Bacterial slime possibly from carbon dosing

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

The best solution will be to find the cause of the high nitrates.
Do you run a refugium? Do you have anything like Matrix in the sump to (over time) build up denitrifying bacteria?

I'm sorry I don't have any better ideas, and you've probably already thought of these...

 

[bushdoc]

So I have a Red Sea XXL750 around 160 gallons total volume. Predator tank and I have continually fought high nitrates and phosphates. Well over 100 NO3, so I began dosing with homemade NOPOX and levels came down over time. I accidentally let the NOPOX run out and nitrates spiked again. I restarted dosing, but I seem to have a snot like bacteria being produced and my ORP has been crashing.

Tank has developed a foul smell similar to skim mate. Plugged up the sponge divider in sump causing my skimmer to over produce. I did a 50% water change and removed as much of the slime as I could.

Yesterday our porcupine puffer was laying on the sand and very pale. Colored up well when I put my finger to the front of tank and he swam away.

Currently running two air stones, skimmer drawing air from outside and dosing 1ml H2O2 per 8 gallons every 12 hours. When I dose H2O2 ORP spikes to 400-420 then drops into the 250-280 range over the next 4 hours.

Will water change make a significant difference? Should I replace the air stones as they are not nearly as fine of bubbles as when I first added them?

Dose stability? Dose pristine?

Any suggestions welcome.

Funny, but I just had similar situation, but from dosing Nitrates( they were undetectable), however my bacterial bloom was much smaller and I just stopped dosing and everything is O.K. now.
You are feeding heterotrophic bacteria, which are multiplying every 20-30 min, so simple water change will not help.UV sterilizer is probably your best solution, you can use inexpensive one like "Green Killing Machine", look in LFS, Petco, Petsmart or Walmart, they might have it.
The danger of heterotrophic bacteria are posing is mostly due to their O2 consumption, running skimmer 24/7 will increase your O2 and also remove bacteria if you are killing them with UV sterilizer.

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

No improvement in eliminating whatever is affecting my ORP so strongly. Mostly worried about getting O2 stabilized. Just looked and thin lines seemed to be breathing really rapidly.

Have to run my daughters overnight guest home then going to test ammonia for peace of mind.

Since carbon dosing feeds the bacteria which can lower oxygen, stopping this for now might help stabilize your ORP.

 

[HankstankXXL750]

Funny, but I just had similar situation, but from dosing Nitrates( they were undetectable), however my bacterial bloom was much smaller and I just stopped dosing and everything is O.K. now.
You are feeding heterotrophic bacteria, which are multiplying every 20-30 min, so simple water change will not help.UV sterilizer is probably your best solution, you can use inexpensive one like "Green Killing Machine", look in LFS, Petco, Petsmart or Walmart, they might have it.
The danger of heterotrophic bacteria are posing is mostly due to their O2 consumption, running skimmer 24/7 will increase your O2 and also remove bacteria if you are killing them with UV sterilizer.

Running a Aquatop , but might clean to make sure it is maximized.

 

[HankstankXXL750]

The best solution will be to find the cause of the high nitrates.
Do you run a refugium? Do you have anything like Matrix in the sump to (over time) build up denitrifying bacteria?

I'm sorry I don't have any better ideas, and you've probably already thought of these...

That is where my journey into homemade NOPOX started. I have a Red Sea XXL750 and use the supplies refugium with Alex gro set opposite tank lighting. Also have a ATS set on same schedule. Had two smaller media canisters loaded with matrix and their smaller one. However didn’t see them drop for an expended period of time 3 months maybe. So moved to NOPOX and reduced feeding. However everyone is growing and so having to feed more.

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

Final thought (for now), how much is your skimmer pulling out? Possibly running a little wetter might help export the bacteria and/or other organics...

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

That is where my journey into homemade NOPOX started. I have a Red Sea XXL750 and use the supplies refugium with Alex gro set opposite tank lighting. Also have a ATS set on same schedule. Had two smaller media canisters loaded with matrix and their smaller one. However didn’t see them drop for an expended period of time 3 months maybe. So moved to NOPOX and reduced feeding. However everyone is growing and so having to feed more.

