If I would have known dinos existed I’m not sure I would have gotten into this hobby.

[justinfitts]

This is a super frustrating thread. Running a UV will accomplish squat unless his/her dinos are a type that will be affected. And it doesn't make one bit of difference how many of us in this thread killed dinos with UV. That has no impact on whether it will be effective for them.

The OP already stated that trying so many things and nothing working was reason enough to quit. So the suggestion is to go spend a few hundred on a UV?

What happens when his/her dinos don't respond to UV because they happen to be the ones that UV is useless on? They're just MORE mad with less money in their pocket when they quit?

The thing to do is to slow down, relax and read the "Are you tired of battling altogether" thread that @atnet360 suggested and form a solid plan and stick to it. Maybe the plan will include UV, maybe it won't. But it will certainly start with ID'ing them before spending a bunch more money on that.

Agree!!! Figure out what you are fighting. There are 6 common Dino’s and all of them require a different method for the proper treatment. If you are going to spend any money buy a microscope and learn what they are. The treatment after that can be cheap and simple.

 

[Kingfish83]

I don't know if this group from f.b. was mentioned.. Mack's reef... Dinoflagellates support group

There are PDF files in the group about what you should do for the most common dinos that happen in a tank.

 

[aggrofish]

So much this!!!

Apply the wrong treatment - - > do more harm than good - - > get more frustrated - - > breakdown your tank and sell your stuff for pennies on the dollar.

Or at least blow a few hundred bucks on a UV. Sure youll still have dinos but you’ll be able to see them really well with crystal clear water

 

[justinfitts]

I don't this group from f.b. was mentioned.. Mack's reef... Dinoflagellates support group

There are PDF files in the group about what you should do for the most common dinos that happen in a tank.

Jason is extremely helpful and always responds to questions. He helps you understand the fight and is very knowledgeable

 

[Forty-Two]

Hi. I have Dino's. I take it one day at time.

The Op has already said this - but I dont know if he has DONE it - but you NEED to ID them. I also was in denial for a while, and tried various 'things' to fix my brown snot problem until I faced that I had to look those Dino's in the eye and ID them and figure out how to destroy them.

That wasnt before I talked about quitting though. Once I figured I likely had Dino's - I thought "That's it - I cant do another battle - especially one this big". My wife talked me through that part though and we decided to continue and do the battle together - because it takes time, and energy - both emotional and physical. I hear what the OP is saying and I felt the same thing - it was upsetting to watch my tank be destroyed by these creatures - and all of my hard work go to 'waste'.

There are options though. You can recover. There is an entire large thread on here about beating Dino's.

Some things that worked for me (I have Ostreopsis keep in mind which means UV does work):

- Identifying the Dino's is a first step
- Turning off your skimmer. (You may pay for this later - but now you're battling the Dino's and the skimmer seems to remove much needed Bacteria from the system needed to kill them)
- Find a way to boost 'good bacteria' - this is very important - you need some Live Rock from other sources
- UV Filter (in my case - but not all cases)

There are other things that can be done too - however the results arent always as direct.

Its a complicated battle - but it can be won.

 

[N00bMaster69]

So first official post here but I thought I would share my experience since I just had a run in the last few months and nothing I did fixed it long term. Tried blackouts, peroxide, removing manually, dosing PO4, the works. Also tried vibrant before learning about the whole fiasco with them. Nothing kept it away for more then 2-3 weeks. Everyone talks about live rock not having these issues (I used dry rock) and about other organisms out competing the dinos. Also had recently learned about aqua biomics. Well I figured it wouldn’t hurt giving them a try. Now this is completely anecdotal but after ordering live sand from them and continuing manual removal (just what I could reach during water changes) I saw results in maybe 1.5 weeks time. After a month I can report they were completely gone. It’s now been two months and they haven’t returned! Maybe worth a try?

 

[SecondCityCorals]

We've all struggled with dinos. Your best bet is to read the super long thread all about dinos, identify which species of dinos are in your tank, and take the appropriate action.

If you follow the instructions, dinos can be beat and kept at bay long term.

