Cyano

nlutfi · Jan 12, 2020

I'm having cyanobacteria out break, my tank is about 7 months old (60g cube) I had a small issue with cyano a few months ago but thought it was just new tank growing pains and it went away pretty quickly. But the last few days it has come back pretty bad covering the sand pretty quickly. The only change that I have done is add a few new pieces of dry marco rock (maybe 8lbs) I'm not sure if that could be the cause? My nutrient levels are Nitrate: 8-12 (redsea) Phos: .03 (hannah) I run a fuge and reef octopus 110 classic ss in a trigger 26 sump. I also do about 1.25g daily water changes.

Idoc · Jan 12, 2020

I had a cyano outbreak once before after adding a couple new rocks as well.

Siphon out as much as possible...I use a 1/2" hose and siphon it into a filter sock in the sump in order to keep the water. Then be patient with regular water changes while daily blowing off the rocks with a turkey baster.

I'm not a fan of ChemiClean in newer tanks.

Dan_P · Jan 12, 2020

nlutfi said:
I'm having cyanobacteria out break, my tank is about 7 months old (60g cube) I had a small issue with cyano a few months ago but thought it was just new tank growing pains and it went away pretty quickly. But the last few days it has come back pretty bad covering the sand pretty quickly. The only change that I have done is add a few new pieces of dry marco rock (maybe 8lbs) I'm not sure if that could be the cause? My nutrient levels are Nitrate: 8-12 (redsea) Phos: .03 (hannah) I run a fuge and reef octopus 110 classic ss in a trigger 26 sump. I also do about 1.25g daily water changes.

A few thoughts.

A heavy local growth of cyanobacteria means that it is being well fed.

Some cyanobacteria seem to grow better on an organic nitrogen source than on nitrate.

These bacteria can move pretty quickly towards food and light. A sudden appearance might be a combination of growth and migration. The cyanobacteria to a certain extent could have been around awhile.

Light level and spectrum can play a role in determining the vigor of growth.

Wildly speculating now, maybe the addition of new rock stirred organic matter that is now feeding the cyanobacteria. Did the light level change where the cyanobacteria is growing? Did the circulation change with the new rock placement, such that particulate matter is now accumulating where the cyanobacteria patch is growing? Might also be a coincidence too. The nuisance organism appearance is not a simple phenomenon to explain.

nlutfi · Jan 12, 2020

Ok I did order some chemi clean from brs just to have on hand I have been blowing it off daily but comes back the next day. I also orders some mocrobacter7 to help seed the tank with not good bacteria along with some brightwell xport bio cubes to add to the sump not sure that will help but my nitrates have also been starting to rise.

nlutfi · Jan 12, 2020

The cyano is growing mostly over the sand starting to creep up the rocks a little. Lighting hasn't changed since the tank has been set up, Hydra 26hd using ab+ and aquatic life t5 fixture. My flow is pretty good through out the tank as far as I can tell, using 2 mp10s

Jon Fishman · Jan 12, 2020

nlutfi said:
The cyano is growing mostly over the sand starting to creep up the rocks a little. Lighting hasn't changed since the tank has been set up, Hydra 26hd using ab+ and aquatic life t5 fixture. My flow is pretty good through out the tank as far as I can tell, using 2 mp10s

I get cyno pretty bad, and I run 6 MP40’s. Peroxide is your answer .