Another Classic "Is This Dinos" Thread

areefer01

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The majority of corals are photosynthetic, but do benefit from additional feeding and supplements. I bought RR at first because people spoke highly of it, but later learned it's one of the worst for phosphate. Go figure...

Of course. I knew the direction but everything in moderation. After all there are polyps and they are there for a reason.
 

areefer01

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Of course they need food, but feeding organics and ammonia from fish food/waste is more than enough for photosynthesizing corals.

My point is feeding the display reef roids or other reef nutrition food is perfectly fine. Hence moderation comment.
 
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Cincyreefer513

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Its bacteria and likely cyano.
I recommend to reduce white light intensity or even turn them off for 5-7 days. Add liquid bacteria daily for a week during the day at 1.5ml per 10 gallons. Add Hydrogen peroxide at night at 1ml per 10 gallons. Add a pouch of chemipure Elite which will balance phos and nitrate and keep them in check.

After the week, add a few snails such as cerith, margarita, astrea and nassarius plus 6-8 blue leg hermits to take control.

What causes this ? Some of the most common causes include:
- Protein skimmer which fills water with tiny air bubbles. As bubbles form from the reaction chamber, dissolved organic compound molecules stick to them. Foam forms at the surface of the water and is then transferred to a collection cup, where it rests as skimmate. When the protein skimmer does not output the best efficiency or you do not have the suitable protein skimmer to cover the tank, the air bubbles created by the skimmer might be insufficient. And this insufficiency of air bubbles can trigger the cyano to thrive.
- Overstocking / overfeeding, your aquarium with nutrients is often the culprit of a cyano bloom
- Adding live rock that isn’t completely cured which acts like a breeding ground for red slime algae
- If you don’t change your water with enough frequency, you’ll soon have a brightly colored red slime algae bloom. Regular water changes dilute nutrients that feed cyanobacteria and keeps your tank beautifully clear
- Using a water source with nitrates or phosphates is like rolling out the welcome mat for cyano. Tap water is an example
- Inadequate water flow, or movement, is a leading cause of cyano blooms. Slow moving water combined with excess dissolved nutrients is a recipe for pervasive red slime algae development

I use RODI water at 0 TDS. Filters and membrane were changed in late March. WC schedule is 20% once a week.

There is definitely lower flow where the largest patches of this stuff is growing, but not dead spots.

I currently have 4 fish. They eat about a quarter cube of frozen mysis or brine 5-6 days a week. I don't think this is overfeeding?

Could dryrock be a culprit? I added maybe 20+ pounds of uncured dryrock to the 15lbs of live that came with the tank originally.

No skimmer. I ran one for a week over a month ago attempting to help lower phosphate. It dropped my nitrate from 15 down to 10 so I turned it off because I wanted nitrates to remain in the 10-15 range. It continued to drop to 5 about 2 weeks later and has remained at that per API.

Also, lights are on 8.5hrs a day. 62% blue, 3% white for half the day and 62% blue only the other half. Tuned for adequate PAR readings.

Still treat as cyano?
 

Miami Reef

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Could dryrock be a culprit? I added maybe 20+ pounds of uncured dryrock to the 15lbs of live that came with the tank originally.
Definitely. Dry rocks usually have stored phosphates.

Skimmers are super beneficial for a load of reasons. I would definitely keep it running. It doesn’t remove any nitrates/phosphates directly, but it skims out organics before they break down and contribute to additional nitrates/phosphates.

It will also remove organics and even skim out whole Cyanobacteria. Definitely recommended.
 
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Cincyreefer513

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Definitely. Dry rocks usually have stored phosphates.

Skimmers are super beneficial for a load of reasons. I would definitely keep it running. It doesn’t remove any nitrates/phosphates directly, but it skims out organics before they break down and contribute to additional nitrates/phosphates.

It will also remove organics and even skim out whole Cyanobacteria. Definitely recommended.

Newbie mistake of adding uncured dryrock in the beginning...

Ok, maybe I'll turn on the skimmer again soon. My tank was running at 15 nitrate for over 2 months. After turning the skimmer on for a week and seeing it drop to 10, I shut it off thinking it would continue to drop. Phosphate barely went down in that week as well. Maybe 0.03. I figured it was best to shut it off. It's still in the back chamber of the tank, just needs to be turned on.
 
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Cincyreefer513

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Seriously, thank you for the replies and suggestions everyone! I'll keep you all updated. I'm not sure if the algae/cyano is the problem or the high phosphate, but hopefully I can figure it out before I lose any corals.
 

areefer01

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OP - whatever you do please take notes and make 1 change at a time. Playing reactionary flailing of arms trying to solve the equation will only lead you to more problems. Not saying that is what you are doing, I'm not. Just a bit of friendly fellow hobbyist advise for 1 documented change, assess, and then revisit for the next. Anything else leads to trouble.

Also you didn't make a newbie (dislike that word) mistake using dry rock.
 

vetteguy53081

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I use RODI water at 0 TDS. Filters and membrane were changed in late March. WC schedule is 20% once a week.

There is definitely lower flow where the largest patches of this stuff is growing, but not dead spots.

I currently have 4 fish. They eat about a quarter cube of frozen mysis or brine 5-6 days a week. I don't think this is overfeeding?

Could dryrock be a culprit? I added maybe 20+ pounds of uncured dryrock to the 15lbs of live that came with the tank originally.

No skimmer. I ran one for a week over a month ago attempting to help lower phosphate. It dropped my nitrate from 15 down to 10 so I turned it off because I wanted nitrates to remain in the 10-15 range. It continued to drop to 5 about 2 weeks later and has remained at that per API.

Also, lights are on 8.5hrs a day. 62% blue, 3% white for half the day and 62% blue only the other half. Tuned for adequate PAR readings.

Still treat as cyano?
You can scrub off with a firm toothbrush and reduce white intensity and see if it returns and how quickly. If within 48 hours- treat as such
 
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