 

[RoweReef]

I don't know if this group from f.b. was mentioned.. Mack's reef... Dinoflagellates support group

There are PDF files in the group about what you should do for the most common dinos that happen in a tank.

This group, Mack's Reef saved my tank. Follow their instructions and it will turn around. Also, I started adding 2 drops of iodine daily, which really helped. Get an ICP test done.

 

[JustJoan]

I’ve had my tank for almost 2 years now and I absolutely fell in love with this hobby. The first year and a half everything was going great. I was slowly stocking my tank, everything was growing great . My euphillia were dividing and so were my acans. Everything was going so well that I even started shopping around and preparing to get a larger tank, but that’s when the dinos happened.

I had always heard other reefers talking about the dreaded dinos and how awful they were. I thought they just meant they were unsightly like cyano or diatoms. I had no idea they could completely wipe out your entire collection of corals.

I have tried everything during these past 6 months to battle these little beasts but absolutely nothing works. In fact, it only seems to make things worse. One by one I’ve watched my corals slowly die. A tank that used to bring me so much joy as I walked past it now brings me grief.

Before, if there was an issue with my tank I could solve it by tinkering with parameters or lighting, etc. But with these little jerks there’s absolutely nothing you can do. The only coral I have left is a GSP and it might also be dead I just can’t tell because it’s been closed up for so long.

Does anyone know exactly how dinos kill coral? And will my fish be next? For now they seem to be doing fine.

I thought about starting over but the thought of dinos coming back at any time and completely destroying my tank while I stand there helpless to do anything is too much of a risk. I’ll keep trying to fight them a while longer but if I can’t kill them I’ll probably just end up bringing my fish back to the LFS and getting rid of my tank. It sucks because I love this hobby and was always so excited to go buy a new coral and fish, but I can’t do that anymore.

Anyway I’m just wondering if anyone else has gotten to this point but things finally turned around? Any bit of wisdom would help. Thanks

I am right there with you. I have had dinos for 6 months now, thought it was cyano. Treated with chemiclean. Lost 2 fish and a few corals. You must buy a microscope and identify what type you have. I have Large cell Amphididium. some dinos are more toxic than others. Join Mack's dinoflagellate group on facebook. I am following his recommedations now. Dinos are less than they were. I bought a clean up crew to deal with them. The snails that ate them died. The dinoflagellates release a toxin when they die. Currently, I am vacuuming them up daily off the sand and wiping my walls down daily. I take my wavemakers and heater out once a week and clean the dinos off them. But some dinos are more toxic than others, which is why you need to identify. Mine lives in the sand, so uv doesn't help. Some go into the water column at night, so uv kills them quickly. Good luck. And don't quit this awesome hobby because of dinoflagellates! You can beat them!

 

[Dburr1014]

OP, confused now?

So many people have had them and everyone wants to share there stories and leaves the OP more confused then when he first posted.
Buy this, don't buy this, do that, don't do that...
What do we know as fact?

They are on the sand and rocks.
They(some) go into the water column at night.
We do not have an ID yet.

Here's my stance:
UV will be needed regardless of ID. Why? Because they are going into the water column. He has more than one strain.

Hydrogen peroxide is a great tool dosed at night. Dino is inactive and this will weaken them.
Bacteria in a bottle is a great tool also, it builds up the population in the tank.
Never let po4/no3 get to zero again.
Turning off lights, Eh, idk. Didn't much help. Only the strain going into the column. It may help in the beginning of your fight.

OP, please post a pic of full tank and sandbed and rock with the dinos. Extra credit if you get a shot at night after the dinos left said areas. Just turn the light on quick and snap a pic. We will see for sure you have at least one strain.

@taricha is the master of IDing here on this forum.

 

[GarrettT]

This is a super frustrating thread. Running a UV will accomplish squat unless his/her dinos are a type that will be affected. And it doesn't make one bit of difference how many of us in this thread killed dinos with UV. That has no impact on whether it will be effective for them.

The OP already stated that trying so many things and nothing working was reason enough to quit. So the suggestion is to go spend a few hundred on a UV?

What happens when his/her dinos don't respond to UV because they happen to be the ones that UV is useless on? They're just MORE mad with less money in their pocket when they quit?

