Follow along with the video below to see how to install our site as a web app on your home screen.
Note: This feature may not be available in some browsers.
Interesting they must form them under certain conditions. I'm sure there is a world of interaction we are just scratching the surface of.The toxin part can be weird.
Some people get highly toxic outbreaks. I never did (in my main tank) despite having the same kinds that are toxic for many others.
Published papers find that even the same species of ostreopsis can be toxic in one culture and not in another due to effects of nutrients and bacterial associates.
For example, PO4 has been in the 0.07 range and NO3 was in the 5ppm range since the tank cycled. About the same time I saw the nutrient drop (BTW I'm not running anything to remove nutrients other than the Skimmer), my rocks, sand and glass started to turn greenish/brown... Which I assume is the ugly stage. My thought was that whatever the brown/green stuff is (diatoms?) is taking up nutrients.
If you started with dry rock they can act as a phosphate sponge in the short term binding it. This will stabilize as you continue to dose.So this is a bit of a pre-emptive post by a new reefer with a young tank.
My tank (120g with a 40B sump) has been set up for roughly 4 months now, using roughly 100lb of Marco dryrock which was pre cycled in a tote for about 2 months. There is also about a 2inch sandbed of reeflakes. Only 2 clowns and some zoas in it right now, CUC was being quarantined and will be going in this week.
So the whole reason for my post is, in the last several weeks, actually almost a month now, my phosphates (and to a lesser degree Nitrates) have been going.... Somewhere. For example, PO4 has been in the 0.07 range and NO3 was in the 5ppm range since the tank cycled. About the same time I saw the nutrient drop (BTW I'm not running anything to remove nutrients other than the Skimmer), my rocks, sand and glass started to turn greenish/brown... Which I assume is the ugly stage. My thought was that whatever the brown/green stuff is (diatoms?) is taking up nutrients. Being afraid that f getting dinos I started dosing PO4 and NO3 to bring them back up to original levels. I pretty much had to dose PO4 on the daily basis as it would be undetectibe within 12 hrs, NO3 would hold for several days. Downside, all the extra nutrient I was dosing, I feel went directly to fueling the ugly stage. Rocks and sand were covered. Median cup floss was green by morning and was replaced, Skimmer looked like it was filled with kale smoothie that smelled like the swamp.
Anyway, I guess the long and short of it is, if I don't continue dosing PO4 and NO3, are dinos next on my playlist? Or are nutrients still there but undetectibe from algea uptake?
Thoughts on how to proceed? I've asked in another thread and was advised to stop dosing nutrients.... But in deathly afraid of going into dinos if I do, so I thought I'd go to the epicenter of dinos and ask here...
Cheers! And sorry for the long thread.
PS. Also, I started using vibrant last week, only one dose thus far.
If you started with dry rock they can act as a phosphate sponge in the short term binding it. This will stabilize as you continue to dose.
I started adding some to my ATO water when I had to dose. That way I felt like I was seesawing with my levels as much.Sounds good, I'll keep it going. Might just have to set up a doser instead of onece a day dump.
It won't hurt.In the short-term, would you suggest continue dosing PO4/NO3 until feeding catches up?
Agree with your steps. For curiosity, where are they mostly appearing?I have coolia. Anybody know the way to defeat these guys.
Sand. Not much on rocks or glass. It's mostly sand.Agree with your steps. For curiosity, where are they mostly appearing?
Meaning uv is the way to go or no?Most others with coolia formed on sand too. Seems most typical for them. UV is certainly not graceful
Oh, it's great. It just can look ugly to get thr right wattage directly working on the display tank.Meaning uv is the way to go or no?
Oh ya this ghetto setup is sketch. Lol. One shake away from draining water on hardwoods. But if I gotta run this for 1 week. So be it. Well see if adding uv in display makes a difference todayOh, it's great. It just can look ugly to get thr right wattage directly working on the display tank.
Dude, you gotta batten that down a little bit. Looks like a dust mite could knock that over. I really appreciate you sharing the photo, but is it really as precarious as it looks?Oh ya this ghetto setup is sketch. Lol. One shake away from draining water on hardwoods. But if I gotta run this for 1 week. So be it. Well see if adding uv in display makes a difference today