Refugium Help

[Checkitout]

I have a 30g refugium that has been set for a while and I'm getting cyano all of the rocks, glass, and sand in it. Should I worry about this? If so how can I fix it?

 

[46gReef]

What are your water parameters? What's your water change schedule? Are you seeing it in your DT as well as your fuge? Cyano IME is usually caused by excess nutrients, a lack of flow or a combo of the 2......if there's none in your DT then it may be a flow issue, get rid of all that you can, do a decent size water change & add a PH in your fuge to increase circulation......

 

[Checkitout]

Salinity-1.026, ph- 8.2, calcium- 450, mag-1300, alk- 9. Yes I am seeing cyano in my DT, but I know it not flow problems. I have 2 ecotech mp 40 on a my 105g. I change my water every other week and I change out 25g at a time.

 

[46gReef]

Nitrates? Phosphates? What's your water source? Is your tank fish heavy? What's your feeding schedule? How much, what, how often?

 

[beaslbob]

I have a 30g refugium that has been set for a while and I'm getting cyano all of the rocks, glass, and sand in it. Should I worry about this? If so how can I fix it?

Cyano can get it's nitrogen from dissolved nitrogen gas.

So what can happen is a tank can become nitrate limited. Because nitrates are reduced by both algae action and anoxic/anarobic bacteria action. When nitrate limited the algae also slows down consuming phosphates so even more phosphate is available for the cyano.

The cyano then steps up by consuming the nitrogen gas and the refugium (and even the entire system for that matter) can rapidily switch over to being cyano controller.

One easy way to reverse that process is to simply kill the lights for a few days so the cyano dies off. Which returns nitrates to the system and the algae can then be in control again.

And after than then adjust your lighting to where cyano is held at bay and the algae thrives.

Some even bump up nitrates by dosing. But that is more "touchy" and debated.

my .02

 

[Checkitout]

N- 0, p- 1. Water is filter from my tap water through my ro unit. TDS- 1, Feed every day due to a ick outbreak. I really dont have alot of fish.

 

[beaslbob]

If nitrates are unmeasureable and phosphates 1, then I would kill the refugium lights and display light for a few days to see if the cyano dies off. the resume with 1/2 duration lighting. Hopefully you will find the right duration where your macros are growing and cyano is not.

my .02

PS eventually you may have to actually clean the refugiums but then most people don't see it anyway.

 

[Checkitout]

But by killing my lights for a few days I worry about hurting my sps. Wouldnt that hurt them?

 

[46gReef]

Have you tested your ro for PO4? It could be something in the tank leeching it into the water but I would make sure it isn't your water source.....how old are the membranes in your ro/di system? I would still do an H20 change remove as much of the cyano as possible & run some GFO to get rid og that phosphate which is just fuel for the cyano.....IME lights out doesn't do too much for cyano but that's just my experience, cyano usually starts because of excess nutrients & then is fueled by light but again can usually be traced to a nutrient problem.....here's a link wiyth some info: Cyano, Cyanos, Cyanobacteria, Blue-Green Algae, Algae, Red slime Algae, Slime Algae, Slime, Undesirable algae

 

[46gReef]

I run a 3 day lights out cycle every few months on my tank w/o any issues whatsoever, I do it to keep excess algae growth down, if you think about it there are times in the ocean that the sun may not be out or the sky is overcast for days at a time, it isn't always sunny..........lights out may help but I don't think it will solve your problem......

 

[RBursek]

It could be your fuge lights have shifted there spetrum, most of us use cheap tubes, PC and do not pay attention to there age. I had Cyano in my fuge with PC curly ques changed them and it went away but non in the DT.

 

[beaslbob]

But by killing my lights for a few days I worry about hurting my sps. Wouldnt that hurt them?

Possibily

But not as much as a cyano controlled tank depriving the sps of nutrients.

Here is a thread where a local with an heavy sps tank tried the lights out:

https://www.reef2reef.com/forums/f183/hey-h-rry-fighting-cyano-24538.html

I believe cyano is caused by excess nutrients, probably from overfeeding. The excess nutrients combined with a good source of light produce cyano. The short answer to the problem is to correct the source of excess nutrients. If it is an obvious case of overfeeding that would be simple. More often though, this is a condition that has built up over a period of time and it seems to me that the excess nutrients have infiltrated the rock and sand bed so a shutdown of feeding does no immediate good. Cyano will not grow without the energy from a good souce of light. What has worked for me is a three day blackout. Turn off all the lights for three days. On the 4th day turn the actinics on. On the 5th day go back to your normal lighting regime. Quite often you will need to wait about 10 days and repeat this procedure. This has been quite effective for me.

Many people will tell you that more flow will cure cyano. I don't buy this. Many times when I have had a cyano outbreak it was well established in the overflow box. This is the highest flow area of the tank.

I think this is just another example of people repeating what they have heard from the "experts". But again, it's Saturday night and I have been taking my medication for the evening so what do I know?

Good luck Beelzebub!

Sure it's about the nutrients, sure flow, sure all types of stuff.

But even h@rry was skeptical at first. At a local meting he stated "surely it cant be as simple as killing the lights". But it was. And just as people warn here the cyano came back in a few weeks. So he killed the lights again. The sceond time the tank ran for over a year with no return of the cyano.

I think also he had the problem after adding chaeto to the system but I could be mistaken on that. So perhaps the chaeto got the nitrates down along with the bacteria. Hence excess phosphates. then cyano.


my .02

 

[46gReef]

IDK, I've battled cyano in the past & had no luck with lights out....worth a shot though......what type of macro do you have growing in your fuge?

 

[Checkitout]

IDK, I've battled cyano in the past & had no luck with lights out....worth a shot though......what type of macro do you have growing in your fuge?

I have Caulerpa

 

[beaslbob]

I have Caulerpa

You might try harvesting it every week. Like cut it back to 1/3 to 1/2 or so.

Caulerpa can go sexual if you kill the lights. But agressive harvesting can keep the growth up and starve the cyano of phosphates.

I have tried lights out with caulerpa and not had a sexual problem. But introducing a new caulerpa to a low nitrate system did result in cloudiness. once.

my .02