Is this what I think it is, ugh.

[Huskymaniac]

Dinos?

 

[Tahoe61]

I do not see the snotty, algae with bubble formation. If you siphon it out how quickly does it reappear? Is there bubble formation along the strands as the lighting period goes on during the day?

 

[Huskymaniac]

It comes back in a day or so. Problem was i was stirring the bed probablly making it worse verses full on siphoning it out. Going to do that tonight. There really arent bubbles but its definitly stringy in certain areas. Its confined to the sand bed only at this point.

 

[mcarroll]

Ok. here's a version of a Dino testing protocol for those without microscope. I think it may be more helpful than flying blind. There's two version: first is just good for telling if you have mostly cyano or not (more helpful than it sounds). 2nd is a modified paper towel test to filter out cyano and distinguish between diatoms and dinos by the regrouping tendency of dinos.
anyway...
Test 1: Peroxide Test - dinos/diatoms don't bubble.
Do you see brown/rust/red colored strings or mats that lessen overnight and strengthen during the day? bubbles during lights on? Odds are 99% it's cyano or dinos. Here's how you can tell if it's mostly cyano...
Suck up some material. I didn't have much to work with, left is cyano, right is a few dinos in debris.

left pic: samples, center pic: cyano, right pic: detritus with Large Cell Amphidinium Dinoflagellates hiding in it. Note how those strands could be interpreted as cyano or dino mucus. Let's find out which...
Add water until you have 100mL of sample, then add 5mL of common 3% hydrogen peroxide.
The cyano starts showing bubbles at 3mL or so, but by 5mL of H2O2 it should become really clear...

All cyano strands developed lots of bubbles. Even the tiny ones. Some start floating up.

No bubble production at the site of dinos. Right pic, the brown patches are dino clumps. Only one very tiny bubble in the center of the pic.

Should be really clear where you have significant cyano present and where you don't.

2nd Test in another post....

 

[mcarroll]

Assuming you're viewing on the website, there's a link arrow right after "taricha said:" in that quote that'll take you back to the main dino thread.

 

[Huskymaniac]

So I just cjecked my phosphates and they were super high at 1.29. Should I hook up my GFO reactor? Pretty shocked they are this high.