Dinoflagellates – Are You Tired Of Battling Altogether?

[dwest]

Currently battling ostreopsis, currently have a 36W coralife turbotwist UV in the sump feed by a mag 3 pump. Haven't really noticed a decline in it yet. I am thinking about upgrading to a aquavu 57 watt feed by a mag 5 directly placed in the main display. Any thoughts on this upgrade or should I let the coralife continue to run? The tank is 255 gal, the entire set up around 325 gal. Also has anyone had luck when syphoning the sandbed to run it directly through a UV with good results?

Big tank! Usually we need about 1 watt per every 3 gallons of water. You might need 110 watts plumbed directly in the tank. I have the aqua uv 57 watt and its nice. But I’d go bigger. You might get away with both the 57 and 36 plumed into display. You’ll want to flow about 1-3 tank volumes per hour through the uv. The mag drive 3 likely is good.

 

[Beardo]

Currently battling ostreopsis, currently have a 36W coralife turbotwist UV in the sump feed by a mag 3 pump. Haven't really noticed a decline in it yet. I am thinking about upgrading to a aquavu 57 watt feed by a mag 5 directly placed in the main display. Any thoughts on this upgrade or should I let the coralife continue to run? The tank is 255 gal, the entire set up around 325 gal. Also has anyone had luck when syphoning the sandbed to run it directly through a UV with good results?

From my personal experience, 57 watts is going to be undersized just as @dwest said. I had a 57 watt on a 240 then a 270 with out success. It took a 114 watt unit before I had success.

 

[saltyhog]

Just in support of what @dwest and @Beardo said, I have a dual 55 watt Jaebo (two 55 watt in series 110 watts total) and they literally eliminated all evidence of ostreopsis in my 72x24x21 tank over night. I ran mine directly to and from my DT. For some reason, this seems to make a difference. We've kicked it around but no definitive explanation for this that I know of, just observation.

 

[Jonreefer]

I am running a 24w on my 40breeder and it seem to be having a positive effect for me.

 

[MTBake]

I am running a 24w on my 40breeder and it seem to be having a positive effect for me.

I'm also running a 24w on my 40 breeder. It's definately helping.

What are you using?

I have one of those AA Green Killing things. Pretty happy with it for the price. I'll most likely upgrade down the road. Just don't have the funds available right now.

 

[mx36]

From my personal experience, 57 watts is going to be undersized just as @dwest said. I had a 57 watt on a 240 then a 270 with out success. It took a 114 watt unit before I had success.

Thanks, so did you keep the UV going after you beat it and if so did you keep the pump in the display or move it to the sump area?

 

[Jonreefer]

I'm also running a 24w on my 40 breeder. It's definately helping.

What are you using?

I have one of those AA Green Killing things. Pretty happy with it for the price. I'll most likely upgrade down the road. Just don't have the funds available right now.

Same one. 24w green killing machine. I am also amazed at how crystal clear the water has become from the uv as well. I always thought it was clear running carbon but this is like a whole new level.

 

[MTBake]

Same one. 24w green killing machine. I am also amazed at how crystal clear the water has become from the uv as well. I always thought it was clear running carbon but this is like a whole new level.

Do you use those little blue sponge things on the intake?

Mine would pretty much clog in a day with one of those on. I took it off and just clean it out once a week to every 2 weeks. Seems to work better, imo.

 

[Beardo]

Thanks, so did you keep the UV going after you beat it and if so did you keep the pump in the display or move it to the sump area?

I plumbed the unit into my return and still have it running.

 

[Jonreefer]

Do you use those little blue sponge things on the intake?

Mine would pretty much clog in a day with one of those on. I took it off and just clean it out once a week to every 2 weeks. Seems to work better, imo.

Yea I am using the sponge. It still looks pretty clear. I was probably going to pull it out tonight and wash it out. I had a very low Dino infestation. It was like just a couple strands here and there on the rocks but I had them beaten down pretty bad when they first infected me around the end of December.

 

[MTBake]

Yea I am using the sponge. It still looks pretty clear. I was probably going to pull it out tonight and wash it out. I had a very low Dino infestation. It was like just a couple strands here and there on the rocks but I had them beaten down pretty bad when they first infected me around the end of December.

My dino problem was pretty bad. The dying dinos kept clogging it up. I'll most likely add it back in a week or 2.

 

[travsi]

Looking for a bit of help. Currently battling what I am sure are Dinos. Not sure on type. Red and stringy. Definitely not Cyano.

Things tried:

Peroxide Dosing(300 Gallon water volume, dosed 30ML for 1 week)
Seemed to be working but seemed to stall.

Lights out for 72 hours
Worked but have corals and fish so lights came back on

maxed out feeding in order to promote increase in phosphate and nitrate for other algae and starve off Dinos, no effect.

tank specs: 220 gallon tank, 125 sump, about 150 pounds live rock, 120lbs sand.

The corals are extremely healthy and vibrant, little irritation from Dinos.

Fish are extremely happy and healthy.

What else can I do?

 

[._Z_.]

Looking for a bit of help. Currently battling what I am sure are Dinos. Not sure on type. Red and stringy. Definitely not Cyano.

Things tried:

Peroxide Dosing(300 Gallon water volume, dosed 30ML for 1 week)
Seemed to be working but seemed to stall.

