Dinoflagellates – Are You Tired Of Battling Altogether?

[dwest]

Ok rigged up directly from display. Hopefully it will do better here

Any change with your tank after moving uv to DT?

 

[taricha]

So, I've been reading that UV sterilizer is good for stopping Dino's reproductive cycle. On the other hand, it isn't very efficient on Amphidinium.
I've also read that metronidazole can affect Dino's reproductive cycle. If I'm not mistaken, what's the correct dosage on a 300l reef?

I tested cultures of amphidinium with metronidazole at doses several times larger and longer duration than what anyone would recommend in a reef tank, the amphidinium were not reduced in population and remained moving and active.
(They did seem to have their chloroplasts/photosynthetic pigments badly damaged, but that didn't slow them down - two weeks of darkness didn't bother them either - they clearly have heterotrophic capabilities - Bacteria eating.)
edit: pic amphidinium before /after high doses metro

 

[grove2nmb]

So do you recommend not doing water changes while attempting to get rid of Dino’s? My tank already has nutrients, nitrates 4 and phosphate .05. Adding UV tomorrow and removed GFO, added new carbon, stopped aminos.

 

[dwest]

So do you recommend not doing water changes while attempting to get rid of Dino’s? My tank already has nutrients, nitrates 4 and phosphate .05. Adding UV tomorrow and removed GFO, added new carbon, stopped aminos.

I kept doing water changes. Others stopped. I don’t believe there is a definitive recommendation here. Am interested in what others say.

 

[grove2nmb]

As am I, the Dino’s just started to show up and want to nip them in the but as fast as I can

 

[dwest]

As am I, the Dino’s just started to show up and want to nip them in the but as fast as I can

Sounds like me you are on the right track. Have you id’d them? Lots of manual removal, may want to bump nitrates 10 and phosphates to o.1 ish.... be sure to plumb uv inside DT. Good luck.

 

[revhtree]

Dinos seem to be gone and the Cyanobacteria is taking over big time! What are you guys who beat dinos doing at this point?

 

[reeferfoxx]

Dinos seem to be gone and the Cyanobacteria is taking over big time! What are you guys who beat dinos doing at this point?

I found that if you leave cyano to grow, it eventually begins to absorb nutrients back to undetectable. Best course of action is to siphon as much of the mats out as possible with a water change. It doesntd matter the amount of water changed but the amount of cyano removed. The more the better. Then keep running GAC to remove any excess organics.

 

[revhtree]

I found that if you leave cyano to grow, it eventually begins to absorb nutrients back to undetectable. Best course of action is to siphon as much of the mats out as possible with a water change. It doesntd matter the amount of water changed but the amount of cyano removed. The more the better. Then keep running GAC to remove any excess organics.

That’s what I was hoping you would say!

 

[kecked]

The magnum micron in tank filter works almost as well as uv in a small tank. I ran it on a 29gal and it did a fine job of cleaning the Dino’s out. I didn’t use the diatom powder. It is not needed.

I also had one running on the exit of my uv on the large tank. Double hit. Wanted to see if I could export the nutrients of the dead dinos. Not sure what it it did or not do but I’m Dino free.

Uv is off for week now. Lots of cyano. Thinking to move the micron over to the tank on its own.

Ps. I plan to keep n and p elevated forever. Everything is healthier. 5ppm 0.1ppm

 

[dwest]

Dinos seem to be gone and the Cyanobacteria is taking over big time! What are you guys who beat dinos doing at this point?

In addition to what reeferfox said, I beefed up my cuc at that point.

 

[Lowefx]

Would you consider this diatoms or dinos? I dont have a microscope...
I have since done a waterchange and added rowaphos to remove silicate if thats what it is feeding from. Please advise me on how to properly handle this.

 

[reeferfoxx]

Would you consider this diatoms or dinos? I dont have a microscope...
I have since done a waterchange and added rowaphos to remove silicate if thats what it is feeding from. Please advise me on how to properly handle this.

Diatoms are a welcoming meal for pods and snails. If the CuC and water changes aren't working, the next diagnosis is dinos. Generally Dino's thrive in low po4 environments. When I say low Po4, I mean undetectable po4.

 

[revhtree]

In addition to what reeferfox said, I beefed up my cuc at that point.

Just did! Thanks!

 

[dwest]

• no special equipment is needed to confirm whether your algae sample has dino's and/or other algae

• Use @taricha's dino confirmation guide on posts #986-987.

From page 1 of this thread...

 

[tastyfish]

Couple of general tips from me:

- Don't diagnose dinos by how they look. Perform a reconstituion test or better still a microscopic view

- You can perform water changes, but I would advise against doing so and really should be minimal replacement of lost water if siphoning to waste (which you MUST do, NEVER back into tank through a filter).

- PO4 can be high or low. Mine was sky high. The presence of NO3 allows other competing organisms a foothold, which is why dinoflagellates and Cyano can bloom with low NO3/high PO4. Personally I'd go for low and it worked well battling mine.

- CUC - effect on clean up crew is entirely dependent on the species of dino and their state of distress. Mine were completely benign until I started to kill them off, when they turned toxic and took out two conches where they were eating.

- Never underestimate the importance of competition. It's the competition which keep the dinoflagellates in check, once you have knocked their numbers down.

 

[taricha]

Would you consider this diatoms or dinos? I dont have a microscope...

I vote dinos. Diatoms usually don't form even blanket films like that. I do get fooled sometimes, even in my own tank. But they look enough like dinos to go through the tests that were linked above.

 

[taricha]

On cyano, I'll mention that a few of us crazies started dosing silica in order to compete with sandbed dinos. (In my case, no dinos - just to test system response to silica)
We all expected big diatom blooms - but yet to see one in the handful of people who tried it.
Unexpected side effect is that for some of us, persistent cyano mats disappeared. Now this is only n=2 anecdotal evidence...
But my sand bed would always have small bits of cyano here and there over the past two years. But cyano receded and not a single spot in 3 months. Tank nutrient levels otherwise same as they always have been.
Just throwing that out here.

 

[reeferfoxx]

On cyano, I'll mention that a few of us crazies started dosing silica in order to compete with sandbed dinos. (In my case, no dinos - just to test system response to silica)
We all expected big diatom blooms - but yet to see one in the handful of people who tried it.
Unexpected side effect is that for some of us, persistent cyano mats disappeared. Now this is only n=2 anecdotal evidence...
But my sand bed would always have small bits of cyano here and there over the past two years. But cyano receded and not a single spot in 3 months. Tank nutrient levels otherwise same as they always have been.
Just throwing that out here.

Interesting! Not related to dinos but in the last few months I had been cyano free up until I removed my leather coral. Not exactly sure why either but I did play around with a dose of vibrant due to some brown film accumulation on the glass. Did it help? No. Was a dumb decision? Maybe. Did it happen? Yes.

I'll experiment with some silica. Any particular product you recommend?

 

[Lowefx]

Well i know my snails are dieing fater than normal. Ill just have to dirty up my tank.