kasik64
Active Member
Hey guys. I've been fight this for a month or more now. Can't get it to stop growing. I clean it up in my water change but it comes right back. What should I do?? And what the heck is it?
Red stuff....algae, cyano?
- Thread starter kasik64
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Thats is cyano bacteria.
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kasik64
Active Member
Thanks guys. Going to get a strip that controls am and pm lights. Hoping that I can cut down my tank hours since I work 10-12 hour shifts and can't be here to turn them off sooner.
Good to hear from you again salty.
Good to hear from you again salty.
Good to see ya back around!
Tank look pretty good except the red carpet is a bit garish.
Chek your flow to and make sure it's not dropping junk in that spot.
Double check your water source. And fwiw. I had a heck of a time with black sand the One time I used it too.
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kasik64
Active Member
Someone suggested moving my powerhead to create a horseshoe motion towards my filtration. Going to try that. Turning off the lights 2 hours earlier than I do helped too. Should I treat it or will it go away?
IMO, if everything else is in line, you can treat with chemiclean with no problembs.
Me, I like to figure stuff out and the why its there.
beaslbob
2500 Club Member
first of all do a manual cleanup to get most of it.
then kill the lights until the rest dies off.
Then resume with less lighting and adjust to where the good stuff thrives and the uglies stay away.
then kill the lights until the rest dies off.
Then resume with less lighting and adjust to where the good stuff thrives and the uglies stay away.
paulojbsilva
Community Member
+1 on cleaning up all you can, and give the tanks a few days of lights off. And of course controlling the nutrients.
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kasik64
Active Member
How do I got about doing that?
I've done this before, killed the lights, cleaned the tank, etc. just comes back. Don't know what is causing it.
Your on Rodi? Do you clean out the back of the aio? Whats your PH? What do you feed the tank? What are your No3/Po4 at?
beaslbob
2500 Club Member
You didn't adjust the lighting after those things.
Also a refugium with macro algea or an algae turf scrubber will help.
What can happen is the tank may be "nitrate starved". Cyano gets is nitrogen from nitrogen gas. Killing it off returns that nitrogen to the cycle nitrates to feed algae and corals.
So you have to get a new balance where the nitrates and phosphates are being consumed by corals and algae not the nitrogen gas and phosphates being consumed by cyano.
This is very common in tanks that have ran great for 6 months to a year. Once the cyano pops up it starts taking phosphates from the algae and corals. And it can be a real pain.
my .02
beaslbob
2500 Club Member
Most people DIY refugiums but you can buy commercial units also.
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kasik64
Active Member
Any tips or ideas for that?
With good water and decent light, there is another thing that uptakes nutrients from the water, reduces co2, and produces O2.
beaslbob
2500 Club Member
You can use 1/4 plastic grid (egg crate) sold as lighting diffusers for dropped ceilings at home supply stores. A 4'x2' section is like $11 or so.
then make a box, partition the tank so you have fish on one side and macros on the other, or as one guy in the diy section did make a cheato sandwich.
Another idea is to use a storage container and make as refugium/sump. But that's more complicated, requires plumbing, and the addition of a return pump.
my .02
