Is this normal after using Vibrant?

[TracyLynn]

2nd dose of Vibrant used on Monday 3/16/20. Is this normal to see this covering my sand bed after the 2nd dose?

I’ve ran both of these tests posted here to check if it’s Cyano or Dinos: https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/d...ed-of-battling-altogether.293318/post-4043274

According to my results it’s neither Cyano or Dinos, at least my results are both negative. I’m hoping this is dead whatever it was that was coating the glass (had to clean almost daily), that the Virbrant is doing it’s job.
I should have taken pictures before I started trying to remove & test it.
I don’t want to stir it up too much but I do want to get it out. Thanks so much!

 

[Ajayabb]

Looks like diatoms to me. Others will chime in

 

[Jeeperz]

I'd say diatoms but not 100%

 

[taricha]

I'd put money on dinos. But it's not from the vibrant.
When you did the coffee filter test, did the brown material not go through the filter? (it should) Or did it not re-group after?

 

[Wolters_88]

Looks like diatoms

 

[Braves Fan]

I just wanted to chime in on your thread with what I learned after using Vibrant in my system to rid my tank of some Bubble Algae that popped up ,, it worked great ,, can't complain the down side to my system ,, which really isn't a down side ,, if you are aware of it ,, you can deal with it ,, using the Vibrant got rid of the Bubble algae after dosing the tank with the recommended amount for several weeks ,, it also caused my Chaeto to stop from growing in my system for months after I stopped dosing the tank ,,

What I think happened was that the Vibrant coated everything in my system with a film that took a few months and regular water changes to naturally get it out of the system ,, if I had to do it all over again ,, I would have removed every piece of equipment in my system ,, every piece of plumbing that I could remove ,, power heads ,, pumps ,, skimmers ,, wiped down the sump tank ,, the inside of the display tank ,, give all the rock a soft brushing ,, everything ,, give everything a vinegar bath to remove this film ,, help speed the process of getting the Vibrant out of the system ,,

 

[TracyLynn]

I'd put money on dinos. But it's not from the vibrant.
particles you did the coffee filter test, did the brown material not go through the filter? (it should) Or did it not re-group after?

Well there was some light brown sediment in the coffee filter & some particles in the container, after 15 minutes I saw no sign that the particles were regrouping.

 

[taricha]

Well there was some light brown sediment in the coffee filter & some particles in the container, after 15 minutes I saw no sign that the particles were regrouping.

That behavior makes it sound like diatoms, but the sand looks like dinos to me. So I dunno, guess microscope is needed to be sure.

 

[TracyLynn]

Wow do you know how hard it is to take a picture thru the microscope...
The material was gathered off the top of a coffee filter, as nothing ended up at the bottom of the glass after 15 minutes.
I can’t match my pictures with others I’ve found online. Sorry for the bad quality.

Thanks team!

 

[35ppt]

Definitely not cyano, dinos or diatoms judging by the microscope photos. If you siphon it out of the tank does it come back?

 

[taricha]

The material was gathered off the top of a coffee filter, as nothing ended up at the bottom of the glass after 15 minutes.

That material is unidentifiable - no cell outlines can be seen.
suck up a little bit of the intense brown directly from the sand and get us a microscope shot (pics / vid) of that.

 

[TracyLynn]

Definitely not cyano, dinos or diatoms judging by the microscope photos. If you siphon it out of the tank does it come back?

Yes! Like over night

 

[35ppt]

Yes! Like over night

Try to get another sample like taricha said. Behavior sounds like dinos but I don't see anything in those photos.

 

[TracyLynn]

Trying again, this is hopefully the brown material off the sand. Sorry for the quality, it’s hard to take a video thru a microscope eye whole, plus it’s a $20 point of sale microscope.

Sorry for the delay, a lot to do to get here..
I’ve uploaded 2 videos to YouTube

or


Thanks so much!!!

 

[MicrobeMan]

I too have the exact same or a very similar phenomenon with my sand bed after upping my dose of vibrant. I had no issue and a paper white sand bed before dosing (rocks a different story) but I now have this fast growing brown coat on the sand.

I would wager a pretty firm bet that its Diatoms. One of the major key factors is that it grows quickly during the day but not at all during the night. That's a key tell of diatoms because unlike mixotrophic dinoflagellates, Diatoms can only really grow when there's light. In addition, I've been doing some large volume water changes and they haven't made it better (maybe even worse) which is consistent with silica limited Diatoms getting more silica from the salt mix.

In my limited experience with diatoms, they tend to go away after a while as long as you keep vigilant with sand vacuuming and mix up the sediment a little. Luckily, they don't seem to cause much harm apart from aesthetics so regular vacuuming might be the best bet.

Good luck and let me know if you figure out how to get rid of them!

 

[TracyLynn]

I have come to the same conclusion @MicrobeMan that it is Diatoms. Based on people’s replies, articles I’ve read & how it acts (or doesn’t). At first I was reluctant to stir it up, afraid it would get worse. So I’ll hold off on water changes for a bit & vacuum up as much as I can daily & stir it up!
Thanks again to everyone that replied, your help is greatly appreciated.