What is Causing My Cyano?

[dwest]

Alright thanks, I will dose at my usual 4:00 and test before and after to see what’s going on here. There’s a lot of users for a refugium and I don’t quite understand the benefits of getting rid of one but I’ll look into it. I actually have a UV sterilizer currently running it’s the green machine 120 sterilizer or something but it sounds like I could use a bigger one. I’m gonna get a salutary nitrate test kit to more accurately measure the nitrate levels.

The algae in a lighted fuge removes both nitrates and phosphates. Removing the fuge might allow those levels to rise.

Green machines can help if they are large enough (about 1 watt of UV per 3 gallons of water) and placed where it is getting water from and returning back to the display tank. Also, only some types of dinos are effected by UV.

 

[PBnJOnWheat]

Awesome, so I have been increasing my nitrates and phosphates with neonitro and neophos. I haven’t been able to increase either above 0 and the whole idea is to outcompete Dino’s with other algae forms aka chaetomorpha. I’m not sure if my Chaeto is even growing at this point either but I’ve stopped my protein skimmer to help with the process. My corals are extremely happy and I think I’ve cleared most of the Dino’s however I have a different algae/bacteria of some sort. It’s not sticking to the corals however it is growing mainly on the Rock and I’m paranoid of yet another issue having seemingly cleared my last one.

 

[dwest]

Awesome, so I have been increasing my nitrates and phosphates with neonitro and neophos. I haven’t been able to increase either above 0 and the whole idea is to outcompete Dino’s with other algae forms aka chaetomorpha. I’m not sure if my Chaeto is even growing at this point either but I’ve stopped my protein skimmer to help with the process. My corals are extremely happy and I think I’ve cleared most of the Dino’s however I have a different algae/bacteria of some sort. It’s not sticking to the corals however it is growing mainly on the Rock and I’m paranoid of yet another issue having seemingly cleared my last one.

Yes, that’s gonna happen. You are going to grow algaes and other stuff more quickly now that nutrients are getting higher. But they are all better than dinos. eventually you will back off of nutrient addition then you’ll have a good balance that will include dino competition. That’s when I would add lots of algae grazers.

 

[PBnJOnWheat]

Yes, that’s gonna happen. You are going to grow algaes and other stuff more quickly now that nutrients are getting higher. But they are all better than dinos. eventually you will back off of nutrient addition then you’ll have a good balance that will include dino competition. That’s when I would add lots of algae grazers.

Awesome awesome!!!!! So what do you recommend I get for algae grazers? I have almost any snail you can imagine with plenty of them sadly with wrasse you know how it goes... but what do you recommend to mainly now outcompete the other algae and such? But eventually it should stable out? Should I slowly decrease dosing? Or continue this endless phosphate nitrate addition game? My tank probably isn’t stocked completely which is partially to blame.

 

[dwest]

With nutrient addition, I recommend dosing and testing frequently. Eventually you will get in a rhythm and won’t have to test as often. Then at some point you will likely be able to stop. I believe I dosed phosphates for a couple of months then was able to stop. Now my phosphates and nitrates stay measurable without any additions almost 2 years later. My nuisance algaes are mostly gone, but not completely.

So you have a wrasse that eats snails? What kind of wrasse is it?

If your tank is large enough I would have bristletooth (kole, etc) tangs and yellow and or purple tangs. If your tank is too small, then snails, small hermits (some say these eat snails too), fighting conchs, and some types of urchins are good grazers too.

 

[MichaelReefer]

I too have this problem. I get some Cyano, never on the rocks, always on the sand. No matter the fact I'm running GFO, high flow, Carbon and a refugium, it still appears. I am at the point where every few months I do a quick run with Chemiclean and start all over.

 

[ScottB]

Tanks will go through cyano phases as the nutrients are out of balance with the other biodiversity. Quick scanning of your message sounds like you are almost sterilizing the system with 0 nitrates, 0 phosphates, chemiclean, GFO, peroxide scrubbing, etc... This may be your downfall in this scenario. The items you are doing are causing big fluctuations in the nutrient levels that aren't being given the opportunity to stabilize...which leads to cyano. A young tank needs these things to mature properly and go through the stages.

I've been there and tried to keep out all algaes out of my tank in the beginning...biggest mistake I made! You have created a great scenario for a dinoflagellate infestion, in my opinion. You don't want to go there, believe me! Worry less on chasing the numbers...get the nitrates and phosphates to a regular, stable number...ie: 5-10ppm NO3, 0.05-0.1ppm PO4... You can start this process by stopping the GFO...then seeing what your numbers are at. After this, then you will see where you need to dose to get these numbers where you want them to stabilize. Then, sit back and watch the tank progress...adjusting slightly as needed with CUC additions, pod additions, regular water change schedule while vacuuming the sand, etc...

+1 On all this. When you manage too sterile & add volatility, bad things happen. Dinos are next.

Even when correcting go slow. Our animals, plants and organisms live in 1000s of trillions of gallons. Things change slowly there.