What is this stuff??

MaineReef22

MaineReef22

New member
I have it growing on different rocks throughout my tank and everytime i remove it it comes right back. Its not cyano its almost sponge like and maroon in color and it gets thicker as it grows what is it and how do i get rid of it?
 

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You have two evils...cyano and aiptasia...

Better check your phosphate and nitrate levels...something is very off in your tank...
 
Yes I have two aiptasia but that maroon stuff isn't cyano sorry try again. I have some cyano on my sand bed it's completely different.
 
Try siphoning it.. if it is slimy and sucks off rather easily in sheets, then it is cyano. If it is hard, or stuck solidly onto the rock, then it isn't.

The other two small anemones next to the mushroom are aiptasia.
 
MaineReef22 said:
Yes I have two aiptasia but that maroon stuff isn't cyano sorry try again. I have some cyano on my sand bed it's completely different.
Click to expand...

Some cyano is stringy, some is carpet...I've had both in the past...

With the pic. you have there, you'd be hard pressed to say it's anything other...

But hey, go with what you think...it's your tank....
 
gweston said:
Try siphoning it.. if it is slimy and sucks off rather easily in sheets, then it is cyano. If it is hard, or stuck solidly onto the rock, then it isn't.

The other two small anemones next to the mushroom are aiptasia.
Click to expand...

That's exactly it cyano is slimy this stuff is like sponge you have to pull it off
 
I am pretty sure it's Cyano. It can be thick. It's just like Cyano, and there is nothing else I am aware of that can take over a tank and look just like Cyano, and not be Cyano. Sometimes the easiest answer is the correct one :D
Either way I would address your nutrient levels.
 
Cyanobacteria is one of the most prolific microorganisms in the world...Just because it doesn't look exactly like a picture doesn't mean it isn't Cyano.
 
I had some pictures earlier that I cant find right at the moment but I too have had some red growth almost since the day I set my tank up. I havnt been able to get rid of it. I actually pulled my rock out before I had any corals and treated it with chemclean.....3x....IT MADE NO DENT IT!!!! The stuff I have starts out as a normal looking green algea that is pretty hairy looking and turns red. It WILL NOT grow on my sand. It is IMPOSSIBLE to syphon off unless you take a stiff bristled brush and brush it off first. I have been very reluctant to agree with anyone that this is cyano but I havnt found another explanation either. Ill keep an eye on this thread....im curious.
 
Fix water levels and get snails/hermits that eat it...if you fix water levels and still have it, that's because it has already begun to proliferate.

I have a bit of cyano, but it isn't growing nor has it for months. I dose with vodka and my levels are awesome!

It's a nice snack for my trochus and cerith snails...
 
I've had cyano that would grow on one tank wall that I rarely cleaned. When I did get around to scraping, it would come off in sheets. I've also had green algae that would get a thin coating of cyano, and that cyano was incredibly difficult to simply siphon off. The OP's photo certainly looks like cyano that has grown for a time, IMO.
 
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