Lights out for 72 hours
Worked but have corals and fish so lights came back on

maxed out feeding in order to promote increase in phosphate and nitrate for other algae and starve off Dinos, no effect.

tank specs: 220 gallon tank, 125 sump, about 150 pounds live rock, 120lbs sand.

The corals are extremely healthy and vibrant, little irritation from Dinos.

Fish are extremely happy and healthy.

What else can I do?

What’s your exact nitrate and phosphate levels? Many times increased feeding isn’t enough, most end up dosing nitrate and phos directly.

Also get a microscope to get an ID on the strain. Can you post pictures of your tank? Is it mostly on sand?

Start looking at UV also, but first you need to ID your dinos

 

[aras]

Wondering if carbon dosing itself (while keeping Nitrates/Phosphates at reasonable levels) can be a cause for dino outbreaks? I'm currently fighting Amphidinium which first appeared around 6 months after starting NOPOX (which did resolve my GHA issues). I kept Nitrates/Phosphates with NOPOX at around 2 / 0.02, obviously with hindsight should have kept them higher...

Trying to decide whether going forward I should keep using NOPOX (at much lower doses letting Nitrates/Phosphates to raise), or better to completely stop carbon dosing and find another nutrient control method (probably refugium with Chaeto)?

 

[BRANDON84]

So, I can unfortunately add myself to the Dino club. Overdid the GFO some months back, drove PO4 to zero and it stayed there, then the nitrates dropped to zero and stayed there as well, then the "brown stringy algae" replaced the GHA. Been dosing PO4 and NO3 to bring them back up - it's been quite a battle maintaining a stable level without "overdoing it". I dose morning and night, test morning and night as well (red sea pro and hanna ULR). Sometimes the NO3 drops back to undetectable so I up the dosing. Shooting for NO3 of 5-10ppm and PO4 of 0.05 to 0.08 (wondering if I should target even higher than that?). Turned off the Skimmer, dumped the chaeto (which never really thrived anyway). Currently only running GAC on the system. I made the mistake of vacuuming 50% of the sand bed in one go and got what I think is a diatom bloom that has started to fade now. I'm also dosing Dr Tims eco balance at 30% recommended dosage and soon will dose live phyto & pods in hopes to regain some bio diversity.

I've seen some improvement but not lots, been 10 days since I started this regime. How long does it take to start to see some progress usually?

135 gallon system (100 DT, 35 sump)
8 DKH
0.04 PO4
4ppm NO3
1400 Mag
395 Ca
8.3 PH

 

[kecked]

I ran a 55w uv on my 65 for a year and just removed it. I th8nk I over did it as everything looks better now

 

[Wxguy23]

I am in the dino fight now for over a month or so.

Did anyone find that Microbacter 7 helped PROMOTE Dinos? I am on day 9 of dosing and the dinos are worse than ever...much more since I started Microbacter.

Today I am buying more chemicals to raise Phosphate and Nitrates to try and help per suggestions...or buy Dino X.

Tried:
Blackout: 3x nope
Diatoms breakout: nope (may have not given enough time?)
Over feeding: nope
No water change in 6 weeks: Nope
Almost an entire bottle of H2O2, daily dosing for 3 weeks: nope
Lights on for a couple hours a day: nope...lost two corals and anenome is sick,
Coralife UV with new bulb for a month, blowing debris 3x daily: nope
Raised PH to 8.8: nope
Microbacter 7 for 9 days: nope (promoted it)

Next steps...dose to raise Phos and Nitrates....or buy Dino X...I will give it another month or so then take down and sell. I have a couple trips coming up, and being gone 2-4 days will likely destroy my tank if I can't stay on top of these things.

 

[._Z_.]

I am in the dino fight now for over a month or so.

Did anyone find that Microbacter 7 helped PROMOTE Dinos? I am on day 9 of dosing and the dinos are worse than ever...much more since I started Microbacter.

Today I am buying more chemicals to raise Phosphate and Nitrates to try and help per suggestions...or buy Dino X.

Tried:
Blackout: 3x nope
Diatoms breakout: nope (may have not given enough time?)
Over feeding: nope
No water change in 6 weeks: Nope
Almost an entire bottle of H2O2, daily dosing for 3 weeks: nope
Lights on for a couple hours a day: nope...lost two corals and anenome is sick,
Coralife UV with new bulb for a month, blowing debris 3x daily: nope
Raised PH to 8.8: nope
Microbacter 7 for 9 days: nope (promoted it)

Next steps...dose to raise Phos and Nitrates....or buy Dino X...I will give it another month or so then take down and sell. I have a couple trips coming up, and being gone 2-4 days will likely destroy my tank if I can't stay on top of these things.

I understand where you’re at. I feel like I’ve tried everything too and still have them.

Have you identified your strain?

 

[Wxguy23]

I understand where you’re at. I feel like I’ve tried everything too and still have them.

Have you identified your strain?

Based on what I can tell, it looks like amphidinium....but looking under our home microscope, hell I can't tell the difference between them. I have brown dots with cells inside them.... I am such a newb.

 

[._Z_.]

Based on what I can tell, it looks like amphidinium....but looking under our home microscope, hell I can't tell the difference.

Understandable. If I’m ever able to beat the coolia I’ve got then I can tackle the amphidinium that also lives in my tank.

My plan will be to add a few pounds of garf grunge and dose silicates. But you say silicate dosing didn’t work for you. How much did you dose exactly and were you able to find diatoms under your scope?

Maybe someone else who has done the silicate method can check your dosing regime