The return of cyano bacteria

[Jar*Head]

It was my two weeks of proud in victory then the Cyano return full blown. This time around it covered the sand and rock and most of the coral tips.

What have i done?

I have been asking the same question . Everything pretty much the same except i add 1 fish (a spotted cheek tang) approx 4" and i went back to feed my fish with frozen PE mysis and Rod's food. I didn't feed a lot either. So what is going on?

RODI read 0, NO3 is not detectable, PO4 is 0.08 two weeks ago. Another thing that i could think of is my GFO. I have not change it for 4 weeks so i replacing it today with 2lbs of GFO HC, 1 liter of carbon. I will change carbon and GFO more often from now on. May be every 2 -3 weeks instead of 4.

This is what i have done so far:

1. use a small powerhead blast everything off the rock
2. replace the filter sock
3. turn off all the light for 2 days
4. Leave the fuge light on 24/7 so the macro can compete for nutrient
5. Replace GFO and Carbon
6. Wet skimming

Should i leave the moon light on for the fish . My tank is pretty much in the dark except the moonlight.

Any advice to help getting rid of these stuff i am greatly appreciate. I want it to be out of my aquarium as soon as possible. I am not doing anymore crazy water change. I will do 10% weekly on Sunday...

 

[Reefer08]

Maybe feeding too much?
How much are you feeding your fishes and how often?
Are you still rinsing the frozen food?


Hopefully someone else can give some advice.

 

[bertoni]

That phosphate level is very high, if the number is accurate. How much GFO is being used? I suspect the food is the issue.

 

[Jar*Head]

That phosphate level is very high, if the number is accurate. How much GFO is being used? I suspect the food is the issue.

Jonathan, i used to run 5 lbs of GFO HC but last night when i change the media i only use 2 lbs of GFO HC. I plan to replace them every 2 - 3 instead of 4-6 weeks like before. I also suspect the food because i start feeding frozen food before the Cyano being gone completely.

 

[Jar*Head]

Today is day #2 of no light. Should i turn the light back on tonight with reduce photo period or let it go for another night then turn it back on with reduce photo period?

 

[squid_fart]

Try dosing chemi-clean, worked wonders against my cyano problem, no problems with inverts, corals etc.

 

[Reefer08]

That phosphate level is very high, if the number is accurate. How much GFO is being used? I suspect the food is the issue.

You think a phosphate level of .08 is high? Thats not that high enough that it would cause a major cyano outbreak.


Steve, I think you should do a 48 hour lights out period and STOP dosing the MB7. The MB7 could be fueling the cyano, I know it sounds weird, but thats the only thing your dosing and your po4 isn't high so its worth a try to stop dosing it.

 

[Reefer08]

Today is day #2 of no light. Should i turn the light back on tonight with reduce photo period or let it go for another night then turn it back on with reduce photo period?

That sounds like a good plan. Leave lights off and reduce the photoperiod.


Are you sure that your RO membrane is in good condition? Double check that the ro/di tds is 000.

 

[Jar*Head]

Ramsy, PO4 at .08 is very high for SPS. But that level was tested couple weeks ago. As for my RODI unit i just replace the membranes and cartridges couple weeks ago.

 

[Jar*Head]

Tonight is the 3rd night. I will have the light back on tomorrow at 4hrs/day and 8 hrs on the T-5. I have been running the fuge light 24hrs in the past couple days and notice the Macro algae look much nicer and i have a lots of mysis

 

[Reefer08]

Ramsy, PO4 at .08 is very high for SPS. But that level was tested couple weeks ago. As for my RODI unit i just replace the membranes and cartridges couple weeks ago.

Re-test your po4 and let us know what its currently at! Po4 can change a lot within a couple weeks. Maybe asking Ed also, he might have a solution.

 

[Jar*Head]

Re-test your po4 and let us know what its currently at! Po4 can change a lot within a couple weeks. Maybe asking Ed also, he might have a solution.

:lol: i sure will

 

[Flipper62]

CyanoBacteria can & will grow where there is a lack of water movement. You need to suck it up with a turkey baster and get it out the best that you can & do a water change.

Then add a powerhead or two. Get a good water movement every where. CyanoBactera wont grow where there is good water flow.

Here is a good artical on CyanoBacteria.

http://netclub.athiel.com/cyano/cyanos2.htm

 

[Jar*Head]

CyanoBacteria can & will grow where there is a lack of water movement. You need to suck it up with a turkey baster and get it out the best that you can & do a water change.

Then add a powerhead or two. Get a good water movement every where. CyanoBactera wont grow where there is good water flow.

Here is a good artical on CyanoBacteria.

http://netclub.athiel.com/cyano/cyanos2.htm

I will look into the flow issue. What turnover rate do you recommend to be adequate for an SPS dominate system? Here is what i currently have circulate in the system

Return pump: ATB pump 4200gph return via 2 1" Penductor
4 Tunze 6305 rated at 7925gph on each pump
4 Tunze wave boxes generate 3" of wave

As for exporting the nutrient i have a custom build H&S A-400 with 6 Aquabee F-5000 rated for 5000g system (Per H&S in Germany).

I plan to add 2 more tunze 6305 to make sure i have enough flow....

 

[Reefer08]

With your 4 Tunze Powerheads you are getting 66.66X tank turnover. + your return and wave box you've got 100X tank turnover.

Thats a ton of flow! I don't think you need 2 more tunzes.

 

[squid_fart]

Chemi clean man... just try it.

 

[bertoni]

Cyanobacterial blooms often cause problems with undetectable phosphate, and .08 is very high by reef standards. More flow sometimes helps, but if the problem is overfeeding or a lack of nutrient export, those issues must be resolved for a long-term solution. Chemi-Clean sometimes helps temporarily, and in a very few cases a bit longer, but it's been known to crash systems, too.

 

[Jar*Head]

I am not going to use Chemi Clean because that only fix the problem temporary. I notice there is an unused outlet in my return that run from the back to the front of the tank. I used to use it to feed the Zeovit reactor but i took the Zeovit reactor offline prior to the Cyano return. I open the valve today and the water inside smell like rotten eggs. Should this water leaching back into my system and cause the problem? This outlet is connect to my return pump so it should go straight back into the main tank....

 

[bertoni]

It's hard to predict what an anaerobic region will do since there are a lot of factors involved, but I wouldn't normally associate one with a cyanobacteria problem.