Persistent Bacteria Bloom

No dosing in the tank besides Kalk... please see your PM for a more detailed explanation. I also hope it clears the tank. At this point, I have tried everything and am willing to trust Dr. Tim's. I was very impressed with their customer support, I referred the tech to this thread and by his responses it was very obvious that he read it thoroughly as he referenced very specific points in his reply's to me. My fingers are crossed.
 
Here's a short update:

I have dosed 2 half doses of refresh, one on Jan. 23rd and the second on the 25th. My UV has stayed off since the first dose and I'm happy to report that my tank water has stayed clear, the slime has reduced about 50% off the power heads and rocks. The corals that seem to have been negatively affected by this bacterial strain are starting to show signs of improvement; however, it's very slow. The symposium is still closed but you can see a little bit of color in the polyps, they are very close to opening.

My current plan is to dose a 1/4 dose of waste away every other day until the tank gets back to normal. I'll dose 1/4 dose and keep the skimmer off for 2 hours. Apparently Waste Away contains an aggressive bacterial strain that outcompetes the bad bacteria and breaks it down before it can be used as food.

So, the big question: Is the Refresh working? I'd like to think so, but I can't eliminate the possibility that this nasty bacterial cycle hasn't subsided on its own. Regardless, I'm going to administer this treatment until the tank has completely recovered.

I'll update later.
 
So the dosing schedule is something Dr Tim's adviced you or are you following the instructions on the bottle?
 
dsovetsky said:
I have discovered what I am dealing with; an airborne bacteria that is associated with alcohol called Alcaligenes faecalis. This is a nasty bacteria that produces the white slime that resulted in the coral problems that I am currently experiencing, it's nasty stuff.
Click to expand...

Why do you think you are dealing with Alcaligenes? It's a common environmental bacterium (not airborne) so I'm curious about how it was implicated as the cause. It's a mucus-associated bacterium, in the way that it's commonly found living within the mucus layer secreted by some corals, but that doesn't mean it was causing the slime production.

As a denitrifying bacterium, if you actually had an increase in A. faecalis, problems that occurred in the tank would more likely be a result of what was driving the A. faecalis increase (increased bioburden leading to increased nitrate) than a direct effect of that bacterium.
 
rholguin said:
So the dosing schedule is something Dr Tim's adviced you or are you following the instructions on the bottle?
Click to expand...

I'm dosing the products as advised by Dr. Tims instructions given to me by the person who was working on my case through their website.
 
jsweese said:
Why do you think you are dealing with Alcaligenes? It's a common environmental bacterium (not airborne) so I'm curious about how it was implicated as the cause. It's a mucus-associated bacterium, in the way that it's commonly found living within the mucus layer secreted by some corals, but that doesn't mean it was causing the slime production.

As a denitrifying bacterium, if you actually had an increase in A. faecalis, problems that occurred in the tank would more likely be a result of what was driving the A. faecalis increase (increased bioburden leading to increased nitrate) than a direct effect of that bacterium.
Click to expand...

You apparently know a lot more about this than i do. The person who helped me from Dr. Tims read this thread and referred me to three articles from Coral Magazine. The article descriptions and pictures match what I am dealing with almost perfectly. The catalyst that fueled the problem matches as well, alcohol, in my case a bourbon barrel that I opened in my basement that had a very strong smell and permeated the entire house...

I absolutely can not confirm with 100% certainty what I am dealing with; however, the treatment seems to be working. Dr. Tims felt that the problem was festering and the bourbon barrel probably sent it over the edge and started a chain reaction of sorts.

Here's a link to the article....

http://www.coralmagazine-us.com/content/mystery-white-reef-slime
 
2_zoa said:
I remember reading an article about room air fresheners. Coral mag I believe? The glade plug in type, causing a bacterial bloom in a tank in a dentist office. I don't recall the specifics, just enough to think it was interesting.

Do you have any air fresheners in the room or close by?


I'm just throwing this out there to maybe spark up some ideas. I hate seeing tanks struggle.
Click to expand...

dsovetsky said:
I have discovered what I am dealing with; an airborne bacteria that is associated with alcohol called Alcaligenes faecalis. This is a nasty bacteria that produces the white slime that resulted in the coral problems that I am currently experiencing, it's nasty stuff. I've been in contact with Dr. Tim's who have been very helpful in troubleshooting this issue. I was instructed to view three articles from coral magazine that dealt with the exact issue I am dealing with. They were perplexed at this issue as well at first; however, they have developed a way of attacking this aggressive and acidic bacteria. I'm going all in and putting the health of my tank in their hands, seeing that they have seen this bacteria before and have eradicated it from tanks in the past.

I'm going to start with their Refresh product, 2 half doses and then several 1/4 doses of waste away. The treatment should take about 3 weeks to a month. I'll keep this thread updated throughout the treatment.

I hope to have good news to report throughout. Thank you to those who have contributed your thoughtful responses. I'm hopeful that I can eradicate this bacteria, it is definitely having a detrimental effect on the snails and corals in the tank.

If you are interested in reading more about this bacteria, check this link out: http://www.coralmagazine-us.com/content/mystery-white-reef-slime
Stay tuned.
Click to expand...


This is the very article that I was in reference too.

Good luck
 
Not much to report. I'm going to dose my 3rd dose of waste away tonight, a little more than 1/4 strength. I've been leaving my skimmer off for about two hours after dosing. About 24 hours after dosing I'm noticing a slight haze to the tank so I've been turning on my uv to clear it up before the next dose. I'm not sure if it is the waste away or if the same cloudiness is returning. I still see small patches of the clear white slime, they don't seem to be growing or receding. I'm probably going to have to increase my dosage amount of waste away if I don't see improvement soon.

That's all for now.
 
Update:

I've been dosing about 1/2 dose of "Waste Away every other day for the past couple of week and I have seen improvement in my tank. My sps are coloring up again and I have not had to put my UV on in over two weeks. I'm going to continue dosing for a couple more weeks just to be safe. Things are looking up, but it's been a long road.
 
Thank you for this post. I have been battling this slime bacteria for years and I thought it was due to carbon dosing (BPs). I article 2, did you see the brown slimy bacteria as well? This is what I have on my LR and overflow.
 
Not much to report. I've slowed down my doses of Waste Away to about once a week without any issue. My water is still clear and corals are coloring up nicely. The only things that seem to be lagging are my two clams, a 3 inch Deresa and a small 1.5 inch Maxima... My Deresa doesn't seem to want to open all the way and tips over every time I stand it back up, and my Maxima's mantle is recessed a little and won't open fully.
 
It was a frustrating and slow process to get rid of the bacteria. The Dr. Tim's did do the job over a period of a few months. I wonder if the new "Vibrant" product would have worked faster.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

Tamara Marshall
Comprehensive Article About Anaerobic Bacteria - Manta Systems Article
Replies
0
Views
477
Tamara Marshall
Tamara Marshall
NancyT3
Display tank - algae bloom - (19 wk old 140 gal)
Replies
12
Views
436
CharleyDavis
C
Dr. Reef
Bacteria in a bottle, Myth or Fact
Replies
3
Views
355
jcarlilesiu
J
S
Duncan issue
Replies
8
Views
285
Spectorman
S
S
Nutrient Export
Replies
0
Views
98
SantaMonica
S
Back
Top