:( I don't know where the source is coming from

[mike3epanda]

My tank is a disaster right now... I have so much cyano growing all over... I try to vacuum it out of the sand by cyphoning and filtering it out with a sock to the sump.. I get some... but It just grows back the next day... I don't know what else to do.. my last solution is putting E but I did that before and it also killed my good bacterias.. I don't know.. my fish tank is not what I want it to look like right now.. it just looks dirty with all the algae and cyano..

 

[melosu58]

Do these 10 steps and slowly but surely you`ll win the battle.

http://www.fantasyreef.com/database/index.php?p=getitem&db_id=11&item_id=5

 

[Lance M.]

When I had a problem with cyano I used some airline tubing to suck it off the rocks. My problem was I was using tap water. So after about two weeks of siphoning the cyano off the rocks and using DI water it was completely gone. No more problems.

 

[pinkie]

A lot of people (including myself) have repeatedly told you how to get rid of cyano. To get rid of most of it right now, do some large water changes, get some Kent Marine Phosphate Sponge, follow the instructions, use several treatments, and keep the lights off for a week. That plus the things that people have already told you many times should cure the problem. Good luck...

 

[lando]

Sorry hear about your troubles Mike. Cyno is a PITA for sure. It takes a while to form and takes even longer to get rid of. It may take a couple of months of very hard work to rid yourself of this problem. The 10 steps in the link Mike gave are a great place to start. I normally do not advocate the addition of chemicals to fix problems, but in this case I can say from personal experience that I have used Chemi-Clean by Boyd Enterprises, INC. with great success in cyno removal. Keep in that this is only a band-aid solution. It does a great job a removing existing cyno from your tank, but you MUST identify and correct the source or it will just keep coming back. Hang in there...those of us that have been in the hobby for a while have faught the same fight. You can win but it will take work and time.

 

[mike3epanda]

[x]1. Remove Nitrates and Phosphates from the source water by using RO/DI water.

2. Do more frequent water changes. One a week is a good place to start.

[x]3.Manually remove the nuisance via pulling it out by hand, forceps or siphoning.

4. Cut back on lighting, totally blackout the tank for a week or at a bare minimum, cut the lighting time in half.

[x]5. Increase your clean up crew. More snails and crabs are normally a good idea.

[x]6. Reduce the amount and frequency of feedings. Every two or three days will not hurt the fish.

[x]7. Rinse the frozen foods (thaw, pour out water, put in tank)

8. Add a refugium, or if you can't, then consider using fresh macro in the tank.

[x]9. Quit using additives such as coral growers and filter feeding foods. Even though the bottles may say they dont add phosphates and such, they do impair water quality.

[x]10. Get a protein skimmer.



I missed 3... I do about once every two weeks, I dont think I can do the blackout since I now have bta, and I only have a sump... no lighting so I cant really have a refugium..


It started when I put a bunch of LR I bought... It had a tiny dot of cyano, then it spreaded so fast when I siphon the sanbed out at night, It looks the same the next night

 

[Kurt_Nelson]

Looking at the list, it's pretty much ordered by priority. It's not how many off the list you've done, but which ones you've done. #2 up there is a pretty important one. If you're fighting cyano, I'd say once a week is an absolute minimum to start with. I'd bet if you did two water changes a week (20% or so?), you'd make a sizable dent in the cyano, if not eliminate it.

 

[pinkie]

Try cutting back further on some things as well, like number 6, also reduce your lighting if you haven't. 8 hours a day is enough time for the things you have.

 

[mike3epanda]

yea I already set it to about 8 hrs a day

 

[Devilishturtles]

How is water flow in your tank, and do you siphon your sand bed often? Like not just the surface, but push down into the sandbed a little to disturb the top layer. I have found that lower water flow helps contribute to cyanobacteria growth, as does a sandbed harboring yuck. If you don't vaccum your sand, maybe it would be worth a shot.

Also, do you run any sort of carbon or phosphate reducing media in your tank?

