floresent green cyno?
- Thread starter rick12
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Crazy fish eye
New member
Can we get a pic.
cyano bacteria can come in almost any color, though most often it is reddish-brown. i believe i have even heard of an instance of it being whitish, though i'm guessing in that case it started as reddish and bleached or died somehow. anyway, your cyano sounds very interesting. is it truly florescent? does it show up under a moon light or black light? or is it just a brightish "neon" green.
if its just very bright, then you have an odd looking cyano, maybe do to something in the water source. if it is florescent, then you may have something i, and maybe the hobby as a whole, have never heard of.
if its just very bright, then you have an odd looking cyano, maybe do to something in the water source. if it is florescent, then you may have something i, and maybe the hobby as a whole, have never heard of.
ok, most likely its just run of the mill cyano. im not sure why cyano comes in different colors, but my guess would be that it depends on factors in the water, lighting conditions or maybe a combo of both. no color variation of cyano would surprise me, but if it where truly florescence, that would be an amazing discovery.
im afraid i have been out of the hobby for too long to give you good advice of takeing care of cyano, but i might have a few things that might help. the easiest would be to simply give the tank a dark period of a couple of days. eliminate the cyanos light source and you eliminate the problem. this would only work in a non-reef tank, anemones included. you might also be able to find something that eats cyano, i remember reading that red-legged hermits were suposed to feed off it, and i believe i've heard that some counchs do aswell. however anything that feeds off cyano usualy only grazes a little as a supliment to whatever else it prefers to eat. if there was something that had a veracious enough apitite to keep cyano in check, im sure it would be as popular as the freshwater pleco.
cyano will grow to the amount of nutrition available. this means that the more you remove the more space you free up fore new cyano growth, and cyano can grow very fast. like trying to dig a hole in the ocean. ultimately the best way to control cyano is to eliminate its source, excluding lighting, namely nitrates and phosphates.
if you need help with suggestions to cut back on nitrates i'd be more then happy to help with that, but this post is turning into something much longer then i meant it to be, and i don't even know if you really have a cyano problem, or if its just something peculiar you noticed with a small patch of cyano in a stagnate corner of the tank.
im afraid i have been out of the hobby for too long to give you good advice of takeing care of cyano, but i might have a few things that might help. the easiest would be to simply give the tank a dark period of a couple of days. eliminate the cyanos light source and you eliminate the problem. this would only work in a non-reef tank, anemones included. you might also be able to find something that eats cyano, i remember reading that red-legged hermits were suposed to feed off it, and i believe i've heard that some counchs do aswell. however anything that feeds off cyano usualy only grazes a little as a supliment to whatever else it prefers to eat. if there was something that had a veracious enough apitite to keep cyano in check, im sure it would be as popular as the freshwater pleco.
cyano will grow to the amount of nutrition available. this means that the more you remove the more space you free up fore new cyano growth, and cyano can grow very fast. like trying to dig a hole in the ocean. ultimately the best way to control cyano is to eliminate its source, excluding lighting, namely nitrates and phosphates.
if you need help with suggestions to cut back on nitrates i'd be more then happy to help with that, but this post is turning into something much longer then i meant it to be, and i don't even know if you really have a cyano problem, or if its just something peculiar you noticed with a small patch of cyano in a stagnate corner of the tank.
Crazy fish eye
New member
Still no pics? I don't believe it's neon green. Prove me wrong. Lol.
oops, i kinda started a reply without reading all of your post, short though it was. the fact that your cutting back on light and adding something to the tank suggest a problem. so if you could give details on your tank, gravel depth, and filtration, we can look into possible corrections. as far as marine snow goes i am unfamiliar. i did a little preliminary reading just now, but am not even sure if its a catalyst or something that binds or breaks up organics in the tank, a bacteria, or a coral supplement. at any rate i would stop useing it its just to eliminate the cyano. whatever it is its most likely a short term cure at best, though i'd do more research or get other opinions before listening to someone, me, who knows nothing about the product.
and as far as the "neon" green goes, as long as he just means bright green, i can totally believe it.
and as far as the "neon" green goes, as long as he just means bright green, i can totally believe it.
I think I know what you're talking about. I recently added too much iron to my tank and have had an outbreak of lime-green cyano looking algae. In all the years Ive been keeping saltwater tanks, this is the first time Ive ever seen this type of algae. I think its from overdosing iron. I think lights out for 2 days with a few 10-25% water changes should help you out. Thats what I am going to do when I move later this week.
rick12
New member
yes i did dose iron for my mangroves. and same for me. my system is years old, and i am doing WC and lights out. for an update it is slowing down. i siphon when possible.