The thing to do is to slow down, relax and read the "Are you tired of battling altogether" thread that @atnet360 suggested and form a solid plan and stick to it. Maybe the plan will include UV, maybe it won't. But it will certainly start with ID'ing them before spending a bunch more money on that.

Yeah...for real...like 30 posts ago we established that the most important thing OP can do right now is identify the dinos which they agree to do...that should definitely be the first step. Let's all of us just wait for the ID...

Agree!!! Figure out what you are fighting. There are 6 common Dino’s and all of them require a different method for the proper treatment. If you are going to spend any money buy a microscope and learn what they are. The treatment after that can be cheap and simple

As stated….

If you take a turkey baster and force water towards the rock and dinos detach, then you’ll want a UV sterilizer. Regardless, it will have zero impact on the sand. For the sand, you will need to dose silicate.

 

[livinlifeinBKK]

As stated….

I think it would be much better for OP to get an actual ID on the dinos using a microscope and know for sure what type she has.

 

[3429810]

Yes exactly, I think this is what happened. I always had higher phosphates so I never worried about them being low. Then at some point brown started growing on the sand so I checked my phosphates and they were at zero so I’m certain that’s why.

Just want to point something out here. You said you had higher phosphates and after the brown appeared it was zero. Wouldn’t that mean the dinos started with having higher phosphates and most likely consumed them? My opinion on dinos is it happens when the biological filter is disrupted and zero nutrients is a symptom not the cause of dinos.

 

[GarrettT]

I think it would be much better for OP to get an actual ID on the dinos using a microscope and know for sure what type she has.

But why does that matter? We already know he has large cell. He has dinos on his rocks at the top of the tank. Large cell is sand dwelling. Regardless, If you can detach the dinos from the rock, a UV sterilizer will remove it.

https://firsttimemarinekeeperhome.files.wordpress.com/2020/03/dinoflagellateid12_12_2019.pdf

 

[Dburr1014]

Just want to point something out here. You said you had higher phosphates and after the brown appeared it was zero. Wouldn’t that mean the dinos started with having higher phosphates and most likely consumed them? My opinion on dinos is it happens when the biological filter is disrupted and zero nutrients is a symptom not the cause of dinos.

Most likely be hit zero then the brown started.
Dinos take advantage of the situation not make it happen.

 

[livinlifeinBKK]

But why does that matter? We already know he has large cell. He has dinos on his rocks at the top of the tank. Large cell is sand dwelling. Regardless, If you can detach the dinos from the rock, a UV sterilizer will remove it.

https://firsttimemarinekeeperhome.files.wordpress.com/2020/03/dinoflagellateid12_12_2019.pdf

I actually recommended a UV since it's one of the few things he hasn't tried yet but I would still encourage him to get a positive ID to be sure he maximizes his chances of success instead of just trying yet another method of eradication just because it seems like it makes sense

 

[newportreefey]

Dino’s was bearable for me . I just dosed a ton of phyto and upped my feeding and did a lights off period . It’s the bryopsis that made me want to get out of the hobby

 

[msavoy]

Thank you everyone so much for all your help and suggestions, I really appreciate it. You have all definitely given me hope that I can beat this. It seems that I really do need to identify what type of dinos I have have first and foremost and from there I can formulate a plan of attack. I will also check out this Facebook page that many of you have suggested and get some more ideas from there. Now it’s time to go and find a cheap microscope online so I can see what I’m dealing with. I’ll keep you guys posted!

 

[GarrettT]

Just keep in mind, and why I feel identification is irrelevant. Its not that LC's are immune to UV (they don't have armor), it's that they don't voluntarily go into the water column. They embed themselves to the sand, which makes it very hard to force them away. If you have them on your rocks, and are able to move them freely into the water column by blow them off with a turkey baster, a UV will kill them. Regardless, if its on your rocks, you can assume that you have more than one type of dinoflagellates, which UV will treat. We already know he will need to dose silicate for the sand. I had ever type imaginable.

 

[Kingfish83]

PeJason is extremely helpful and always responds to questions. He helps you understand the fight and is very knowledgeable

Yeah best group I found to fight dinos or get just get info.