Is my situation good or bad?

B

Bob 71

New member
All, over the last 3 months I have been battling cyano on my sand bed. I have taken several courses of action. I put in a more effective skimmer in sump, installed a GFO reactor, 15% water changes weekly siphoning sand, change filter sock every 3 days. i have a 70 gallon display with 30 gallon sump fuge with cheato. I have have been slowely winning the battle over the cyano as it now only appears as a very light coating in certian areas and getting better without the us of Chemiclean. My test for nitrates and phosphates is 0. I even baught a brand new Salifert Nitrate test kit and absolutely no color appears on test. It as at the point that I am not even getting film algae on the glass where I used to clean twice a week. However, I do continue to also have bubble algae in display but not a problem as it only remains in the smallest crevices. I would love to totally see the cyano and bubble algae totally disappear but will this extremely low nutient hurt my soft corals? AND I soon want to start getting SPS when everything is worked out. I am assuming the last remaining cyano and buble are quickly absorbing the phos an nitrate as soon as available as my Cheato has slowed in growth as well. Should I just contnue what I am doing?
Alk 8.1dkh
PH8.1
calcium 420
Mag 1300

THank you
 
As long as the cyanobacteria still is fading, albeit slowly, I'd probably just stick with the current course of action. In case the water changes are fueling the bloom by adding trace elements, I might cut back a bit on them, and see how that goes. There's no one cure for microbial blooms, unfortunately. Tanks seem to react very differently.
 
Bob 71 said:
All, over the last 3 months I have been battling cyano on my sand bed. I have taken several courses of action. I put in a more effective skimmer in sump, installed a GFO reactor, 15% water changes weekly siphoning sand, change filter sock every 3 days. i have a 70 gallon display with 30 gallon sump fuge with cheato. I have have been slowely winning the battle over the cyano as it now only appears as a very light coating in certian areas and getting better without the us of Chemiclean. My test for nitrates and phosphates is 0. I even baught a brand new Salifert Nitrate test kit and absolutely no color appears on test. It as at the point that I am not even getting film algae on the glass where I used to clean twice a week. However, I do continue to also have bubble algae in display but not a problem as it only remains in the smallest crevices. I would love to totally see the cyano and bubble algae totally disappear but will this extremely low nutient hurt my soft corals? AND I soon want to start getting SPS when everything is worked out. I am assuming the last remaining cyano and buble are quickly absorbing the phos an nitrate as soon as available as my Cheato has slowed in growth as well. Should I just contnue what I am doing?
Alk 8.1dkh
PH8.1
calcium 420
Mag 1300

THank you
Click to expand...

Very low nitrates and phosphates will hurt some soft corals such as Xenia and gonipora that like a more nutrient rich environment. Low phosphates can effect the growth tips on SPs corals like acros.
Ideally its good to keep phosphates around .02 and nitrates under 3
 
Aquarist007 said:
I'd get rid of it period
Click to expand...

Never....As long as you change them they are the best mechanical filtration you can have. I change mine everyday...I tried and stop using them and my tank went nuts with algae....Never again. Just my thoughts....
 
The sock is a stunning mechanism. I use a wall to wall filter material/wool and the muck it removes is nothing less than spectacular. what is the flow in your tank like? what sort of flow rate do you have going? also try blowing into your rockwork with a turkey baster or small pump so that it will lift sediment into water column to get caught by your filter sock. another question? what is your return pump rated for? it might also be as simple as just increasing return rate in tank and return to prevent settlement in tank. "more flow helps cyano go" ps for the bubble algae I would suggest a couple of emerald crabs (medium to large size)
 
Wow great feedback. I will try the changing sock everyday but you got me thinking of flow though sump as well. I ha every high flow in tank with circulation but I believe my rate through sump is slow. I have been thinking of getting bigger pump. It probably is no more than 400gph with head pressure right now. But what about my coral question. I guess I am assuming you are all saying get the battle won over the algae and cyano first. Thanks again
 
more flow = less cyano. I believe there is an equation for this

Cyano (C) = 0 where: rate of flow (RF) = (30 x DG) where DG = display gallons :lmao:
 
Bob 71 said:
Wow great feedback. I will try the changing sock everyday but you got me thinking of flow though sump as well. I ha every high flow in tank with circulation but I believe my rate through sump is slow. I have been thinking of getting bigger pump. It probably is no more than 400gph with head pressure right now. But what about my coral question. I guess I am assuming you are all saying get the battle won over the algae and cyano first. Thanks again
Click to expand...
cyano tells you that your water conditions are less than ideal. so less feeding,less light, less phosphates. no carbon dosing, as much water movement in dt as possible. Turkey baste all liverock, vacuum substrate as often as possible. hang in there
 
Sometimes, more flow seems to help with cyanobacteria, but often, it doesn't. More flow could help in some cases by making live rock more effective with better distribution of nutrients, but that's just a wild guess.
 
bertoni said:
Sometimes, more flow seems to help with cyanobacteria, but often, it doesn't. More flow could help in some cases by making live rock more effective with better distribution of nutrients, but that's just a wild guess.
Click to expand...

It can make a difference if one places a power head low in the tank and directs it up towards the overflow
 
bertoni said:
Sometimes, more flow seems to help with cyanobacteria, but often, it doesn't. More flow could help in some cases by making live rock more effective with better distribution of nutrients, but that's just a wild guess.
Click to expand...
pre emptively it helps but If cyano is😑 already present then the cyano needs to be lifted by syphoning of substrate ( exporting to prevent re distribution in tank) and Turkey basting of liverock and corals
 
mandarinfanatic said:
pre emptively it helps but If cyano is�� already present then the cyano needs to be lifted by syphoning of substrate ( exporting to prevent re distribution in tank) and Turkey basting of liverock and corals
Click to expand...

This is a situation where your syphoning of the sandbed would be an excellent idea. :thumbsup:
 
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