What type of lighting do you have by the way? It appears that some strains of cyano will shift color in response to different spectrums of light. Green/blue will shift it to red, this is probably why red is common in our systems. Red/yellow, will shift it to green, this is probably why green is more common in freshwater.
I could guess that if your lights have a lot or red, for example if the spectrum shifted due to old bulbs, this could result in green cyano. IME though, I have had green and it latter turned into red, without a change in bulbs, so, maybe there are other things going on as well. The color shift though is a way to adapt to different spectrums and is called "complementary chromatic adaptation".
I could guess that if your lights have a lot or red, for example if the spectrum shifted due to old bulbs, this could result in green cyano. IME though, I have had green and it latter turned into red, without a change in bulbs, so, maybe there are other things going on as well. The color shift though is a way to adapt to different spectrums and is called "complementary chromatic adaptation".
Reefflections
New member
I'm also seeing the same Flor.green algae.I have new led lighting run just the whites or blues,it doesn't matter.It can grow in a very well shaded area also.I'm running PO4 REMOVER,it seems to help but still in the system.You can turkey baster it off very easily.I've scene this red cyno in my system before.But it doesn't seem to be the same as the red version.I change out bags everyday,and been doing less water changes.Because some of the additives in the salt probably feeds the algae.What's alarming here,even in the shaded area.I have plenty of flow in the system.I even been dosing vinegar,which seems to help.But again not totally gone.I don't have a camera for photo's.I'm just kinda keeping it in check,till I find out more what can be done. When I see it reminds me of and algae you would see in freshwater.Almost like a powder type of algae.
Reefflections
New member
A little more info,wanted also here.It never forms on the panes.I'm BB never there also.I do have and urchin the grinds the live rock,which in turn there is sand particles on the bottom at certain areas.So it sticks to ALL run surfaces area,as for sand and rock structues.My bags never seem to have a green colration to them.And I'm running 10 micron bags,not the normal size.Being it's smaller knit.And yet the bags can't seem to get it out.I'm sure it does it fair share on removal.But being it gets suspend in the water column,it seems to be just recycling threw the system?
"powder type of algae" needs a little clarification. this made me thing that you had sporadic diatom (brown) algae that just happened to be in a green variation. which brings up the point that when describing algae color isn't at all important really. texture is what maters. the fact that you said it never grown on the panes, can remove it with a baster, and it grows in shade all point back to cyano.
i wont deny that when it comes to filtration i am very bias and sometimes opinionated. my cure for almost everything is dsb (deep sand bed), especial cyano and other algae, not that cyano is widely considered an algae. anyway you are running a po4 remover which is good. im not too experienced with phosphate products so im not even going to ask if its a pad, media or reactor. how do you handle the nitrates in your tank? what is your filtration setup?
oh, and the reason it doesn't grow on the glass is that it is hard for anything really to get a foot-hold on glass, especially if there is high flow. this isnt to say it cant do it if the bloom were to become big enough. mostly though you will see it in low flow areas or substrate. also, it can be very shade tolerant as well.
i wont deny that when it comes to filtration i am very bias and sometimes opinionated. my cure for almost everything is dsb (deep sand bed), especial cyano and other algae, not that cyano is widely considered an algae. anyway you are running a po4 remover which is good. im not too experienced with phosphate products so im not even going to ask if its a pad, media or reactor. how do you handle the nitrates in your tank? what is your filtration setup?
oh, and the reason it doesn't grow on the glass is that it is hard for anything really to get a foot-hold on glass, especially if there is high flow. this isnt to say it cant do it if the bloom were to become big enough. mostly though you will see it in low flow areas or substrate. also, it can be very shade tolerant as well.
