Dinoflagellates??

[Breakthecycle2]

I don't know what I have going on. I thought it was diatoms, but now I don't know. Phosphates test untraceable. Nitrates test under 2. Running Chemipure elite in my filter socks and ROWA in my reactor. 12 small fish under 3", except my mimic tang in a 200 gallon plus sump. Pic below is not mine, but is exactly what it looks like.

 

[Reefing Madness]

Na. That's just a case of bad Cyrano. Just wisp that stuff away, and get higher flow in the tank.

 

[Breakthecycle2]

Even the snot looking crap with a bubble on top?

 

[Breakthecycle2]

here are the best pics I can get of mine. If you expand the picture, you can see the tentacle looking things. I wipe it away and within 2 hours its all back.

 

[Breakthecycle2]

Im so confused. I just did some more reading and it seems like cyano tends to come at the end of cycling, starts as a brown dusting and sometimes is stringy with bubbles trapped in it. Is this true? Thats exactly how it started and looks like.

 

[Reefing Madness]

Yup, just cyano. Just a thick case of it in certain spots, nothing as severe as Dinos, not to worry.

 

[whixley101]

Cyano it is.

 

[Breakthecycle2]

Thank god. Any recommendations on how to battle it?

 

[whixley101]

Water flow in the area of the bacteria

 

[Reefing Madness]

Yup, wisp the stuff away, suck up what you can, get more flow going in that area.

 

[Breakthecycle2]

Has anyone tried chemiclean or Dr Tims Refresh or Waste away?

 

[Jeffys]

Has anyone tried chemiclean or Dr Tims Refresh or Waste away?

Snake oil!!!

 

[Breakthecycle2]

Are you sure? I've done some research, and there's a large number of people that claim chemiclean worked for them.

 

[dadof4]

I've used chemiclean for a severe rapid outbreak, for aesthetic purposes, but Jeffys is correct, it is just snake oil. It takes care of the visible cyano and not the cause. increase flow, look for dead spots, and suck out the visible stuff. That is cyano. Sometimes cyano forms gas underneath that and causes those bubbles. Dinos, and I've experienced them, are very snot like and stringy in consistency and once they start they take off in a hurry.

 

[Breakthecycle2]

I've used chemiclean for a severe rapid outbreak but Jeffys is correct, it is just snake oil. It takes care of the visible cyano and not the cause. increase flow, look for dead spots, and suck out the visible stuff.

So at the end of the day, that's all you can do?

 

[dadof4]

You can also cut down your feeding frequency and light cycle. Manual removal and good water flow work and is the best option but it takes time.

 

[Breakthecycle2]

Well, maybe Im over thinking it, but I don't know what it is anymore. It gets so long so quick and then breaks off from the flow. Its very stringy and medium golden brown to dark brown.

 

[d_adler]

I have a sps dominant tank and had such a bad cyano out break it covered everything in the tank. Starting on the sand working its way to rocks until finally it choked out some corals. I tried everything from gfo/phosguard, skimming wet, syphoning twice a week, and even dosing hydrogen peroxide. After 2 months of battling I looked into dosing Erythromycin. I don't recommend dosing it until it's a last resort. It had no Ill effects on anything (sps,lps, inverts or fish) I dosed at 1/2 recommend dosage and it was all gone in a few days

 

[Breakthecycle2]

But was it stringy with bubbles at the tip?

 

[d_adler]

i guess you have 2 threads going @Breakthecycle2 . yes stringy with bubbles at the tip. bubbles entrapped on the rocks in a slime like mucus with a brown/dark green/red coloring. sounds like cyano. since you've already added medication to the tank it wouldnt hurt to try. make sure to take any carbon out during the process until you are satisfied with the results then run carbon to remove any medications from the tank. normally i wouldnt recommend dosing any sort of medications (NEVER run copper under any circumstances) in the tank but if you've reached that point... go for it