Help IDing This Devilry

[13rodo]

Hey everyone, I've been battling GHA for a bit and got it under control. Then this stuff started popping up. My initial thought was my nutrients swung too far the other way and this has to be Dinos. But my Nerites and Tuxedo Urchin are eating it, so now I'm not sure. It's reddish brown, kind of mat-like, and very flowy. Any ideas? Thanks in advance!

Params:

• pH: 8.3
• Salinity: 34.4
• Calcium: 450
• dKH: 8.0
• Magnesium: 1470
• Phosphate: 0.03
• Nitrate: 2.6

 

[TiltedReef]

the fluffiness makes me want to say diatoms but the color makes me want to say cyano. Either way, I found that raising nutrients gets rid of them both. I used to just put 3 big scoops of Brightwell reef blizzard in the column every other day for about 2 weeks, limit water change for at least 2 weeks, and do a few days of blackout (light(s) off and put a towel over your tank). Your corals will be fine with a few days of darkness.

Edit: oh and also siphon out as much as u can. Do not dose Fluconazole or any other snake oil, they don't really work permanently. Just dose some Dr. Tims bacteria if necessary.

Do you have livestock besides the bubble pearl, acro, and snails?

 

[13rodo]

the fluffiness makes me want to say diatoms but the color makes me want to say cyano. Either way, I found that raising nutrients gets rid of them both. I used to just put 3 big scoops of Brightweel reef blizzard in the column every other day for about 2 weeks, limit water change for at least 2 weeks, and do a few days of blackout (light(s) off and put a towel over your tank). Your corals will be fine with a few days of darkness.

Do you have livestock besides the bubble pearl, acro, and snails?

Thanks for the quick reply. Ya there are some torches, frog spawn, zoas, a chalk basslet, yasha goby, pistol shrimp, and emerald crab. I'm assuming they'd all be ok with a couple days of blackout. I did start dosing NeoNitro to slowly bring up the nitrates.

 

[13rodo]

I have some ZeoBak that I'm assuming will work ok for dosing bacteria?

 

[TiltedReef]

Thanks for the quick reply. Ya there are some torches, frog spawn, zoas, a chalk basslet, yasha goby, pistol shrimp, and emerald crab. I'm assuming they'd all be ok with a couple days of blackout. I did start dosing NeoNitro to slowly bring up the nitrates.

Yeah it appears that the nutrients, while they are great baseline numbers, might be too good allowing these scavengers to outcompete your beneficial bacteria and other filter feeders. I would also suggest dosing the reef blizzard or another form of coral foods like reef roids since these add dissolved organic matter to the tank rather than just a an inorganic spike of NO3/PO4 with the neonitro. Allowing your filter feeding sponges, pods, and worms to also outcompete the cyano/dyno or diatoms.

To really source the problem though, does this fluff appear to disappear when the lights go off or when your lights start to dim? If so, def cyano. If not, check your RO/DI water source for silicate seepage past the membrane. Diatoms love silica.

Also, yes the ZeoBak will work, you need to reestablish your bacteria nitro cycle if the majority of them died off to the competition of whatever nuisance "algae" is taking over.

 

[13rodo]

Yeah it appears that the nutrients, while they are great baseline numbers, might be too good allowing these scavengers to outcompete your beneficial bacteria and other filter feeders. I would also suggest dosing the reef blizzard or another form of coral foods like reef roids since these add dissolved organic matter to the tank rather than just a an inorganic spike of NO3/PO4 with the neonitro. Allowing your filter feeding sponges, pods, and worms to also outcompete the cyano/dyno or diatoms.

To really source the problem though, does this fluff appear to disappear when the lights go off or when your lights start to dim? If so, def cyano. If not, check your RO/DI water source for silicate seepage past the membrane. Diatoms love silica.

Also, yes the ZeoBak will work, you need to reestablish your bacteria nitro cycle if the majority of them died off to the competition of whatever nuisance "algae" is taking over.

They stay through the night so I'm guessing that means diatoms. I did add a new dry rock recently so I'm assuming that may be the culprit. I'll double check the RODI too. I'll also switch to a coral food to add nutrients and dose the ZeoBak. Thanks for all the help!

 

[TiltedReef]

They stay through the night so I'm guessing that means diatoms. I did add a new dry rock recently so I'm assuming that may be the culprit. I'll double check the RODI too. I'll also switch to a coral food to add nutrients and dose the ZeoBak. Thanks for all the help!

Ah yeah, the dry rock might have been loaded with silicates that leeched into the water!

 

[13rodo]

I actually decided not to do lights out. My snails and tuxedo urchin were feasting on it, so I figured it's 1) free food 2) it's outcompeting and GHA 3) it'll eventually use up the silicates and die out. :) I did dose ZeoBak and raise the nutrients naturally with some coral food as opposed to NeoNitro. Happy to say it's all pretty much gone now and my rocks look pretty awesome!