IM EXT 50 - photo dump!

[Arkayology]

Update time! So, I have diligently UV sweeping the sand, running my green killing machine 24/7, removing filter floss, and cleaning the glass every day for a week now. The dusting of brown that was mainly Prymnesium parvum on the sand, rocks, and glass is going away. My corals are slowly opening back up at varying speeds and the few snails that i still have are showing signs of improvement. I think this is the way to deal with this situation, but I have no idea if the Prymnesium parvum will come back to dominate the tank or not. I am still running GAC for the related toxins from these things, which I need to change out today (7 days of use). I am not out of the woods yet, but there are signs of improvement. I just need to get other things (i.e., algae, bacteria, whatever) to grow in numbers and outcompete these things now. Hopefully the three chunks of rock from local reefers will add some things that I was lacking. Slow improvements nevertheless.

Bad cell phone pic from Friday - notice the rock from a local's tank with all the hair algae. I wanted this to try to get it to spread. I would LOVE to have to deal with hair algae and not Prymnesium parvum!

 

[Arkayology]

I'm returning the Green Killing Machine and purchasing a Sicce UV-C 13w. I need larger wattage to help with this problem. Should I put it in-line with my return or use a pump to control the flow?

 

[TheLegendaryBarlowe072]

I'm returning the Green Killing Machine and purchasing a Sicce UV-C 13w. I need larger wattage to help with this problem. Should I put it in-line with my return or use a pump to control the flow?

If you get a pump you can control the exposure time to more acurately target Prymnesium parvum.

 

[reef-rc]

I'm returning the Green Killing Machine and purchasing a Sicce UV-C 13w. I need larger wattage to help with this problem. Should I put it in-line with my return or use a pump to control the flow?

If you use another pump, make sure most of the water returns to the tank instead of just circulating in the sump, as that won’t be very beneficial.

You might want to go with a slightly bigger UV, not just for now but as a long-term tool for your tank. Unlike an oversized skimmer, which isn't always ideal, a larger UV can be useful since you can turn it off when not needed.

 

[Arkayology]

If you use another pump, make sure most of the water returns to the tank instead of just circulating in the sump, as that won’t be very beneficial.

You might want to go with a slightly bigger UV, not just for now but as a long-term tool for your tank. Unlike an oversized skimmer, which isn't always ideal, a larger UV can be useful since you can turn it off when not needed.

You think that 13w is too small? I was thinking it would be fine. Maybe I will get a larger one in the future. We will see how this one does with my Prymnesium parvum problem. It should be here Tuesday.

 

[reef-rc]

You think that 13w is too small? I was thinking it would be fine. Maybe I will get a larger one in the future. We will see how this one does with my Prymnesium parvum problem. It should be here Tuesday.

For a 60G tank, I’d have thought a 15-25W UV would be more appropriate for water clarity and algae control. I’m only familiar with Pentair and Lifeguard, but I checked the specs for Sicce; it looks like it could be effective.

 

[Arkayology]

For a 60G tank, I’d have thought a 15-25W UV would be more appropriate for water clarity and algae control. I’m only familiar with Pentair and Lifeguard, but I checked the specs for Sicce; it looks like it could be effective.

I have approx. 50g in the system, but point taken. This is the first time in 15 years of reefing that I have ever used a UV, so I am a bit uncertain of size/wattage. I guess we will see how this goes with the 13w that I bought. Thanks for the advice.

 

[Arkayology]

Update!

Things are improving. I received the 13w Sicce UV-C with a Sicce silent 1.5 on Tuesday and set up. It's only 48 hours in but I am already noticing a difference. There is noticeably less brown dust (the Prymnesium parvum) on the sand and glass. I am also seeing less brown being caught in the filter floss, which usually took only 24 hours to be saturated with brown dust that smelled awful. The zoas are also opening up slowly and I see some new algae growing on the rocks. I attribute the changes to the addition of the UV sterilizer as well as the UV sand sweeper, which I have been using daily for 2-3 weeks. I will continue to use it for another week or two and consider stopping if things continue to improve. I guess UV was the way to go to resolve the Prymnesium parvum issue.

These pics may not be of super rare or interesting corals, but if you have been following this story then you know it is a big deal to have the corals opening up after 3 months.

Leather I got from a local.

Rastas

Random zoa

Another one that I don't know the trade name (don't really care tbh) but I like the colors of)

Sicce 13w UV-C doing a great job after only 48hr online.

Sump shot. I mounted the brackets for the UV-C to a piece cutoff piece of wood flooring, drilled a couple holes in the wood, and used zip ties to attach it to the center back brace on the stand. It holds it just fine. I have never used UV in my 15 years of being in the hobby, but I am seeing why people like it. I will probably run the UV for 2 or 3 months constantly to ensure that the Prymnesium parvum are sufficiently reduced in number. I am not sure if I will ever be totally rid of them - it could be like dinos where we all have them, but they only become a problem when the conditions are right.

 

[TheLegendaryBarlowe072]

Update!

