raise ph without effecting alk, try no waterchanges longer also its only been a week? since you did one. Thats not long enough to call it either way. This is the strategy that worked for me along with siphoning off as much as I could through a HOT magnum full of floss as to not change the water and run socks on all your filtration changing them regularly. Point is, youre right youd be a fool to destroy that many nice corals by being silly with one attempt or another especially if you do it out of frustration as these often become the times we overdo things...

I have recent purchases in my QT right now but would be happy to have you ship cuttings to me in Ohio then id return them on my dime if it helps you to stay in the hobby. I will look after them like they were my own and do the best to get them encrusting on plugs for you when youve beat your dinos because you will if you stick with it! Im serious too, it would be the least I could do and maybe even up my karma meter to never get dinos again myself! Let me know if you want me to help.

 

[oscarslr]

set up a 10/20 gal with existing tank water a power head and heater..... maybe that can hold some of the coral. even if its only one branch

 

[JG1]

Man, I feel for you. Thats a hell of a list you got there! Id be inclined to continue the battle with that much invested...perhaps throw the gaunlet down and try everything in steps. Go for anything thats worked for others before going the kalk route. Try red slime x try the chemical sponges try a CO2 scrubber and airstones to raise ph without effecting alk, try no waterchanges longer also its only been a week? since you did one. Thats not long enough to call it either way. This is the strategy that worked for me along with siphoning off as much as I could through a HOT magnum full of floss as to not change the water and run socks on all your filtration changing them regularly. Point is, youre right youd be a fool to destroy that many nice corals by being silly with one attempt or another especially if you do it out of frustration as these often become the times we overdo things...

I have recent purchases in my QT right now but would be happy to have you ship cuttings to me in Ohio then id return them on my dime if it helps you to stay in the hobby. I will look after them like they were my own and do the best to get them encrusting on plugs for you when youve beat your dinos because you will if you stick with it! Im serious too, it would be the least I could do and maybe even up my karma meter to never get dinos again myself! Let me know if you want me to help.

Hey bud, I really appreciate that, seriously.

It's been three weeks since I've done a water change....it's only been one week since I stopped dosing nutrient based additives that may have fueled the dino explosion in my tank. I have brown snot everywhere. I just forced myself to look while the daylight bulbs are on and it's a complete disgrace.

Even if I were to transfer my corals to a Q tank here for a few days, would I not just contaminate the Q tank with dino's and re-contaminate the DP when corals are transferred back?

I don't know what else to try other than the Kalk at this point. The H3O3 did nothing. The fauna marin stuff is still an option. I have to ask sahin if it worked 100% for him.

Honestly, I just don't know at this point.

 

[JG1]

Look at this. Keep in mind I basted the rock last night and blew off a lot of dino's....you can still see how bad they are even after turkey basting them

 

[chrishayes]

Good times! Hey, at least your coral are hanging in there and still quite beautiful! Youve got a hell of a tank, its a shame you gotta go through this...

 

[BonsaiNut]

Just so people understand... you all realize that zooxanthellae are dinoflagellates? That if you chemically dose your tank to kill dinos you WILL kill zooxanthellae? You will probably bleach or kill SPS colonies, anemones, and any other invert that depends on zooxanthellae?

Far better to get your tank into natural balance, remove the extra nutrients that are causing algae growth, increase dissolved oxygen levels/reduce CO2, and increase your alk. Doing this is general good husbandry and won't harm your inverts that have symbiotic colonies of zooxanthellae.

BTW... unless you are running UV, blasting dinos off rocks is just going to spread the dinos around. At least if you run UV, you know that the dinos that go through your filter are getting zapped. You ever try siphoning them off with a long plastic pipette/tube attached to a length of hose, and have the siphoned water run into a filter sock before going into your sump?

What are you doing to oxygenate your water? Are you running a nice-sized protein skimmer with access to a fresh source of air? Do you have plenty of air flowing into your overflow lines?

I agree with the comments about dripping kalk. I'm a big believer - just make sure that nothing can cause you to overdose the tank all at once.

 

[sahin]

I have to ask sahin if it worked 100% for him.

Honestly, I just don't know at this point.

Hi there John, the FM Ultra Algae X does work. For me it worked better than all the other methods you've read of (ie the methods outlined in the ReefKeeping article). But it looks like the Dinos are coming back. - So it is not a permanent fix. I could dose for a while longer, because Claude advised me that the Dinos might come back, but in my case I have 1000's of Vermatid Snails/worms growing on my rocks, MP10's, hermit crab shells and even on my Astrea snail shells. So I have had it. Going to start fresh.

The thing I have noticed is that the Dinos always appear on the sand and only got onto the rocks when things got extremely ugly.

Hence, I am going to restart my tank with Marco Rocks (Key Largo). I am going to frag my small colonies and break my frags from the base up and dip in revive or similar before letting them sit in my brothers tank for a few months.

There is another Dino killer called Dinoxal - but you cant find much info on it.

Good luck. I KNOW HOW YOU FEEL...this is my 4th reef tank, over 10 years of experiance and the most amount of money invested in this tank but the result is Dinos.........:sad1:

PS I am going bare bottom with no sand.