Matrix will house both nitrifying and denitrifying bacteria, but for the denitrifying bacteria to grow best, low flow is needed... It could be that you're not maximizing its potential for denitrification.

And setting the lights for the fuge/ATS to 18-24 hours a day might help.

 

[MrGisonni]

A UV sterilizer will get rid of the bacterial bloom. Mean green killing machine makes a few different sizes. But also discover the root of the problem of course

 

[HankstankXXL750]

Final thought (for now), how much is your skimmer pulling out? Possibly running a little wetter might help export the bacteria and/or other organics...

I’ll adjust up when I get home. Fish reaction started at the same time that the micro bubble foam kinda got blocked up after my deeper cleaning of the sump and manual removal of the slime. This cause my skimmer to overproduce and bubble over. That day was when the puffer started action funny. So I still have it running for air input but not producing very heavy.

 

[HankstankXXL750]

A UV sterilizer will get rid of the bacterial bloom. Mean green killing machine makes a few different sizes. But also discover the root of the problem of course

Thanks. I am running UV. My guess is running out of my Homemade NOPOX, then starting back at full dose. My issue and question now is, do I stop dosing, reduce dosing, or figure I will pull through it?

Previous experience was that I went through this when I first started carbon dosing, only thought it was something else. At that time I was rearranging one of my reefs and brought a large Cespitularia and a nice colony of anthelia over from my reef. They melted away very rapidly and so I started huge and frequent water changes. I think nitrates were over 200. Thought I had the tank dialed in decent, and was focused on the new reef setup. Nothing I had in place was working well enough so through a post here I started carbon dosing. Long story short when I got this slimy snot that time, I attributed it to the corals as I was similar in color.

I just saw a mention of this in another thread I was participating in and wondered if that was what happened back then. Knock on wood, my sump
Level rose, my skimmer over reacted and the tank smelled foul. That is when I found this slime again. Not nearly as much as the first time. Last time I just kept cleaning it out whenever it grew and it quickly subsided. Don’t remember any fish problems that time and it occurred with the beginning 1/3 dose.

That is my quandary, if I stop, will it just happen again. If I reduce, maybe I won’t produce as much and can get through it faster? If I stick it out, maybe it is almost done?
Too many questions. Lol.

 

[HankstankXXL750]

Matrix will house both nitrifying and denitrifying bacteria, but for the denitrifying bacteria to grow best, low flow is needed... It could be that you're not maximizing its potential for denitrification.

And setting the lights for the fuge/ATS to 18-24 hours a day might help.

One issue I fight is that my pH fluctuates a lot between day and night. I have plumbed outside air to the skimmer but my tanks are in the basement and I just think the O2 isn’t as high down there? So I’ve been told alternating the schedule will help me maintain a better balance.

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

One issue I fight is that my pH fluctuates a lot between day and night. I have plumbed outside air to the skimmer but my tanks are in the basement and I just think the O2 isn’t as high down there? So I’ve been told alternating the schedule will help me maintain a better balance.

I understand. I think as long as you have lights running in one place or the other at all times, pH will generally be stable... The wisdom of running the fuge opposite the display is so there isn't a big chunk of time when photosynthesis isn't occurring.
Since a primary goal at the moment is nutrient reduction, giving the algae in the sump more light could help...

But, I'm just brainstorming here.

 

[HankstankXXL750]

I understand. I think as long as you have lights running in one place or the other at all times, pH will generally be stable... The wisdom of running the fuge opposite the display is so there isn't a big chunk of time when photosynthesis isn't occurring.
Since a primary goal at the moment is nutrient reduction, giving the algae in the sump more light could help...

But, I'm just brainstorming here.

Might help. I have never had real success growing algae in my fuge. But the scrubber does pretty good. Have a stubborn turf algae that I haven’t been able to beat. Also a terrible aiptasia explosion, guessing I spread them trying to scrub the algae as I didn’t even realize I had any and now all over the rock.