Phytoplankton and Pods to get rid of and or Control Dinoflagellates

Steve2020 · Jul 9, 2022

I have a small case of Dyno's on my sand bed only. Mack's Reef says it looks like SCA with maybe a little LCA. They recommended dosing Silicates to cause a Diatom bloom to outcompete the Dyno's. I have read some threads that many reefers have had success eradicating Dino's using this method. After doing some more research I found on another site that someone recommended dosing Phyto and bacteria and adding more Pods worked for there tank. They got there recommendation from an Aquaculture company who supplied the phyto and pods.
Her tank size was 165gal and was dosing 50ml of phyto every other day on recommendation. Her tank had 1000 times more Dyno's on her sand bed than I do. So here is the kicker, that same company asked for my tank size and nutrient levels (255gal, NO3 9.6ppm and PO4 0.04ppm) and came back with a recommendation of adding more pods to my tank and get this, dosing 1 cup (236ml) DAILY of phyto. That equates to 472ml every other day. Based on my tank size of 255gal and the other girls tank size of 165gal, to match her phyto dosing I should only be dosing 82ml of phyto every other day. What's wrong with this picture? Am I missing something. In my opinion, if I dosed that much phyto I would think most would not be consumed and die off causing a bloom and one heck of a phosphate spike and crashing my tank. Maybe not crash but Deffinantly not good IMO. I was under the impression that the Phyto dosing standard is 5ml per 20gal or something in that range. Am I not understanding something or is dosing 236ml of phyto daily safe for a 255gal reef tank. My opinion is it is not recommended or safe but I have been wrong before.
Any thoughts on this?

GoVols · Jul 9, 2022

Pods do eat dinos

How 15 Answers Changed the Way I Look at My Tank Forever! 10 Months of Biome Cycling 12 Aquariums

In this live presentation at Reefapalooza New York 2022, Ryan shares the results and draws some insightful conclusions from our 10-month investigation of the reef aquarium biome.

www.bulkreefsupply.com

Steve2020 · Jul 9, 2022

GoVols said:
Pods do eat dinos

How 15 Answers Changed the Way I Look at My Tank Forever! 10 Months of Biome Cycling 12 Aquariums

In this live presentation at Reefapalooza New York 2022, Ryan shares the results and draws some insightful conclusions from our 10-month investigation of the reef aquarium biome.

www.bulkreefsupply.com

Yes I understand that but 1 cup a day? Sounds like a lot.

gbru316 · Jul 9, 2022

GoVols said:
Pods do eat dinos

How 15 Answers Changed the Way I Look at My Tank Forever! 10 Months of Biome Cycling 12 Aquariums

In this live presentation at Reefapalooza New York 2022, Ryan shares the results and draws some insightful conclusions from our 10-month investigation of the reef aquarium biome.

www.bulkreefsupply.com

I just listened to that today. Coincidentally, I’m dealing with either a cyano or Dino problem. I’ll know tomorrow once my microscope arrives.

I subsequently placed an order for 64 oz of eco pods from algae barn. 28000+ pods for my 40b. I’ve got a small population of tisbe pods, these should supplement them well. And I’m sure my scooter blenny will be thrilled.

Steve2020 · Jul 9, 2022

Steve2020 said:
I have a small case of Dyno's on my sand bed only. Mack's Reef says it looks like SCA with maybe a little LCA. They recommended dosing Silicates to cause a Diatom bloom to outcompete the Dyno's. I have read some threads that many reefers have had success eradicating Dino's using this method. After doing some more research I found on another site that someone recommended dosing Phyto and bacteria and adding more Pods worked for there tank. They got there recommendation from an Aquaculture company who supplied the phyto and pods.
Her tank size was 165gal and was dosing 50ml of phyto every other day on recommendation. Her tank had 1000 times more Dyno's on her sand bed than I do. So here is the kicker, that same company asked for my tank size and nutrient levels (255gal, NO3 9.6ppm and PO4 0.04ppm) and came back with a recommendation of adding more pods to my tank and get this, dosing 1 cup (236ml) DAILY of phyto. That equates to 472ml every other day. Based on my tank size of 255gal and the other girls tank size of 165gal, to match her phyto dosing I should only be dosing 82ml of phyto every other day. What's wrong with this picture? Am I missing something. In my opinion, if I dosed that much phyto I would think most would not be consumed and die off causing a bloom and one heck of a phosphate spike and crashing my tank. Maybe not crash but Deffinantly not good IMO. I was under the impression that the Phyto dosing standard is 5ml per 20gal or something in that range. Am I not understanding something or is dosing 236ml of phyto daily safe for a 255gal reef tank. My opinion is it is not recommended or safe but I have been wrong before.
Any thoughts on this?

The Aquaculture company just emailed me back and gave me a better understanding, They were basing there dosage recommendation on my tank size and because I have a large filtration capacity. Also told me that I can add less if I want and work up. Also said they dose a half of cup daily on some of their 50gal tanks and the pods consumed it all with no increase in nutrients. Think I will give this a try.