bigmatt1992
New member
im starting to think that they are not snail that are this stringy problem. the color of the stuff went from grey to a red brown. and i blow it off the rocks and keep doing it all day and 1 hours later theres just as much back
not snails something else
- Thread starter bigmatt1992
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bigmatt1992
New member
ill get some tonight.
bigmatt1992
New member
i cant get pics they just focus past the problem area. it looks like red slime its long goop that is redish brown. i blow it away it comes back in a hour or so.
bigmatt1992
New member
i was thinking maybe more flow would help with this problem?
bigmatt1992
New member
tj how the heck can i get rid of it my phosphates are low and i blow it off the rocks and it comes right back.
cloakerpoked
New member
phosphates are low because they get taken up by the cyano. I would syphon it out of the tank, rather than blowing it off, it probably just settles and starts right back up again.
bigmatt1992
New member
i opend up my sump today to take a look and the stuff i blew off is now in my sump and its not snails its the red slime im quessing thats what it is. its allover the place and get worse by the day.
Tswifty
New member
IME... flow is a major culprit when dealing with cyano. It's a real PITA to try and get rid of.
My advice is to manually remove it via the turkey baster, make sure you have no dead zones or areas where deritus can build up, and watch how much you feed.
Cyano is a mess... if I ever have to deal with it again, I'll just be taking the easy way out.
bigmatt1992
New member
so more flow is good for this typ of thing.
Tswifty
New member
Also, it's not as simple as a PO4 and NO3 problem... and don't confuse it as algae... it's bacteria. Once Cyano takes hold it can survive primarily on the light.
A quick 1 shot temporary eradication method is to go without light for 3 days on your tank (that will temporarily make it disappear). However, in my experience, unless you have put measures in place to solve the root problem... it will come right back in a week or so.
cloakerpoked
New member
However, it is important to realize that as bacteria, it is not photosynthetic and requires something other than light in order to start the process...in this case, some kind of nutrient in the water that is in excess of the tank demands. The most common culprit is actually a large influx of a certain nutrient all at once. (i.e. your nitrate level spikes from 5 to 25 ppm in 2 days). Could also be a slow buildup that is neglected, and then gets out of control. Personally, I'd go for a combo of the dark tank, after syphoning it all out of the system.
bigmatt1992
New member
ok so 3 day dark tank is what you guys are saying but will that hurt my fish.
Aqua-World PITT
In Memoriam
My trick is buy the chemical to battle it. It usually is all gone in 24 hours. "They" sell it for just removing red slime and is reef safe. Then you can go the cheap way and use Freshwater Marycin. 1 tab per 50 gal. Some inverts are not too fond of Marycin. I know that starfish don't like it for sure. This is the easiest and most effective way out.
But to keep it from coming back definately keep good flow on the surface of your sand and rock for sure.
But to keep it from coming back definately keep good flow on the surface of your sand and rock for sure.
MikeCentore
New member
Your fish shouldn't have any problem with it.
bigmatt1992
New member
anyone know were i can get some of the stuff jeff is talken about. im going to do that and a 3 day off period to kill this crap.
cloakerpoked
New member
the "they" in his post refers to any local fish store. Seahorse and Elmers for sure, although I'm going to assume that Aquaworld and WetPets would also have it, I'm just not in those two nearly as often, so I dont' know for sure...
bigmatt1992
New member
ok i think my plan of attack is lights out 3 days then see how it is if its still going strong then ill add this stuff. but if its starting to die off then ill just do 1 day lights off everyother week or something till i get iti to go away.
