Dino creeps back after carbon dosing

[loweryphil]

So here's the dilemma. My nitrates are 35/40ppm and phosphate is 0.25. The system is 525L so large water changes take a while. The dinos go away, but then as soon as I carbon dose to bring down the nutrients, they start to creep back on the sand, a slight dusting. Forcing me to turn my UV back on and bubble scrub/ stir the sand.

Avoiding bio pellets and any carbon dosing is a given now, but how else can I strive my nutrients down and avoid dinos coming back?

 

[MnFish1]

So here's the dilemma. My nitrates are 35/40ppm and phosphate is 0.25. The system is 525L so large water changes take a while. The dinos go away, but then as soon as I carbon dose to bring down the nutrients, they start to creep back on the sand, a slight dusting. Forcing me to turn my UV back on and bubble scrub/ stir the sand.

Avoiding bio pellets and any carbon dosing is a given now, but how else can I strive my nutrients down and avoid dinos coming back?

Stop carbon dosing - and keep doing water changes... - or - decrease your carbon dosing.

 

[loweryphil]

Bio pellets have been removed. Uv and bubble scrub turned back on. Hopefully they will go away again

 

[Acrofiend]

Dinos feed off carbon dosing, no phosphates and water changes.

 

[lelandmarine]

Are they primarily on the sand?

 

[loweryphil]

Are they primarily on the sand?

At its worst they were everywhere, but I hadn't seen them in weeks until I turned my biopellet reactor on and I have a light dusting on the sand in a few areas, so it was time to act fast.

 

[schuby]

Have you confirmed the light dusting is dinos with a microscope? I'm asking because maybe it's not dinos but something else such as diatoms.

 

[loweryphil]

Have you confirmed the light dusting is dinos with a microscope? I'm asking because maybe it's not dinos but something else such as diatoms.

No I have not put them under a mic, I believe they are because they reappear when I carbon dose. I had them pretty bad at one point. See pic. I just fall soft and carbon dose thinking they won't come back.

 

[loweryphil]

No I have not put them under a mic, I believe they are because they reappear when I carbon dose. I had them pretty bad at one point. See pic. I just fall soft and carbon dose thinking they won't come back.

 

[vetteguy53081]

Carbon dosing is likely allowing Dino to feed. Coral foods and NoPox will do this also .
Check your phosphate and nitrate to assure levels aren’t elevated
Blow loose with a turkey baster. It will capture and clean more surface area. Here is full program:
Prepare by starting with a water change and blow this stuff loose with a turkey baster and siphon up loose particles.
Turn lights off (at least white and run blue at 10-15%) for 5 days and at night dose 1ml of hydrogen peroxide per 10 gallons for all 5 nights. If you dont have light dependent coral- turn all lights off.
During the day dose 1ml of liquid bacteria (such as bacter 7) per 10 gallons.
Clean filters daily and DO NOT FEED CORAL FOODS OR ADD NOPOX as it is food for dinos.
Day 5,, you can start with blue lights - ramping up and work your white lights up slowly

 

[zalick]

Why do you want to bring down your N and P? Were you having algae issues?

 

[loweryphil]

Why do you want to bring down your N and P? Were you having algae issues?

35/40 nitrate and 0.25 phos. Yeah slight bit of hair algae and film algae. Although I can live with this if it means no dino.

 

[richiero]

So here's the dilemma. My nitrates are 35/40ppm and phosphate is 0.25. The system is 525L so large water changes take a while. The dinos go away, but then as soon as I carbon dose to bring down the nutrients, they start to creep back on the sand, a slight dusting. Forcing me to turn my UV back on and bubble scrub/ stir the sand.

Avoiding bio pellets and any carbon dosing is a given now, but how else can I strive my nutrients down and avoid dinos coming back?

imo your no3 is to high look for another method to constantly remove nutrients from you system like a cheato, cheato reactor algae scrubber. I had great results with nitrapohs minus once I dialed in the dose my system has been rock steady.

 

[loweryphil]

Understand its high, although nitraphos is a form of carbon dosing. Cheato it is.

 

[zalick]

35/40 nitrate and 0.25 phos. Yeah slight bit of hair algae and film algae. Although I can live with this if it means no dino.

I went ULN to try and prevent any visible algae....then boom dinos! Good luck!

 

[Diver4242]

Carbon dosing is likely allowing Dino to feed. Coral foods and NoPox will do this also .
Check your phosphate and nitrate to assure levels aren’t elevated
Blow loose with a turkey baster. It will capture and clean more surface area. Here is full program:
Prepare by starting with a water change and blow this stuff loose with a turkey baster and siphon up loose particles.
Turn lights off (at least white and run blue at 10-15%) for 5 days and at night dose 1ml of hydrogen peroxide per 10 gallons for all 5 nights. If you dont have light dependent coral- turn all lights off.
During the day dose 1ml of liquid bacteria (such as bacter 7) per 10 gallons.
Clean filters daily and DO NOT FEED CORAL FOODS OR ADD NOPOX as it is food for dinos.
Day 5,, you can start with blue lights - ramping up and work your white lights up slowly

VetteGuy - for the above advice, are you saying to just keep the tank lights off, and regular room lights are ok, or are you saying do a complete tank wrap/blackout for five days? Thanks.

 

[shred5]

Carbon dosing usually increases bacteria. I would guess you have cyano and not dinos.
Looking at your pic it is a little far but it looks more like cyano. Looks like it has a red tint.
Is it redish or brown?

 

[vetteguy53081]

VetteGuy - for the above advice, are you saying to just keep the tank lights off, and regular room lights are ok, or are you saying do a complete tank wrap/blackout for five days? Thanks.

Either works- blackout best

 

[vetteguy53081]

Carbon dosing usually increases bacteria. I would guess you have cyano and not dinos.
Looking at your pic it is a little far but it looks more like cyano. Looks like it has a red tint.
Is it redish or brown?

Carbon dosing fuels cyano and Dino. Last thing you want to do. Dino although golden brown can also be reddish brown

 

[frankny]

I went ULN to try and prevent any visible algae....then boom dinos! Good luck!

agreed!! i will def keep it what it's, let macros takinng care of it, slowly bring it down, don't dose any carbon at this moment, also don't drop your nutreits too low, cuz dino will take adventage of the situation of zero nutreints. good luck!