Blue Green Cyano? Or worse?

[MdgtRac]

Tank is 3-4 months old but recently took rock out and scrubbed with a toothbrush in saltwater due to lack of maintenance. And reset with a 80% water change. Been running like this now for about a month. If I siphon it off during a water change it comes back within a few days. Just wondering if it is some sort of Cyano or something worse

 

[James M]

Last pic Looks like turf algea

 

[MdgtRac]

Looks like turf algea

How do I treat that? Is there a way to tell the difference?

 

[MdgtRac]

Just looked it up, it doesn’t look hairy like that though. It’s almost like a slime. If I blow on it with a baster it comes off but will be back in a couple days

 

[dwest]

Tank is 3-4 months old but recently took rock out and scrubbed with a toothbrush in saltwater due to lack of maintenance. And reset with a 80% water change. Been running like this now for about a month. If I siphon it off during a water change it comes back within a few days. Just wondering if it is some sort of Cyano or something worse

I think it’s cyano.

 

[DangerDave]

It looks like cyano to me. Get the flow up, that always helps. I had a recurring issue for a while. I was able to use chemiclean to knock it out. Once it was gone, I had to keep my nutrients up to keep it away. My tank just doesn’t function with low nutrients. Ymmv

Good luck!

 

[MdgtRac]

It’s a 20 gallon IM Nuvo and I have an MP10wQD in there. I have a spare koreaila nano. Should I throw that in there or is the MP10wQD sufficient

 

[reeferfoxx]

Looks like cyano to me also. Turf algae is filamentous and doesn't easily come off the rocks.

 

[MdgtRac]

I’m running 2 caddy’s with filter floss live rock and chemi pure. No fuge or anything like that. Just keep the water changes up and siphon it out?

 

[reeferfoxx]

I’m running 2 caddy’s with filter floss live rock and chemi pure. No fuge or anything like that. Just keep the water changes up and siphon it out?

Why the chemi pure?

 

[MdgtRac]

Shouldn’t there be some form of media in the tank? I just always thought to have that. Is there something else you recommend?

 

[reeferfoxx]

Shouldn’t there be some form of media in the tank?

The short answer would have to be no. Not unless you understand the purpose as to why you are using it. Biological filtration is to convert ammonia to nitrates. Mechinical filtration is to remove particulates. Chemi pure is categorized as chemical filtration and so would be granular activated carbon. However, the label on chemi pure can vary between the 'elite' and the 'blue'. They both have different functions. Despite which one you are using whether it contains GFO( for phosphate removal) or purigen(dissolved organics, chemical, and trace element removal), not understanding why can create imbalances within the tank. Sometimes these imbalances can have adverse effects on the tank. Kind of like what we are seeing here.

Which chemi pure are you using?!

 

[MdgtRac]

I am using blue. The nano size one in each chamber

 

[reeferfoxx]

I am using blue. The nano size one in each chamber

Ok. Looks like the Chemi-pure blue does contain a phosphate removing resin as stated on the container.

 

[reeferfoxx]

Tank is 3-4 months old but recently took rock out and scrubbed with a toothbrush in saltwater due to lack of maintenance. And reset with a 80% water change. Been running like this now for about a month. If I siphon it off during a water change it comes back within a few days. Just wondering if it is some sort of Cyano or something worse

I might have missed this in the beginning just due to identifying what is growing. Basically, the tank is clean and possibly too clean. For now, until we can see some parameter tests I recommend removing the chemi-pure and holding off on the water change. I do recommend using regular old carbon or GAC and running that for 3-4 days. In this time you can blow the stuff of the rocks and let it be filtered out into the floss. Also, in the mean time, I would leave the sandbed alone.