red slime algae problem

nitrates, phosphates? What water are you using for topping off? Is it RO or tap water? Have you tested for TDS (total dissolved solids) in your top off water?
 
Well if yyou want a quick fix you could just use erythromyacin. Red slime algae (cyanobacteria) is just a bacteria (cyano bacteria) This isnt going to address any issues you are having with phosphates or nitrates being high enough for nuisance algae to continue and the die off from the cyanobacteria could lead to increased levels for both phosphates and nitrates. That being said, I have suffered through a terrible outbreak of cyanobacteria before and nothing was working to reduce it. I dosed about half the recommended dosage from the directions on the box of erythromyacin and All the cyano went away in three days. It hasnt returned in the last three weeks since. I have not noticed any impact on my tank inhabitants except better polyp extension on my corals since then. But thats probably because of the removal of the cyanobacteria. Be aware that this method could impact you biological filtration as that is largely dependant upon bacteria. Anti-bacterial medication could obviously affect those bacteria also. Just make sure you run carbon afterwards and perform some good water changes if you try this.
 
1. Good flow. Nothing should settle on the substrate.
2. Run phosphate removal media such as phosban. I run the media eventhough I have tested my water with a salifert kit and it read 0. The Algae can be using the phosphate as fast as it's being intorduced to your system, and even small amounts of PO4 (too small to register on a kit) can fuel algae and harm corals.
3. Use RODI water. Check the TDS, your filters may need replacing.
4. Use high quality carbon. Don't buy the cheapest brand you see. If you have not heard of the brand before, dont buy it. Poor quality carbon is notorious for leaching phosphates.
5. Rinse all frozen food cubes before feeding.
6. Keep the sand stirred with a cucumber, conch and/or gobies.
 
lfs should have it in stock looks something like this
2007_0507newsdcard0001.jpg
 
also if you have a glass or plastic top on the tank .you could take it off for about a week to get more air to the top of the water.
that's what we do at the lfs and it seems to get rid of it a lot faster
we have also noticed that the tanks we have tops on get cyano more then those that don't have tops .i don't know if this will work or not but it seems to work for us.
 
The erythroyacin I used was the API stuff (E.M.Erythromyacin). There should be some in the medication section of your LFS. There is a version of Maracyn that is supposed to work also, but I havent used it and I know there is more than one type of medication listed as Maracyn. And dont forget to prepare some water for your water change after the medication has done its job. Leave that stuff in your tank and you will likely have issues with your corals.
Lobsterofjustice is right about what to do to get your water quality issues under control. If you dont get your water quality under control, you wil just end up with something else like hair algae going nuts in your tank. If you can set one up, I recommend a refugium with chaeto or even caulerpa to help get your nutrient levels under control. Sometimes its a matter of what sort of nuisance do you want to have in your tank. Hair algae that is impossible to remove? Cyano that needs medication to remove? Macroalgae like chaeto that is easily controlled and is even good for trading with other reefers for frags?
 
I had a major cyano problem and even when my perameters came under control, it still thrived. I tried phosban to no avail, I then used red slime remover and I have not had a problem since, it works wonders.
 
Back
Top