cyanobacteria

[chimera]

i have yet again, dark red cyanobacteria on the rocks and sandbed. im sick of this stuff, i just cant seem to get rid of it. i had it several months ago and dosed (1/2 the recommended dose) of anti-red which seemed to get rid of it - or so i thought. my tank is only 80 gallon and i know its overstocked (bought it 2nd hand already with fish and LR) and so am moving to a 140 gallon tank (or 260 gallons with refugium and sump) in the next couple of months. the cyano appears quickly and then disappeared off and on for a few months. this time its on the rocks as well so is a pain to get rid of. i have a deltec 1060 skimmer (rated at 260 gallons) and appears to be working well.

i have read huge amounts of info on the web about cyano and the main cure seems to be physically removing as much as possible then doing several and more frequent water changes over a period of several weeks. i do have high nitrates (because of overstocking) and a small level of phosphates but ive also read that cyanobacteria is the only type of algae that is not directly related to high nitrate levels. if this is true, how come this stuff keeps popping up? i added an aquamedic nitratereductor a week ago to assist in reducing nitrates until i get the new setup (although have to wait 6 weeks or so apparently before it starts making any effect)

im keen on getting the new tank / refugium and sump setup as quick as possible to maximise biological filtration and get back to normal stocking levels. anyone else whose had cyano and can throw in their 2 cents worth would be much appreciated!

[Overstocker]

Phosphates seemed to be my cause. I got rid of the phosphates with some phos absorbing stuff and used Chemi-clean, Boyd Products, to kill off the algae (worked in 24 hours). So far so good. The Chemi-clean is awesome stuff but it screws up your skimmer until you do water changes.

[Nitrate]

I fought Cyano for months, then one day it was just gone. **poof**
Wish I knew why, but have no idea

[chimera]

using the salifert phosphate test kit, i get a reading of about 0.20 ppm of phosphate. not high at all but still some. i think i actually read with cyano is that it is always in your tank, even if you "appear" to have got rid of it. it only takes one little slip up and it will propogate around your tank real quick. i must admit i missed a week water change and with my stocking levels, the water chemistry got outta whack pretty **** quick i've been building a "sump room" for all my equipment directly under the floor that the main tank is on. cant wait to get this complete so i can get the new larger tank in!!!

[seaham358]

I have also read that waer flow and lighting spectrum can help bring on cyno. How old are the bulbs your running and how is the flow in the tank. I get it from every once in a while in my low flow areas when my bulbs need to be changed. After I change out the bulbs it goes away.??????? Strange stuff.

[chimera]

Good point, only using fluoro's at the mo, getting some MH's tomorrow. Hopefully they'll help. Cheers.

[MadManMac]

I have battled Cyano for several weeks, and I finally thought about the MH bulb. I bough the cheapest one I could in the beginning, and now 6 months later I think the spectrum had shifted because when I put the other bulb in the cyano was gone in about 3 days. I am going to upgrade to a higher quality bulb and stay on top of it going forward. Spending a little money now saves a lot of stress down the road.

[SquishyFish]

The one point that everyone has missed so far is that cynobacteria is not an algae....its cyno-BACTERIA. It cant be treated like a type of nussiance algae. The only artificial means of treatment on the market reported to treat the cyno with no detrimental side effects is "Red Slime." Its a yellow powder that is very effective at killing off the cyno. But if the cause is not addressed at the same time it will just return.

Another aspect of the "bacteria" factor................What is it that converts ammonia to nitrites and then to nitrates? Thats right...bacteria. Any guess what is very likely to happen with most of the treatments when you dose a chemicle that is designed to kill bacteria?

Just a little food for thought.

[seaham358]

IMO I would only use a chemical in my tank as a last resort. From what I've read its the spectrum not the intensity of the light. Let us know how you make out with the new lighting.

[chimera]

get the MH's end of the week so hopefully that will help, will post when i try 'em. in the meantime, i found this article on cyano which is perhaps the best article i have found so far

http://netclub.athiel.com/cyano/cyanos2.htm

Very informative and takes a good neutral approach, is well defined and easy to understand. I certainly learnt a thing or two, might help someone else.

interestingly, i had a chat to a few friends with tanks on another forum about cyano. everyone that uses NSW has or has had it. everyone who used ASW has never had it. i would imagine this is more coincidence than anything else, but how about everyone else? have you had a bad case of cyano and have only ever used ASW?