I want to nuke this cyano but it'll prob survive

[Cyril]

Just got back from carribean forest. I asked the to test ph 8.3. alkalinity is perfect he said and my salinity is 1.025. I also had him check nitrates. Somewhere around .06 ppm from .20ppm 2 weeks ago I'm on course I bought the harlequin shrimp he's acclimating as I type. I also bought a maxi-jet 1200 for the phosphate reactor and I bought pura phoslock he said its the best kind.
I have read about using vodka. Willing to learn and def try anything but Kinda scared about that. I believe it maybe out of my league. Even if given the right dosage some people have experienced a white film on the surface of their tanks and had other ill effects. I personally thank you all for taking the time to help and being patient with me. I see all ur amazing tanks and just try to soak up as much info as I can from the experts.

 

[tmz]

I'd hold off on vodka/vinegar or other carbon dosing(pellets, sugar ,etc) till you have more experience and get a chance to study it through.

 

[SkiFletch]

I'm pretty sure I read everything in this thread and if I missed this I apologize; but where are you getting your RO water from, how are you transporting it, and MOST importantly, are you measuring it's TDS? A TDS meter is dirt cheap and should be in EVERY reef aquarist's arsenal. Gotta know what you're inputting into the closed system . It's very possible your RO filters/membranes need changing, and/or the place you get them from needs the same (even if it's from a local store). Even well-run reef stores can have their membranes wear out and not notice right away as they're making water CONSTANTLY in addition to a million other things they have to do. Even good people are human and mistakes are possible.

Also, what are you using for lighting atop that thing? While it's a quasi-bandaid type thing, replacing your lighting and/or bulbs if they're old with something that does it's best to eliminate red-spectrum light can really help spur "good" or at least "better" algaes and deter cyano. That might just help tip the biology balance in your favor and your tank doesn't look THAT infested with cyano. You're close, but not quite there, keep the faith my friend

 

[Cyril]

Skifletch my bulbs were changed last month in my tek lighting. My t-5 bulbs are geisemanns 1 power chrome 1 actinic and 2 aqua blue 54 watt. I replaced my ro/di membrane 4 months ago. It empties into a Walmart 20 gallon multipurpose tote. I dont have a Tds meter I'll def be buying one of those this weekend. From what I'm gathering from everybody I believe is get more live rock get the phosphate reactor and regular maintenance. I have noticed my cyano problem is nowhere near as bad as it was. The only problem is that it's legit MUTATING!!!! I can't blow it off my rocks anymore, it doesn't cover the live rock like a blanket it's like green algae I have to scrub the heck out of it with a stiff brush. It comes off in a pinkish cloud. I have a powerhead blowing directly at it so flow is not the problem. The pictures I posted have the mutated cyano (it's only on the live rock that it's like that).

 

[SkiFletch]

Do you flush your membrane often and keep it wet?

 

[Cyril]

I've never flushed out my membrane. Please explain how I do this. The frequency I have to do this. I can't believe I missed this one.

 

[SkiFletch]

Well, it really depends on the RO system, but there should be a valve on the drain line that is closed during normal operation. It's a restrictor valve. Open it for 10-15 mins whenever your TDS gets too high to flush the membrane out and increase it's effectiveness. Also, the membrane should always remain wet. This is usually best solved by having the drain line loop to a level that's higher than the membrane itself so it can never fully drain. Same with the RO line if it is not underwater. Does that make sense?

 

[Cyril]

A lil I have a pic of my ro/di unit. Cause I lost u towards the end. And where do i find a Tds meter? I saw one sold with a pitcher filter zero water I think it was called at Walmart.

<a href="http://s253.photobucket.com/albums/hh48/cyril450/?action=view&current=10f6f7e5.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i253.photobucket.com/albums/hh48/cyril450/10f6f7e5.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket Pictures, Images and Photos" /></a>

I don't think it has a valve for my drain line.

 

[SkiFletch]

Doesn't look like you do. If I'm seeing the picture correctly, the red line is your supply line, the blue one with the valve is your RO output and the one going up off the picture is the waste line. That's quite a barebones setup you have there, it could work, but may need some TLC. Not sure about whatever you saw at Walmart as far as a TDS meter goes. Most folks I know of will get a TDS meter off Ebay or bulk reef supply or just about any online reef retailer. Often times you can find them at local reef shops, but since they're a one-time purchase, cheap, with crappy profit margins they're not always carried. Also, don't worry about brands or anything, TDS meters are all just simple resistivity meters and this is one area where even cheap things are OK to buy

Where did you get that RO unit you're using, out of curiosity? Any info on it's specs?

 

[Cyril]

I'm not sure about the stats on the ro/di unit but my brother purchased it from the reef shoppe. What's the TLC I should be doing with it?