Stringy Blk/Brwn Snot Algae? Bacteria?

[Flagswipe]

Some of you on here know me and my system but I will give the highlights just in case you dont

150g elos tank, fairly successful and growing in well with SPS

The tanks filtration is all in the basement with WC system sump and small 30g frag tank attached. Water is filtered (sock) skimmed (BK 200) and is pumped back to the main floor tank.

I run pellets approx 1l in a JNS reactor, run BRS carbon but no GFO
I change 20g water every week
Run ATI 8 bulb upstairs run 4 bulb tek light on frag tank with new bulbs 4 months ago. Tek has 3 Blue plus and one coral plus

Water parameters are consistent and right where they should be (been doing this a while) dosing via Fauna Marin doser and BRS salts
Salinity is 1.026
alk 8 to 8.3
calc 420
mg 1400

Frag tank

So here is the problem.
Main Display looks pretty nice, no algae, I do get Cyano that I blow off weekly ish with a MJ. Overall it looks pretty good, good growth and colour

Lately in the frag tank that is connected directly to the DT I am getting a nasty, stringy, snot like algae or bacteria in the frag tank ONLY. It comes back every day, strangling out small frags especially ones with sharp/pointy branches. I blow if off into the flow and it is captured in the sock which I then clean out. Next night I come home it is back again, trying to evilly kill my frags.
Tank has a MP10 and a small Tunze pump so flow in not an issue.

Looking for any first hand experience with this stuff and if you had any real results in getting rid of it.

Gonna try a lights out for two days as a starting point

Any help is appreciated

Dwayne

 

[Red_Blenny]

Sounds like dinoflagellates to me. What's is your po4 level?

 

[Chaotic Reefer4u]

Beautiful tank Flagswipe!

 

[DNA]

I'd look into dinoflagellates.
There are many kinds of them and they are not good for a reef tank.
Randys article would be a good place to start.

 

[Flagswipe]

Thanks for the responses.
I know all about Dino's have battled them in the past. I think we are missing ht real question though. Why only in this tank? Why not in the DT or the the sump or the Refugium?
They all have lights over them, they all share the same water chemistry they all have similar clean up crews

Thats what I am trying to figure out

 

[DNA]

You might assume they are the same, but are they?
Sump water is often more filtered and cleaner than than the display tank which has fish, more light and is polluted daily by humans throwing in food.

It's figuring out the subtle parameters that may solve the riddle.

 

[SushiGirl]

Are you feeding the frag tank differently? Is it shallower therefore receiving stronger light than the display? Is the flow more or less than the display? Is the frag tank at the end of the chain of water flow?

 

[Skynyrd Fish]

How about the bulbs color ratio? same as display? I'm fighting the same thig as well, I just went 3 days no lights, upped the gfo, and new ATI bulbs. Its better but not gone.

 

[M007]

So the frag tank is at the end of the chain, then sock, skim, filter, and returned to the DT? What I'm trying to highlight is the water coming from the DT overflow is going to the frag tank, which maybe sending all of the suspended DT materials to the frag tank.

 

[JPMagyar]

I have the same problem and no definitive answer but my guess is it has to do with using a barebottom tank with very strong circulation on the bottom which keeps all the "crap" suspended rather than building up in the sand bed below. Haven't tried adding sand to the frag system yet, but that's my next project.


By the way awesome tank! Love how the rock work is raised.


Joe