Another post about Dinos

[aus1230]

Another post about Dinoflagellates — I know I’ve been dealing with cyano in my tank for the last couple of weeks. I’ve gone through a bunch of posts and understand there’s usually no single fix for this issue. I’ve been monitoring my parameters and everything has been stable and within normal ranges.

I recently bumped up the flow to see if that would help. I’m still not totally sure how to determine what counts as too little or too much flow, but so far my corals don’t seem unhappy and my fish aren’t showing signs of stress. Are there other signs — good or bad — that I should be watching for when it comes to flow?

I’m also considering adding another Nero 3 on the front of the tank to improve circulation (see picture below). On top of that, I’ve thought about dimming my lights and renting a PAR meter since it feels like the right time to really dial that in and rule lighting out as a contributor.

I’ve also ordered some copepods and phytoplankton since that’s something I haven’t been dosing regularly, and I’ve read it can help naturally with tank balance. My plan is to dose pods and phyto for a couple of weeks, then potentially add some beneficial bacteria if needed.

I’m open to suggestions and would love to hear what has worked for others — especially if you’ve successfully beaten cyano without going the chemical route. Thanks in advance!

 

[aus1230]

 

[aus1230]

 

[jonelder68]

Sure not Dino’s? Look much like Dino’s….

 

[vabben]

I have to agree with jonelder68, looks like youre dealing with dinos

 

[EagleEye121]

I agree those look more like Dino’s than cyano. Cyano is usually red or green, Dino’s are brown and snotty looking

 

[aus1230]

I agree those look more like Dino’s than cyano. Cyano is usually red or green, Dino’s are brown and snotty looking

Yes I apologize I meant Dinos. I keep mixing those even when looking them up. Sorry.

Sure not Dino’s? Look much like Dino’s….

Yes I apologize I meant Dinos. I keep mixing those even when looking them up. Sorry.

 

[aus1230]

I agree those look more like Dino’s than cyano. Cyano is usually red or green, Dino’s are brown and snotty looking

Yes I apologize I meant Dinos. It won't let me edit the post at this point. sorry!

 

[EagleEye121]

No apologies necessary!
What are your NO3 and PO4 levels? Dino’s usually pop up when nutrients bottom out

 

[Neon_Devil]

What worked for me was elevating my nitrates.

 

[Just John]

This may help deciding on treatment. It looks like it's just for microscope ID'ing them, but there are text descriptions, etc. too. I found it very helpful when I had an outbreak.

 

[unbeknownst]

Raise your phosphates above .1 and keep them there for about two weeks. I think you should be fine after that. Doesn't hurt anything to try.

 

[Daniel@R2R]

Another post about Dinoflagellates — I know I’ve been dealing with cyano in my tank for the last couple of weeks. I’ve gone through a bunch of posts and understand there’s usually no single fix for this issue. I’ve been monitoring my parameters and everything has been stable and within normal ranges.

I recently bumped up the flow to see if that would help. I’m still not totally sure how to determine what counts as too little or too much flow, but so far my corals don’t seem unhappy and my fish aren’t showing signs of stress. Are there other signs — good or bad — that I should be watching for when it comes to flow?

I’m also considering adding another Nero 3 on the front of the tank to improve circulation (see picture below). On top of that, I’ve thought about dimming my lights and renting a PAR meter since it feels like the right time to really dial that in and rule lighting out as a contributor.

I’ve also ordered some copepods and phytoplankton since that’s something I haven’t been dosing regularly, and I’ve read it can help naturally with tank balance. My plan is to dose pods and phyto for a couple of weeks, then potentially add some beneficial bacteria if needed.

I’m open to suggestions and would love to hear what has worked for others — especially if you’ve successfully beaten cyano without going the chemical route. Thanks in advance!

Hi! I edited your post so it reflects dinos (not cyano) for you. Hope that helps, and best of luck with getting it under control. We've all been there!

 

[dlee3814]

Get a microscope to make sure. You want to deal with dinos as early as possible before it gets out of hand

 

[aus1230]

Get a microscope to make sure. You want to deal with dinos as early as possible before it gets out of hand

I had my LFS look at it under a microscope to confirm it was Dinos. I believe my issue was nutrient instability and I also added some copepods and phytoplankton to help out.