Things are improving. I received the 13w Sicce UV-C with a Sicce silent 1.5 on Tuesday and set up. It's only 48 hours in but I am already noticing a difference. There is noticeably less brown dust (the Prymnesium parvum) on the sand and glass. I am also seeing less brown being caught in the filter floss, which usually took only 24 hours to be saturated with brown dust that smelled awful. The zoas are also opening up slowly and I see some new algae growing on the rocks. I attribute the changes to the addition of the UV sterilizer as well as the UV sand sweeper, which I have been using daily for 2-3 weeks. I will continue to use it for another week or two and consider stopping if things continue to improve. I guess UV was the way to go to resolve the Prymnesium parvum issue.

These pics may not be of super rare or interesting corals, but if you have been following this story then you know it is a big deal to have the corals opening up after 3 months.

Leather I got from a local.

Rastas

Random zoa

Another one that I don't know the trade name (don't really care tbh) but I like the colors of)

Sicce 13w UV-C doing a great job after only 48hr online.

Sump shot. I mounted the brackets for the UV-C to a piece cutoff piece of wood flooring, drilled a couple holes in the wood, and used zip ties to attach it to the center back brace on the stand. It holds it just fine. I have never used UV in my 15 years of being in the hobby, but I am seeing why people like it. I will probably run the UV for 2 or 3 months constantly to ensure that the Prymnesium parvum are sufficiently reduced in number. I am not sure if I will ever be totally rid of them - it could be like dinos where we all have them, but they only become a problem when the conditions are right.

I super excited for you that things are starting to improve. :beaming-face-with-smiling-eyes:

 

[Arkayology]

Things are still looking better, but I have not eradicated the toxic algae. I looked a sample of water from the sand under the microscope and I still see a good number. I think their numbers fluctuate a lot based on nutrients. I still UV wand the sand daily. I think I will be managing these things for awhile. Hopefully they will die off at some point.

I got some easy SPS tester pieces last week and they are still alive.

 

[Anna K]

Following along!

 

[Arkayology]

Following along!

It's great to have you along for the ride!


I picked up a diamond sand sifting goby (Valenciennea puellaris) to move the sand around a little. The idea here is whether the goby eats the algae or not (probably not, as the goby eats zooplankton and not algae), it still sifts the sand and *hopefully will kick the Prymnesium parvum into the water column.

I am getting more bold. Since my green slimer, pearlberry, and pink tabling frags are encrusting, and I am seeing coralline algae in the rocks and glass, that things are still under control. The Prymnesium parvum may be like dinos in that they never truly go away but are managed as long as nutrients are OK. Interestingly, I have been dosing quite a bit of P04 to keep my levels above 0.0-0.02. I want to keep the levels a little higher ~.08 or so just to make sure there is enough available for the corals and bacteria. Maybe the Prymnesium parvum are also being fueled by the P04 dosing?

Pics of frags to come once they color up a little more!

 

[Arkayology]

I have six SPS pieces in the tank currently - three for about a month and another three for two weeks. I am seeing signs of growth, especially basing out onto the frag plugs. PE hasn't been great on most pieces, but that could be a trace element issue. I'm pretty happy that I have coraline growing everywhere and the SPS are doing their thing.

Pearlberry

Green Slimer

Cali Tort

Pink tabling acro. This one isn't looking super great, but I do see signs of growth.

24k milli

Red planet

 

[Arkayology]

I thought I was out of the woods, but the Prymnesium parvum are back. Light dusting on the sand bed. Microscope ID confirms not dinos.

 

[Anna K]

Dang, I'm so sorry to hear that @Arkayology

 

[Arkayology]

Dang, I'm so sorry to hear that @Arkayology

Thanks. I'm starting to think that I will have to remove the sandbed... maybe all of the rock.

 

[Arkayology]

I removed half of the sand from the tank. I will take the other half in a day or two. I am going to give taking the out a try to see if that help reduce or eliminate the toxic algae. I know that there are a lot more of these things in the sand than in the water column. What I don't know is if they are also in the rocks or not.

 

[Arkayology]

Most sand is out. I need to finish grabbing some small random piles under rocks. I looked at a sample of mulm/fine sand dust under the scope and I had significantly reduced numbers of Prymnesium parvum. We will see if no sand high flow will finally kick these things out. I hope to be able to put some back in by the end of the summer.

PE extension has been poor lately.

 

[TheLegendaryBarlowe072]

Most sand is out. I need to finish grabbing some small random piles under rocks. I looked at a sample of mulm/fine sand dust under the scope and I had significantly reduced numbers of Prymnesium parvum. We will see if no sand high flow will finally kick these things out. I hope to be able to put some back in by the end of the summer.

PE extension has been poor lately.

How much of a pain was it taking out the sand? Im really considering removing all of mine. Just to swap it to Caribsea Hawaiin black.

 

[Arkayology]

How much of a pain was it taking out the sand? Im really considering removing all of mine. Just to swap it to Caribsea Hawaiin black.

It was very annoying. I started out using a pint glass to scoop out the areas I could get at. I then used my fish net to dredge the bottom to get the rest. I have maybe 1-2 pint glasses worth of sand left under the rocks. I want the rest out, but it was such a pain to remove the bulk of it... I may just leave the little bit in and see how things progress.