Cyanobacteria in tank with breeding fish.

[Billsgate]

I didn't know whether to post this in planted or sick fish section.
I have a 30 [acronym:b125a2436a="Gallon"]gal[/acronym:b125a2436a] tank with 2 keyhole cichlids who are currently guarding their eggs. Now I went to my [acronym:b125a2436a="Local Fish Store"]lfs[/acronym:b125a2436a] today to get a remedy for the cyanoblue bacteria that was starting to grow since about a week ago. The guy told me to keep the lights out for 3 days and treat with the med (something European, you wouldn't know it :P ).

My question: Can I treat my tank for cyanoblue bacteria while my keyhole cichlids are guarding their eggs? Or do I wait till they (maybe) hatch? Or do I not treat if there is fry?

[acronym:b125a2436a="Thanks in Advance"]TIA[/acronym:b125a2436a]

[flamingonhot]

i would wait till they hatch first and keeping the lights out wont really do anything to help control it

[travis simonson]

Actually, keeping the lights out is the best way to rid your tank of cyanobacteria. It's a time tested and proven method. A three day blackout (tank covered, no lights, no feeding, 50% water change before and after blackout) should get rid of your cyanobacteria and won't cause any harm to the fish. No medication should be necessary to get rid of the outbreak, blackouts work almost 100% of the time vs. [acronym:f9ded2c823="Cyanobacteria"]cyano[/acronym:f9ded2c823]. I have done it several times myself and can attest to this method as being the easiest and safest way.

[malkore]

antibiotics should always be the last option for cyanobacteria. dead spots in the tank (no water circulation) will typically be the location for [acronym:cd70fdfc35="Cyanobacteria"]cyano[/acronym:cd70fdfc35] patches.
some say too low of nitrates is what allows it to show up.
but many agree a 3-5 day blackout (100%) is the best course of action. I'd only feed the fish once during this period.

[Billsgate]

Thanks for the advice. My keyhole cichlids ate their eggs (it were their first eggs), so now it's okey for me to treat the tank.
I'll try the blackout method first. I hope my plants can recover from that. I don't know about low nitrates, it is possible that I don't have any/enough of them, since this tank has mainly fast growing stern plants in it. So, I'll feed my fish once more, change 30% of the water, cover the tank, wait 3-4 days, change 30% of the water again, and voila?
Anyways, that's how I'm going to try it. Gives my fosh some time to recover from 'giving birth' as well.
It is indeed in a dead spot that the [acronym:aad58cb674="Cyanobacteria"]cyano[/acronym:aad58cb674] has started to grow. I may add a sponge-filter in the near future to get rid of most dead spots.

And the antibiotics I'll keep for if it get's worse. I was thinking about it yesterday, and antibiotics would completely kill off my nitrifying bacteria as well, right? And all the other beneficial ones.

[BrianNY]

I can tell you from my personal experience that the 3 day blackout works. The BGA never returned. The plants will bounce back and the fish can easily go 3 days without being fed.

[travis simonson]

Antibiotics (such as Erythromycin, sold as Maracyn) used against BGA have little or no effect on your nitrifying bacteria, fortunately. They can, however, have negative effects on the other life in your tank - both fish and plants - and, like Malkore said, should only be used as a last resort. A three day blackout has always worked for me. Just make sure to cover your tank well so that no outside light gets in. And try to maintain temps of 77F or below as algae tends to do better at higher temps. Good luck

[Billsgate]

Okey, blackout starts from now. Will let you guys know if it cleared up in 4 days.

Since you are all saying that the antibiotics aren't really necesairry, I guess my [acronym:573b3aedb4="Local Fish Store"]lfs[/acronym:573b3aedb4] just made some easy money. But it wasn't that expensive, and I'll keep it. It's antibiotics, shouldn't go bad overnight, and may still come in handy one day.

Thanks for the advice all.

[malkore]

I failed to mention that if you do have to treat with antibiotics, a half dose a day, for 7 days, should be more than sufficient.
make sure the tablet doesn't land on a plant, as it'll kill that part of the plant (I know travis had that happen to a patch of riccia, had a quarter sized spot that was killed, but filled back in quickly enough).

[Billsgate]

The guy at the [acronym:ab01d5ae3e="Local Fish Store"]lfs[/acronym:ab01d5ae3e] told me to dissolve the tablet of antibiotics in a liter of water and then add it to the tank, so it shouldn't be a problem to my plants.
I'm glad I have a knowledgable [acronym:ab01d5ae3e="Local Fish Store"]lfs[/acronym:ab01d5ae3e].....it's a couple who are in their 50's who run it. They have kept and bred almost any type of cichlid that is commonly available before they started their shop. So they must have had all possible problems that can come up in a tank themselves. The fact that he didn't tell me to try the blackout method first, I can't blame him. He has to make some sales as opposed to advising everyone to try things that don't require anything they sell
It's a bit strange not to look at my tank for that long a period, I normally check on it several times a day and now I haven't been able to look for a day and a half yet. But I hope it works