Cyano bacteria vs. Chemi-Clean Liquid

[melev]

I've been recommending Chemi-Clean for years. When I heard there was a liquid version a few months ago, I had to get some. Here's the product review - hope it helps some of you.

Reef Addicts - Product Review: Chemi-Clean Liquid

 

[pickupman66]

Melev, did you keep the return running the whole time? I have a 180 with a 150 sump. maybe 225 total volume gallons. some large tangs and I dont want to risk them...

 

[melev]

Absolutely. You want all the water in your system treated, including any in the sump and refugium where cyano often grows. I only turn off my return pump when feeding my livestock - for 15 minutes.

 

[Mr E Wrasse]

I love chemi-clean. Only down side is that I end up getting about 30-40 gal of skimmate ****

 

[Murfman]

Had a friend overdose with the Chemiclean. smoked all his SPS and some of his chalices. He also lost some fish. Only thing we can think of is that he killed off his bacteria and spiked his tank. Be careful and follow the instructions to a T.

 

[beaslbob]

IMHO one should not use any chemicals to fight cyano.

the most effect treatment IMHO is to simply kill the lights let the cyano die off the resume with less light and feeding. and of course to have plant life like corraline or macro algaes to consume the nutrients.


my .02

 

[melev]

I've never understood how people have tank crashes after using this product. I've used it in multiple systems over the past 5+ years and never had a problem. I have to imagine crashes are due to oxygen levels dropping in tanks with limited flow. That's a guess as I don't know all the variables they were dealing with.

I've definitely used more than the recommended dose. I once double-dosed it after getting frustrated. I did send an email or two asking what might happen, but didn't wait more than 48 hours for a response and proceeded anyway. No losses, other than cyano eradication.

There are only a few chemicals I recommend and use myself for my tanks, but for the most part I recommend keeping it simple whenever possible.

 

[pickupman66]

Thanks, im going to book mark this one. I have a small ammt in my tank now. it tends to hang on one rock and on the teeth of my overflows. Go figure as I thought it didn't like current. I know the cause of it is my water source. that is being solved next week as will be some ecobac pellets and such.

 

[Brad Syphus]

I have never had a problem using it. I will use it maybe every six months, And after using chemi clean it seems all of my corals get a growth spirt. Might just be my imagination though. But, after trying the liquid twice, I'll stick with the powder. The liquid just didn't do the job that the powder does.

 

[melev]

One strange thing I observed earlier this year was the random losses of LPS corals. It was so hit and miss that I felt it had to be fish-related. I couldn't find the source, and slowly over time I'd lose a hammer head or a frogspawn head while everything around those dead heads was happy and thriving, totally unaware of their 'brother' polyp. I had a few more close up, which I believe causes them to die because they never feed.

After treating with Chemi-clean, the cyano was gone and the closed up heads opened again and grew in to be vibrant like the rest of the colony. Perhaps some cyano was taking hold within the polyp, and once this was gone the coral no longer felt threatened or sick. Again, I can't prove this one but it's the only theory that makes sense to me.

 

[TCK Corals]

I have pretty decent flow in my system and wanted to know if the air stones were a need? I used it once in the past without any problem but there much more on the line this time. I am gonna be dosing into my chalice tank and i dont want it to crash.

 

[Pizzapro83]

I didnt use a air stone. I think you have to be worried about oxygen dropping in a small tank or a tank with a lot of fish

 

[TCK Corals]

Thanks Frank

 

[melev]

If you have any doubt, use the airstone. It won't hurt your system to do so during treatment.

 

[jbonez]

i have very lil cayno red & green in my 40b frag tank i just started the dose today i added a wood air stone and have koralia 2 in there i added 45 drope of the chemi clean liquid... you think im good i will also do a 15 gl water change in 48hrs...

 

[NanaReefer]

Thankfully I've only had to use ChemiClean twice in 3yrs. I chose to use an air stone. No ill effects on anything but the cyno. Gone completely, never to return

 

[SeymourDuncan]

I had cyano in my holding tank due to lack of flow...my extra powerhead is being used on another holding tank since the magnet busted off the thing. It was a 55 gallon w/ a 55 sump.
i just stop feeding once every 7 days for a 2 day dark period. SO my tanks get 7 days light, 2 days dark and hungry. Mollies will eat the stuff, its hard finding stuff they WONT eat. lol.

Im not sure if its the dark or the hungry that makes the cyano go away, but it keeps coming back in small amounts. I know it is because of the lack of an extra powerhead...however my duncan coral is in heaven and its head is huge

I am always weary of chemicals or liquids since the last experience with medicating my fish early on in the hobby. The LFS gave me Melafix when i was asking about copper...he said he uses it and loves it...well it killed the parasites...and the fish. I would hate a repeat of that. ITs hard to predict how many actual gallons of water your tank is when a 10lb rock from X will take up more volume than the rock from Y...so you really have to measure every rock (and large animal) that you put in the water column.

say juan valdez has a 75 gallon with a 40b sump. He adds 110 lbs of rock and a DSB in the big tank. HE may think in his head that he has a Total volume of 110, or if he takes the rock into account estimates 75 gallons, when in reality his rock and sand have made his TWV only 50 gallons, he could easily over dose, How many people actually keep track of the watervolume their rock displaces? I will next time...now that i mentioned it lol