Cyano Nightmare

can we get a pic of the tank? a pic can help weed out the dead spots in the live rock

 

I sorta feel that cyano, like diatoms, are a rite of passage for the new tank. You mentioned your Nitrate was at 20ppm, I think that may be your culprit. The cyano is feeding on Nitrate also so I bet your level is higher than that. How stocked is your tank, how often do you feed?

I fought red slime for about 2 months. I had bought Boyd's Chemi Clean initially to dose but hesitated. I then started taking the advice of other reefers and began figuring out what the source of the nutrients that was fueling the cyano was. I was thankfully able to get rid of all red slime naturally and now that my nutrients are in check I don't believe it will ever return.

Dosing chemicals to fight cyano can be like a "band aid". You will get much better piece of mind when you find out what is the cause of the cyano and along the way you will gain better tank husbandry IMO.

Here are a few things I did to rid myself of the red slime:

- use RO/DI water only, that tests at 0 TDS
- cut back on your feeding, I went from once a day to every other day
- rinse any frozen foods prior to feeding (in RO water if you can)
- ramp up circulation in any dead areas of the tank
- pick out any clumps of red slime you can (use baster/siphon/tongs)
- double your water changes to keep Nitrate down
- thoroughly clean out all powerheads/skimmer/filters etc.
- make sure your bulbs are still good
- make sure your tank isn't overstocked
- run a phosphate remover (I use a reactor with Chemi Pure Elite)

It seems like a lot of work, but it's much better getting rid of it naturally then wondering when it may come back if you dose with chemicals.

Cyano frustrated the heck out of me so don't lose hope (I did a few times, wanted to scream), it will go away, just be patient, best of luck!

 

Check the TDS on your RO/DI water. And when was the last time you replaced your carbon/sediment/DI filters?

My RO/DI started creeping up from 1-2 TDS, and that's when my algae is getting out of hand.

 

Unfortunately I do not have my own RO/DI filter. I have been getting it from a local pure water shop her in my town. I have never thought of testing their water and I am starting to think I should.

Also, I think I should start doing more water changes (small one every other week) instead of once a month.

Food cannot be the problem because I cut back to every other day. Flow could POSSIBLY be the problem, but like I said, I am getting red slime in a corner with direct power head flow (the sand literally gets moved). I have no clue where my damn nitrates are coming from...lol. Its funny beause I feel like I had an easier time with my smaller tank.

The tank is about a forty gallon stocked with one clown, 5 chromis, cleaner shrimp, a few various softies, and a cuc (few emeralds, turbos, turbans).

 

Do you feed frozen & do you rinse prior to feeding. I noticed a dramatic change when I started rinsing my frozen food cubes in RO or even tap water. The gunk trapped in those cubes is really nasty.

Also you can cut back on your light cycle, I went from a 10hr cycle, dropped down to 6hr and then came up an hr at a time as things got better.

 

Ya within the last month I started rinsing my frozen cubes too in tap. I just do it in my net.

Seems like a good idea to cut back the cycle too and do the increase by an hour bit.

How long should a good light cycle be just outta curiosity?

 

just churn up the temperature to about 88 for about week. most of your coral will bleach and some may die, but your cyano will be no more. I had a really bad case of the red stuff untill i left town and the house got stupid hot, corals are looking better now though after i got the temp back down. Aiptasia seem to love the heat thought fyi...

 

I think generally 8hrs is good, I have a 30min pre & post dawn/dusk cycle and it's 8 total and things are happy.

IMO the turning the temp to 88 is much too drastic a measure, you can beat this naturally, without harming any of your livestock or corals.

 

+1 against the temp spike. What little coral I have is already too much of a risk to try that out. Not to mention my bubble that cost me about ninety bucks.

So eight hours huh? I guess it is possible that my lighting cycle may be a little too long and have something to do with it then...

I also forgot to mention that for some reason I feel like the Sealab no. 28 that I was using had a lot to do with the cyano. Like I said this cyano outbreak just started about a month ago and I was trying to figure what I had changed up since then...the only thing I could think of is the Sealab. Also, a couple of the blocks fell off their normal spots on my rockwork and on to the sand and I noticed a good deal of cyano growing around them after bout a day. Any link between the Sealab and the cyano you think?

 

Dumb question, what is the Sealab, is it an additive? A really long light cycle will def help the cyano grow quicker. It's all about nutrients, it feeds off an excess of something, be it Nitrate, light, Phosphates, etc.

My cyano headache started when my blue linkia starfish died and I didn't know it. It rotted in the tank and it spiked my AM and NA. The upswing of NA in my system began the red slime cycle. I was testing 20ppm of NA & thought all stabilizing, but not realizing that the cyano was feeding on the excess NA over the 20ppm I was testing. Because I kept testing at that level I was confused why the cyano wasn't going away. I'm sure it wasn't helping that I didn't rinse my food and my powerheads/skimmer did need a good cleaning too.

I have done really well running Chemi Pure Elite in my reactor also, I love that stuff. The combo of carbon + PO4 remover is great.