New to nano reefs

[AllSignsPointToFish]

My wife picked up a 7.5 gallon all-in-one for $100. It came with rocks, sand, three small clownfish, lights, a few snails, and a pump. Even though it was in poor, poor condition (lots of GHA), there were three corals that actually survived (I did not know this at the time since they were obscured by GHA). I can't actually believe there was anything alive in the tanks since it smelled like cigarette smoke inside and out!

Anyway, after cleaning off as much GHA as I could, washing and rinsing the rocks and sand, and several water changes, the GHA is gone. Now, I have a terrible cyanobacteria outbreak. I run a small skimmer, but I can't seem to get the cyano to go away. I tried come ChemiClean, but that only served to tick off the corals. I assumed that the issue was leaching phosphates and nitrates from the rock, but when I tested I actually have zero phosphates and 1-3 ppm nitrates.

How do you guys control cyanobacteria? I have the circulating pump operating at full speed (it's a DC pump...very unexpected for a tank of this size), but even the smallest powerheads I have turn the tank into an aquatic cyclone.

I have a nice 125 gallon reef with a 55 gallon sump, so I'm used to being able to do more things with a tank than I can with an all-in-one of this size. I'm kind of at a loss, but even though I don't like how the tank looks, the corals are loving life right about now.

Thoughts?

 

[gfd71]

I would just hit it with chemiclean and work on the nutrients from there.

 

[AllSignsPointToFish]

I guess I'm at a loss as to how to work on the nutrients when they are already in the low range. I'd also hate to lose these survivor corals as they absolutely did not appreciate the ChemiClean the first time I tried it.

 

[Pbh-reef]

As someone with a 10 gallon reef My answer is to simply go slow and steady with a good maintenance rhythm. Vacuum the sand during weekly 10% water changes, dose 2 part or a 1 part if alk and cal drop enough between water changes, turkey baste cyano off the rocks and use filter floss to catch it, change the floss often. Think of this as taking months not weeks if the situation is really bad. You may have to feed more to raise nutrients, but your nutrients are probably suppressed the cyano and hair algae that’s probably not totally dead. A rainford goby can also help keep cyano and hair algae in Check. Sand burying snails like cerith and nassurius can also help

If you use chemiclean make Sure the tank is super well oxygenated a day before (as much surface agitation as possible) and during.

finally it’s not what you asked but 3 clowns won’t work in such a small tank. I don’t even think 2 or 1 will long term.

 

[Pbh-reef]

Also consider posting this question on nano-reef.com for other folks’ perspectives.

good luck!

 

[AllSignsPointToFish]

As someone with a 10 gallon reef My answer is to simply go slow and steady with a good maintenance rhythm. Vacuum the sand during weekly 10% water changes, dose 2 part or a 1 part if alk and cal drop enough between water changes, turkey baste cyano off the rocks and use filter floss to catch it, change the floss often. Think of this as taking months not weeks if the situation is really bad. You may have to feed more to raise nutrients, but you’re nutrients are probably suppressed the cyano and hair algae that’s probably not totally dead. A rainford goby can also help keep cyano and hair algae in Check. Sand burying snails like cerith and nassurius can also help

If you use chemiclean make Sure the tank is super well oxygenated a day before (as much surface agitation as possible) and during.

finally it’s not what you asked but 3 clowns won’t work in such a small tank. I don’t even think 2 or 1 will long term.

Thanks! The clowns right now are really small. I know I'll have to do something with them eventually, but right now there's plenty of room.

I've been doing the turkey basting, and the nutrients have been suppressed as there's literally no GHA present and nowhere it can hide in a tank that small

I have to say that I'm rooting for the tank inhabitants! They've been through a lot, so I really don't want to do anything to lose them. It would be cool to look back in a year and see them thriving!

 

[Pbh-reef]

Also if you used chemiclean and it had no impact on the cyano it could be Dinos you’re dealing with

 

[AllSignsPointToFish]

Also if you used chemiclean and it had no impact on the cyano it could be Dinos you’re dealing with

It's not dinoflagellates. I'm pretty sure it's cyanobacteria because it comes off in sheets (mostly) with a turkey baster and is less prevalent when the lights are off. I'll just keep attacking it with the baster and see if I can make progress