Made giant mess in a tiny tank! Any way to save the pods?

[Autumnsky]

I have a glass part only from a 6.6G Edge tank and it sits on a metal stand holding Macroalgaes.

It has a big bunch of Chaetomorpha in about 3 balls, some small live rocks and few pieces of "rubble", with Feather Caulerpa and a variety of flat end Grape Caulerpa (atm can't recall the name), and Prolifera the flat one.

Upon routine pwc I noticed the pale color of the melting of the Grape variety the one with flat ends. I will look for a pic - like this

As I took out water with a plastic cup I saw bits coming off which I have seen before and knew to get it out of the tank.

Got a glove and started to pull it out but underneath were large amounts of mush really. I took out the pieces I could grab, but it left tons of sludge-aceous muck. I added Prime and new water.

Right as I was getting a look into the tank before doing the pwc in the front is a ball of Chaeto and I saw all sizes and shapes of pods swimming around it.

I have been trying to grow them in that tank and wondering if there is a way to suck out the muck and save pods too.

Any good ideas anyone???

Here is a pic of the nice green Chaeto and newer inhabitants the 8 dwarf or baby Brittle Stars. Teaming with pods of all types. Back on the 6th, 12 days ago.

 

[flchamp89]

Muck...not sure. I've used panty hose over end of vac to not get guppy fry

 

[Autumnsky]

I could see guppy or shrimp fry!!! I have method for that.

Only can see/ identify the big pods, the tiny ones are the ones I am worried about.

Darn.

Considering

Option 1

grabbing out the big plant masses and then picking through the rest, ugh, waaaaaaaa!!!!! Cleaning tank and new water and putting that all back in.

If the Brittle stars are still alive I want to save them. There will be such a spike here it would kill them I am pretty sure...or maybe just feed the Chaeto.

There is a decent chunk of money spent there to be able to grow pods. 18. on Tigger Pods back maybe Nov. or Dec. , and $15 on Tisbee Pods and green food a short time back all to make sure the Yellow Stripe & Clown Goby have lots of foods to eat. Plus the ones I already had been growing from the purchased ones before. $15. and under $20.00 mixed Pods a couple years back for this group to get going.

Option 2

Sucking out the muck and scum from the bottom and trying not to bump the Chaeto where there were a bunch/ maybe still alive. Picking out any additional bits and pieces maybe with a open mesh net?? So maybe pods can get out? Maybe?

Do the Pods favor a warm spot or a bright spot to attract them to?

I only have under 2 gallons left of SW in my containers. I can get 20G more tomorrow.

Will runs a couple tests on the water now I guess.

 

[flchamp89]

I missed pods part lol. I was thinking option 2

 

[Autumnsky]

I just moved back a bunch of chaeto and kinda bumped off the silty scum as I moved it towards the back to give me space to vac hopefully away from the pods in the chaeto balls. It is settling again now, when done I will use a tube to vac up the particles.

This is a 6.6G not big but a big mess. :/

Testing soon, in a just a bit, with my other tanks.

 

[Sniperhank]

Just pull the whole thing out and wave it around in the water. The pods will come out.

 

[Autumnsky]

Kinda did that.

I gently but as quickly as I could scooped / pulled out all the Chaeto into a bucket hopefully the pods that were still alive held on.

Then I took cups of water from the tank and put them into a flat tub, like an extra large shoe holder, watched for any Pod movement. Sadly there were almost none, I saw lots of dead bodies of the larger fairy shrimp looking kinds some other tiny ones, lots of muck dead plant particles mixed with the misc crumbs of food and such.

Searched each few inches at a time till I got to the bottom of the tank the last inch and found about 4 larger ones different shapes, scampering and racing around, saved them.

Also adding that the water was poured through a fine net and added to a container of SW for further inspection. Only saw 2 Pods. The muck was studied and swirled looking for movement like I do for shrimp fry but nothing really, 1 and one I never saw again.

Wiped the inside of the tank with a paper towel and rinsed off the outside and about to put back the plants that are left, minus any of the Grape Caulerpa and Feather, will leave the few strands of Prolifera as I haven't had that one melt down on me in the nano DT, just a few pale ends of the leaves.

So I believe this pretty much ends my friendship with the nuisance algaes of the Caulerpa family. Have had a few other near misses but this proves it to me. My head is very hard. I will admit that.

Been over 3 years now.

Probably will move some additional Prolifera to the Macroalgae tank from the nano DT maybe "all" of the parts I can pluck off. Since I know I won't be able to get all of it.

Will not be purposefully adding it to the new cycling 12G. Might be able to skip adding those stones it is stuck on, though it seems to come off fairly easily.

Lost this fight but the battle wages on.