HTH

 

[mike3epanda]

yes I have bad flow I think.. maybe running at 500-600 gph.. Im gonna get a good powerhead soon when I get my first check in about 2 weeks, I only have mj1200, mag5 pump return (5 ft of hose) and the powersweep ( so weak i cant even feel it when I put my hands in front of it), I have heard that hydor koralia is a good brand so I'm thinking of getting that... but someone has told me that ph just helps it to not settle on the sandbed. Also, I vacum my sand and it gets mixed around pretty good... the only thing is that a lot of the cyano just sticks to the sand and turns into chunks so I don't really get all of cyano in sandbed. as for the rock, I dont get all of it because my siphon is limited to where & how far I can reach it .. I just started using carbon but I don't think I'm gonna keep doing that..


I think my plan is to get chemi-clean, better ph, and maybe a new skimmer (my seaclone 150 is so not worth the money!) I guess I'm suppose to say this, "I'm sorry, I should have listened when everyone told me to wait and invest my $ for a better skimmer."

 

[lando]

Flow is a good thing to bring up. The amount of flow (gal/hr) is important, but so is the direction the flow is aimed in. Adding more flow is a great idea and finding a good chaotic flow pattern that reaches all area of the tank. Alos, cut back your lighting even more...3-4hrs a day.

 

[JoshsReef]

Am i missing something ! I dont understand why everyone says the seaclone 150 is a horrible protein skimmer. I have one, have not ever had a different brand, but it seems like i have plenty of skimate coming into the collection cup pretty much daily with a small bioload of just two percs and one sixline wrasse in a 75 gallon. My water parrameters all seem to be good. Am i missing something on how to judge a skimmer? I am a little confused about what I should expect out of my skimmer because if my 150 is not doing the job i would like to look at geting something different.

 

[pinkie]

Am i missing something ! I dont understand why everyone says the seaclone 150 is a horrible protein skimmer. I have one, have not ever had a different brand, but it seems like i have plenty of skimate coming into the collection cup pretty much daily with a small bioload of just two percs and one sixline wrasse in a 75 gallon. My water parrameters all seem to be good. Am i missing something on how to judge a skimmer? I am a little confused about what I should expect out of my skimmer because if my 150 is not doing the job i would like to look at geting something different.

I didn't think there was anything wrong with my Seaclone until I got a Berlin skimmer. A lot of stuff you learn from comparing. For example the Seaclone never seemed to skim correctly, it's either total liquid or nothing at all and once I finally did get the right amount, it would need adjusting again within a few days. It also constantly had micro bubbles it spits back in the tank. The Berlin is maintenance free.

 

[JoshsReef]

what do you mean the right amount? i get liquid and foam, seems fine honestly. I guess i will not really know till i try a different product later on down the road. Doesnt really matter what comes out does i? As long as that nasty stuff is leaving the water everything should be good. I dont really have a microbubble problem eithier.

 

[mike3epanda]

yes... If I adjust it to do the job I think is good enough, there would just be microbubbles all over my tank & my waterflow on the skimmer would also be too weak, I think its a good bang for the buck but It definitely doesn't get enough out of my tank. Anyways, Its just everywhere now.. I'm broke right now so can't wait for paycheck next friday to get chemiclean and solve this symptom... ofcourse I would also look for the problem so I might get a couple MJ's or a hydor koralia

 

[pinkie]

what do you mean the right amount? i get liquid and foam, seems fine honestly. I guess i will not really know till i try a different product later on down the road. Doesnt really matter what comes out does i? As long as that nasty stuff is leaving the water everything should be good. I dont really have a microbubble problem eithier.

It's all about efficiency. You can have the waste be really watery but then you'll be emptying it a couple times a day and adding more top off because of it.

 

[saywill]

my seaclone 150 constantly needs adjusting. I cant wait to by a different brand to see the difference. Do any of you guys think Mike is having all these problems because he rushed into the hobby, or just a case of bad luck. I remember when he first joined up, all the pro's were telling him to slow down or you will run into major problems.

 

[mike3epanda]

got my chemiclean.. put it there, its been 5 days, gonna go change the water now.. also got hydor koralia (600gph), hopefully things get better soon..

note: chemi-clean just made it the growth stop & took care of a lot of cyano.. there is still a lot but i will vacuum the rest