"powder type of algae" needs a little clarification. this made me thing that you had sporadic diatom (brown) algae that just happened to be in a green variation. which brings up the point that when describing algae color isn't at all important really. texture is what maters. the fact that you said it never grown on the panes, can remove it with a baster, and it grows in shade all point back to cyano.
i wont deny that when it comes to filtration i am very bias and sometimes opinionated. my cure for almost everything is dsb (deep sand bed), especial cyano and other algae, not that cyano is widely considered an algae. anyway you are running a po4 remover which is good. im not too experienced with phosphate products so im not even going to ask if its a pad, media or reactor. how do you handle the nitrates in your tank? what is your filtration setup?
oh, and the reason it doesn't grow on the glass is that it is hard for anything really to get a foot-hold on glass, especially if there is high flow. this isnt to say it cant do it if the bloom were to become big enough. mostly though you will see it in low flow areas or substrate. also, it can be very shade tolerant as well.
i wont deny that when it comes to filtration i am very bias and sometimes opinionated. my cure for almost everything is dsb (deep sand bed), especial cyano and other algae, not that cyano is widely considered an algae. anyway you are running a po4 remover which is good. im not too experienced with phosphate products so im not even going to ask if its a pad, media or reactor. how do you handle the nitrates in your tank? what is your filtration setup?
oh, and the reason it doesn't grow on the glass is that it is hard for anything really to get a foot-hold on glass, especially if there is high flow. this isnt to say it cant do it if the bloom were to become big enough. mostly though you will see it in low flow areas or substrate. also, it can be very shade tolerant as well.
rick12
New member
i have to admit that my t5 bulbs are over 1 yr old. i have 6 bulbs, two are fiji purple. working on a new system and will change bulbs then. my algae does stick to the glass, but only where coriline algae is on there first.
i use GFO and carbon which i have changed recently. i use it passively in the sump.
also have cheato in a fuge that is lit 24/7 with a par38. i also have 80 mangroves growing in another section of my sump (hence why i dosed iodine). My system is a 90g bare bottom with a 40g sump. about 100g total water volume when i minus the rock.
i run a tunze 9010 skimmer. i use the balling light system and i have been doing 5gal water changes daily with RO/DI water. Every week i cut back the lights for 24hrs. also when i do waterchanges i siphon the green algae. PO3 PO4 always read zero with elos (yes i know why) and mg 1350, cal 420, kh 9. salinity 1.026 temp 79.
i use GFO and carbon which i have changed recently. i use it passively in the sump.
also have cheato in a fuge that is lit 24/7 with a par38. i also have 80 mangroves growing in another section of my sump (hence why i dosed iodine). My system is a 90g bare bottom with a 40g sump. about 100g total water volume when i minus the rock.
i run a tunze 9010 skimmer. i use the balling light system and i have been doing 5gal water changes daily with RO/DI water. Every week i cut back the lights for 24hrs. also when i do waterchanges i siphon the green algae. PO3 PO4 always read zero with elos (yes i know why) and mg 1350, cal 420, kh 9. salinity 1.026 temp 79.
Reefflections
New member
Yes I agree it a form of cyano algae.You ask about nitrates in my system.Vinegar is what I use,a form of carbon base.It works really well.And the safest to use on corals and fish.Randy Farley here on RC chemistry forum,talks widely about it's usage.
As for you mentioning DSB,knowing there are a lot of pro and cons about it's usage.My live rock is my filteration.A sand bed can be a sewer,over time.As for the old saying goes,"old tank" theory.Which I've has seen for myself,being all the years in the hobby.But I surely don't want to get into BB vs DSB.But I know for a fact if I add sand to my system now,the algae will have a field day,to take hold.......I have to clean the system first,before I can even think about adding that.
I also was debating,to turn off lights for 3 days theory.Just to starve it out.Because as we know all types of algae need 2 things to thrive.Light/Food.Take one away,it dies.I'm not fond to adding any chemicals to the system for treatment. But I just wanted to chime in here,to see where this thread is headed.And any info folks that might have found,as for methods.
i really want to do want to get into the bb vs dsb discussion, they really are 2 ENTIRELY different things, like an atinic light and a uv light, but i wont. well, actually i kinda already did but the post didnt go through and i dont feel like typing it all again, lol. anyway, yes a dark cycle can work, but sometimes it takes more then a few days, sometimes not, which can be stressful on the other photosynthetic life in the tank. also, whether its through the released nutrients stored in the cyano, or the fact that it is no longer there to capitalize on the nutrients your tank will be vulnerable to new infestation.
not that im saying not to do it. i just like to play the devils-advocate if you have coral or macro algae id way the pros and cons, if you dont, then i absolutely would do a dark cycle. just make sure you fallow it with an immediate sizable water exchange.
not that im saying not to do it. i just like to play the devils-advocate if you have coral or macro algae id way the pros and cons, if you dont, then i absolutely would do a dark cycle. just make sure you fallow it with an immediate sizable water exchange.
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