Wow okay this is all so helpful!
Based on what everyone’s said it sounds to me like the best option is to dose Chemiclean, then add some kind of bacteria, and finally add copepods and start feeding phyto for more long-term control. Does this sound right to everyone?
Also, would this package from Algaebarn work? Or should I get a bacteria that more specifically for cleaning you think?
https://www.algaebarn.com/shop/live-foods/combo-packs/ultimate-ecopack/#reviews
Thanks again for all the help!
Regarding the Hydrospace products in the Ultimate Ecopack, I could say a few things as I manage the company and know a little about the those products.
The bacterium in PNS ProBio is
Rhodopseudomonas palustris. You may find it interesting that
R. palustris belongs to the broad group of purple non-sulfur bacteria (PNSB), which actually are ancestors of cyanobacteria. It shares a very similar niche to cyanobacteria in that both are photosynthetic and both can utilize various forms of dissolved organic matter. Both, in fact, are found to occur abundantly on and near corals in the wild. One major difference is that
R. palustris prefers anaerobic environments, whereas cyanobacteria prefer aerobic environments (which is why we typically see
R. palustris and other PNSB growing right under a surface layer of cyano, and perhaps some algae, in Winogradsky columns). Despite each group occupying preferred zones based on O2 concentration,
R. palustris can intrude upon cyanobacteria by secreting certain antibiotics such as streptomycin. In short, based on available scientific literature as well as observations by ourselves and our users,
R. palustris appears to be a very strong competitor of cyanobacteria.
To that end, let's take a look at the heterotrophy of each.
R. palustris readily utilizes organic carbon for growth, whereas most cyanobacteria do not. In fact, some cyano are strictly autotrophic, and many of those facultatively 'heterotrophic' cyano species do not really grow on organics, but only use them to make PHB (a stored energy source, the same sort of stuff biopellets are made out of, actually). Anyway, what this means is that we can target
R. palustris (a highly desirable probiotic bacterium) for growth by dosing acetate (e.g., vinegar), whilst the cyano (a nuisance bacterium) will not benefit from the addition of acetate much if at all. I'll stress that there are many, many species of benthic cyanobacteria that may colonize an aquarium, so these are generalities.
PNS YelloSno, while nominally a coral food, is also a microbial food. It was developed, in fact, as a companion to PNS ProBio in order to support growth of those bacteria as it is rich in B vitamins. It includes the entire B vitamin complex but is particularly rich in B12 (cobalamin). Most living things require cobalamin, which is produced only by a small subset of bacteria and archaea. Cobalamin biosynthesis in marine ecosystems is accomplished by three major groups: chemoautotrophic Thaumarchaeota, certain heterotrophic Proteobacteria and cyanobacteria. As it happens,
R. palustris belongs to the Proteobacteria and can indeed synthesize its own cobalamin (though it actually benefits from other B vitamins in YelloSno). But the cobalamin is noteworthy here because of its involvement in promoting the growth of microbes that compete with cyano. This would be most aquarium microbes, in fact, as most rely on external sources of cobalamin (while cyano does not). For example, many nitrifying bacteria (e.g.
Nitrobacter) can barely grow at all without an exogenous cobalamin source.
So yes, while YelloSno is explicitly formulated for corals (both corals and zooxanthellae require exogenous cobalamin for their survival and health), it can feed the whole food chain from the microbial community upwards. In so doing, it nourishes microbes that depend on cobalamin and other B vitamins, increasing diversity of the microbiome, thereby increasing competitive pressure on cyanobacteria.
While the Ultimate Ecopack wasn't specifically selected for its ability to curb cyano growth
per se, its holistic ecological effect certainly can promote a rich and diverse community of cyano competitors, including the phyto (both the Iso and Thal in OceanMagik are cobalamin-dependent). I hope that all makes sense!
