Hopefully Normal Algae Outbreak? Confirm My Logic!!

[Hallowhead]

Howdy,

I have fought Dino's for a very long time and finally I've been free for a month now. When I finally beat Dino's my nutrients shot up to roughly a little higher than what they were before my tank bottomed out - probably a result from all the nitrates & phosphates I dosed to elevate my levels... anyways. My phosphate has been ~ .1 & my nitrate are 50 ish ppm since dino's were eradicated. When I came home from work today I saw a little brown algae slime if you will growing on the substrate my first instinct goes to dino's due to the way it looked.. immediately tested my parameters to see if tank bottomed out to which it's still very much so elevated nutrients.

My question is: Can dino's grow in elevated nutrients? or only at bottomed out nutrients?

My corals have been struggling to recover from the nutrient swings from Dino's and suffocation and I am so on edge about the tanks current condition.. I am eager... patient and ready to be booming again just need some wise words.

 

[brandon429]

Need pics

yes for sure we see dinos in all conditions high and low

one thing that is left out of dinos assessments in relation to nutrients is the degree of mistesting in the hobby
we hardly know what anyone’s real nutrients are, we r all ball parking
online posts show a fifty ppm nitrate spread between major brands. There are Red Sea vs api posts showing fifty ppm results diff on same tank.

 

[Hallowhead]

Need pics

yes for sure we see dinos in all conditions high and low

one thing that is left out of dinos assessments in relation to nutrients is the degree of mistesting in the hobby
we hardly know what anyone’s real nutrients are, we r all ball parking
online posts show a fifty ppm nitrate spread between major brands. There are Red Sea vs api posts showing fifty ppm results diff on same tank.

I have filtered the substrate through a filter sock to remove any algae or detritus so no picture atm Also it was so miniscule I couldn't have captured on camera earlier... I am paranoid right now and in high alert hence why I caught it and filtered immediately. I was trying to find something stating that dino's can grow in high levels.. can you link me?

 

[vetteguy53081]

No certain conditions. but one thing is for sure: The main source for dinoflagellates growth is light. Dinoflagellates are photosynthetic which means they grow and multiply using a light source. The reason why they are so hard to get rid of in reef tanks is because of our corals; they also need light. If you cut the lights for two weeks, you will most likely get rid of the dinoflagellates problem, but you will also kill most of your corals in the process, especially sps corals which are very delicate.
Dinoflagellates are single-celled photosynthetic organisms. They are widespread in nature with over 2,000 different types of dinoflagellates found in marine and freshwater environments. In a marine setting, they are causes of red tides, which is what happens when dinoflagellates release their toxins into the water. Any fish or invertebrate that encounters this red tide usually gets wiped out. It’s very toxic. In a reef tank setting, they are also toxic to most invertebrates, killing a lot of our snails and hermit crabs. If growth exceeds out of control, it can also be toxic to fish.
Also when you get dinos- You want to Stop adding coral foods, NoPox or vodka dosing which is food for dino. They hate high PH, but so does coral.

​

 

[Hallowhead]

I am wondering if I ever truly got rid of them.... my sand bed was crystal white again I felt so good. NOT jumping to any conclusions.

At one point my phosphates reached .5 ppm to which I added chemipure blue to lower it back down.. as mentioned it's about .1 ppm now and I am comfortable with that number, but I wonder if the super high phosphate sprung it to grow back.

I am going to take it one day at a time at this point and filter substrate when I see a big growth.

 

[brandon429]

You probably made good ground on the matter, dinos are tough for anyone, can u post pic of your current setup in white lights

 

[Hallowhead]

You probably made good ground on the matter, dinos are tough for anyone, can u post pic of your current setup in white lights

First time in a while I have looked at my tank in only whites. Let me know what you think... ignore the ten thousand vermatid snails

 

[brandon429]

Very very nice

Edit —I got two threads mixed up we are working a sand replacement thread too lol, removed my prior post




this reef here has the nicest live rock I’ve seen and I can’t see any dinos, you’re solved lol. The reef above looks how 100% of aquarists want their reef and sand to look in every case


that live rock is nicer than mine and I’ve crafted mine sixteen years straight care and poking, really good surface area there, the maturity of the rocks is repelling dinos nicely

 

[Hallowhead]

Very very nice

Edit —I got two threads mixed up we are working a sand replacement thread too lol, removed my prior post




this reef here has the nicest live rock I’ve seen and I can’t see any dinos, you’re solved lol. The reef above looks how 100% of aquarists want their reef and sand to look in every case lol


that live rock is nicer than mine and I’ve crafted mine sixteen years straight care and poking, really good surface area there, the maturity of the rocks is repelling dinos nicely

Tank is almost 1.5 years old at this point.

Very very nice

Edit —I got two threads mixed up we are working a sand replacement thread too lol, removed my prior post




this reef here has the nicest live rock I’ve seen and I can’t see any dinos, you’re solved lol. The reef above looks how 100% of aquarists want their reef and sand to look in every case


that live rock is nicer than mine and I’ve crafted mine sixteen years straight care and poking, really good surface area there, the maturity of the rocks is repelling dinos nicely

You should have seen the rock covered in coralline algae and not dang vermatid snails Thank you though... I agree the sand bed is sparkly but I am worried tomorrow when I come home I will see the slime again! Time will tell - I will keep this thread up to date.

Btw I saw your first post and didn't really know how to respond... then clicked reply and I was replying to something different than what was posted and I took a hot take at my water to ensure it wasn't beer... hahaha

 

[taricha]

I was trying to find something stating that dino's can grow in high levels.. can you link me?

If you read the materials and methods sections of papers talking about our problem dinos, ostreopsis, prorocentrum etc. you'll find they are grown on laboratory growth media - far richer in nutrients than any reef tank.
Of course dinos can grow under replete nutrient conditions, but those are clean dino cultures. If you mix the dinos with other things, like a natural sample, and put it under the strong growth media - many things other than dinos grow much faster and dominate the culture.
And that's what we mean when we say dinos typically "need low nutrients" to take over a tank.

 

[Hallowhead]

If you read the materials and methods sections of papers talking about our problem dinos, ostreopsis, prorocentrum etc. you'll find they are grown on laboratory growth media - far richer in nutrients than any reef tank.
Of course dinos can grow under replete nutrient conditions, but those are clean dino cultures. If you mix the dinos with other things, like a natural sample, and put it under the strong growth media - many things other than dinos grow much faster and dominate the culture.
And that's what we mean when we say dinos typically "need low nutrients" to take over a tank.

So now I gotta hope I nip it before it gets and and get these nitrates and phosphates downn

 

[brandon429]

T i had not seen it stated like that before, nice one.

 

[Subsea]

If you read the materials and methods sections of papers talking about our problem dinos, ostreopsis, prorocentrum etc. you'll find they are grown on laboratory growth media - far richer in nutrients than any reef tank.
Of course dinos can grow under replete nutrient conditions, but those are clean dino cultures. If you mix the dinos with other things, like a natural sample, and put it under the strong growth media - many things other than dinos grow much faster and dominate the culture.
And that's what we mean when we say dinos typically "need low nutrients" to take over a tank.

@Hallowhead,

Yes, dinos & cyno will grow at high nutrient levels. As pointed out above, higher forms of organisms feed on or outcompete dino; which is a type of phytoplankton.
I don’t think those N & P numbers are so high, it depends on what’s in your tank. In my high nutrient macro lagoon, I grow sponges & sea apples.