Randy's Tank and Learn Thread

[Miami Reef]

I always glue inside the tank and water. Whether the rock is dry or live, it won’t matter.

I always glue on top of coralline — my entire rockwork is covered with it.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

I always glue inside the tank and water. Whether the rock is dry or live, it won’t matter.

I always glue on top of coralline — my entire rockwork is covered with it.

OK, so frag plus glue layers outside tank, then go underwater and press it into place where I want it?

I'm such a mounting newb. lol

 

[Miami Reef]

OK, so frag plus glue layers outside tank, then go underwater and press it into place where I want it?

I'm such a mounting newb. lol

Yes. Exactly. It’s much easier than it looks.

I’d like a full detailed report on your experience. lol

 

[rtparty]

Randy, that looks like dinos forming in the water surface IME. Especially Ostreopsis. Can you put some under a microscope and take pics?

 

[Miami Reef]

Randy, that looks like dinos forming in the water surface IME. Especially Ostreopsis. Can you put some under a microscope and take pics?

I was thinking that, too!

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Randy, that looks like dinos forming in the water surface IME. Especially Ostreopsis. Can you put some under a microscope and take pics?

It might well be. That has concerned me as a possibility.

I don't have a scope, but if it is, any suggestion?

The water surface is not a place where direct competition is likely to be helpful, and I've never heard of folks getting dinos on the water surface, but maybe the undetectable nitrate is encouraging it to thrive elsewhere that then also boosts it at the surface.

I can certainly do a nitrate dump to get it up, and phosphate is (or was) plenty last I looked.

I'd much rather have green algae to deal with.

 

[rtparty]

It might well be. That has concerned me as a possibility.

I don't have a scope, but if it is, any suggestion?

The water surface is not a place where direct competition is likely to be helpful, and I've never heard of folks getting dinos on the water surface, but maybe the undetectable nitrate is encouraging it to thrive elsewhere that then also boosts it at the surface.

I can certainly do a nitrate dump to get it up, and phosphate is (or was) plenty last I looked.

I'd much rather have green algae to deal with.

Ostreopsis dinos send out floaters. I think of them as dino balloons and not the cool kind you get your kid for their 1st birthday...they combine into one balloon and then enter the water column. They stay at the top and make this dino soup mess.

I found them to be more rampant when nitrogen was too low. Zero nitrates being how I determined that.

Scoop some out with tank water into a tight sealing container. Shake them really good so they separate. Place in the window for 15-20 minutes. They should come back together. That is an absolute sign it is dinos IMO.

A UV sterilizer is the quickest and easiest way to get rid of them. Like overnight eradication IME. I would also increase the ammonia dosing. I bet there is a ton of life fighting for it right now. Peroxide dosing may work to knock them back as well but we both know that hydorgen peroxide is indiscrimant in what it "attacks"

 

[Miami Reef]

I don't have a scope, but if it is, any suggestion?

Surly there’s a chemist peer of yours that can lend you one, right?

 

[Miami Reef]

That could be dinos. The color looks closer to dinos than cyano to my eye.
Agree that coffee filter could be useful test here. If, after shaking almost none goes through the coffee filter then it's long stands off cyano, but if good amounts make it through the filter, then it's dinos.
You could also take a sample of that stuff and put it in a little distilled water, and put it in the freezer. If it turns the water pink after it freezes and thaws, then it's cyano but if it leaves the water colorless or copper colored, then it's diatoms or dinos.

That’s some DIY Dino tests at home. It won’t determine the exact species, but it can differentiate between Cyano.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Crap, i think it is looking more like dinos now that i focus on it. I hate to use a uv after focussing on making sure there was a lot of live stuff in the actual water. Live phyto, etc. but I’ll do it if I have to. How much wattage do folks think I’d need?

I gave an extra dose of 0.1 ppm ammonia and will dose some more over the next 24 h. Nitrate comes Thursday.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Surly there’s a chemist peer of yours that can lend you one, right?

Most folks I know don’t keep them at home.

 

[dwest]

Hey Randy, if it were my tank, I’d either shutdown the lighted fuge or at least back off the intensity and/or photoperiod of the lights. I can’t tell if they are dinos or not, but if you decide to go UV then I would get at least 40 watt and probably a 57.

 

[dwest]

If your snails are alive, my bet is not dinos.

 

[Miami Reef]

Most folks I know don’t keep them at home.

You can give them a sample to test. Dinos transport very well.

Would that be an option?

 

[Miami Reef]

If your snails are alive, my bet is not dinos.

It really depends. I’ve had dinos and my snails survived. His (if they are dinos) aren’t in direct contact, so it shouldn’t nuke them.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

It really depends. I’ve had dinos and my snails survived. His (if they are dinos) aren’t in direct contact, so it shouldn’t nuke them.

Well, I’m starting to see some dino looking crap in the display as well. :(

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

How depressing. :(

 

[Reefering1]

When I see dinos, I like to drape a piece of filter floss over a powerhead(in a high light area) and dump some skimmate back into water. The dinos seem to be attracted to the floss very quickly. Rinse it at least once a day, twice is better. Once collection starts slowing down(a week or 2), start blowing off rocks/ sand. Very gratifying to see how much you get out and starts working instantly. Not much to lose trying...

 

[LiverockRocks]

Well, I’m starting to see some dino looking crap in the display as well. :(

Skimming through the posts here, you might take a look at the display lights and decrease them a bit so you can get a handle on what's happening.
I'd address the problematic fuge asap...deep clean and decrease light intensity/duration.

 

[Miami Reef]

How depressing. :(

It’s okay. We can fix it.

The first step is getting the nutrients up.

If you are dosing organic carbon, amino acids, or even phyto, stop for now.

Get an ID to be sure.

If they are ostreopsis, a UV will work wonders. It’s only temporary until your tank establishes.

What’s the total volume in gallons?