Tank Journal Archive

[Nicksy23]

Thought we'd just pop and update in for a few reasons.

1. Release some major frustration as the tank is experiencing some serious Cyano issues.
All over the rocks and the coral sand base. It is doing our heads in and we have read all the varied forums on how to get rid of it but continue to struggle to do so.
ChemiClean had a crack and looked like maybe it would get the job done but just didn't quite.
We've now increased the flow in the tank and will try again but not confident.
Everything else looks fantastic and the corals all throw the Cyano aside and look fantastic (minimum Corals in the tank)

2. Maybe someone feels sorry for us and say here do this and it is a no brainer. Oh and by the way heres a $10k worth of aquarium equipment as we are moving on from the hobby. HA HA HA

Speaking of giveaways, we are looking for TUNZE high powered power heads. Anyone selling just give us message. Using the old noisy power heads at the moment and the neighbours are complaining lol

Anyway we will not be defeated by this.
Cheers

 

[Agent M]

I have faith in Chemiclean. Giving it a second shot sounds like a good idea.

 

[Sam Parker]

Ouch, that is a bad case!!!

Feel free to not answer (I know what it's like if you have explained yourself fifty times already and then someone asks the same questions.... But I want to help!)

What water are you using?
What water for top off?
If RO, is it from your own filter?
If so, how old are the filters/membrane
What are your parameters?
How long have they been stable at that?
How long has the tank been wet?
How much do you feed?
How long do you lights run for the ach day?
What flow do you have in the tank?

Cheers!
Sam

 

[Nicksy23]

Ouch, that is a bad case!!!

Feel free to not answer (I know what it's like if you have explained yourself fifty times already and then someone asks the same questions.... But I want to help!)

What water are you using?
What water for top off?
If RO, is it from your own filter?
If so, how old are the filters/membrane
What are your parameters?
How long have they been stable at that?
How long has the tank been wet?
How much do you feed?
How long do you lights run for the ach day?
What flow do you have in the tank?

Cheers!
Sam

Hi Sam
I recently changed to using water from SARDI water and i am feeling maybe this is my issue. If i am being honest i am not the most thorough person when it comes to checking water parameters. Lesley who posts on here also uses the water and she is the opposite of me and claims the water is all clear.
Top Off is RO/DI unit with DTS measure and levels are zero
Changed the membranes fairly regularly
Parameters have been steady for coming on a year and half although the recent water changes have been more regular as they are easier now with my water change set up. Using SARDI water from an IBC
Tanks been wet for coming on 2 years
Feeding less and less but i have an auto feeder APEX twice a day minimum feed smallest pellets and i feed miso and green once a day at the most. Get busy and miss the guys sometimes but my thoughts are less is better.
Lights are Radions and run for max colour but just reduced from 75% to 45% as that may have been as issue
Flow varies as i have always wanted more and been using shitty old flow pumps from 1970. Recently upgraded to two tunze pumps and they are now getting the flow going. Still using the shitty old noisy wake the neighbour pumps also and only recently cranked the flow after reading some online forums.

I love the questions as they seem to be aiming at what i have also been reading.
More flow
Less light
Water changes might be killing me (what was in the IBC that has hurt my tank) I need to check the SW levels rather than risking it.

Appreciate any advice

 

[Nicksy23]

Ouch, that is a bad case!!!

Feel free to not answer (I know what it's like if you have explained yourself fifty times already and then someone asks the same questions.... But I want to help!)

What water are you using?
What water for top off?
If RO, is it from your own filter?
If so, how old are the filters/membrane
What are your parameters?
How long have they been stable at that?
How long has the tank been wet?
How much do you feed?
How long do you lights run for the ach day?
What flow do you have in the tank?

Cheers!
Sam

Sam
Invite is there and a slab of beer (if that's your preference) to come around and give the set up an educated fish keepers view on what things i need to change / improve.
Work gets busy, as it does for all of us, so the tank unfortunately takes a second/third seat.

 

[Sam Parker]

Sam
Invite is there and a slab of beer (if that's your preference) to come around and give the set up an educated fish keepers view on what things i need to change / improve.
Work gets busy, as it does for all of us, so the tank unfortunately takes a second/third seat.

I won't claim to be any more educated or experienced - but I would be keen to come over an run a second set of eyes over the setup (and maybe share that slab with you!) I've been dying to come visit Lesley and also another Reefing friend in SA and could certainly be talked into coming over to visit a few tanks across a weekend :)

From what you've said and what I can see from the pics, flow could we'll be the issue. When you do get that pumping, don't be disheartened if you don't see instant results. Could take a few months to clear (perhaps the chemi clear will accelerate that?)

A change in water source can certainly unsettle things a bit, but I doubt to this level. Curious on your comment about the IBC! What was in it before do you know?

How long has the cyano been there and how long since you started using the IBC? Any other changes around the time of it showing?

 

[Nicksy23]

I won't claim to be any more educated or experienced - but I would be keen to come over an run a second set of eyes over the setup (and maybe share that slab with you!) I've been dying to come visit Lesley and also another Reefing friend in SA and could certainly be talked into coming over to visit a few tanks across a weekend :)

From what you've said and what I can see from the pics, flow could we'll be the issue. When you do get that pumping, don't be disheartened if you don't see instant results. Could take a few months to clear (perhaps the chemi clear will accelerate that?)

A change in water source can certainly unsettle things a bit, but I doubt to this level. Curious on your comment about the IBC! What was in it before do you know?

How long has the cyano been there and how long since you started using the IBC? Any other changes around the time of it showing?

The more we discuss what could be th issue the more i panic on what was in the IBC as since beginning the water changes using SARDI water the tank seems to have developed the Cyano issue. The only way i have used SARDI water is by pumping it from the IBC. Prior to that i had a 150l Salt water mixing container that i used to mix up Dupla salt mix then pump in.

What i will do is test some SW from the IBC tomorrow and see where it is at. Could be my issue but hopefully not. I cleaned out the IBC post purchase and was told it was cleaned well also so hoping thats not the problem.

 

[Sam Parker]

That's all good, at least we have a suspect! Would certainly be a chance, problem is - testing the water may not identify the issue either (could be any type of trace element we don't test for)

Does the IBC smell at all?

 

[Agent M]

Have you added any new corals from the time the cyano started? It can be introduced via new additions.

Also what is the miso fed to the tank for?

 

[Lesley]

Hi Nick Have your 2500 rowa whenever your ready. I could drop off if that suits better ( would love to see the tank & blues & red ;). ) I decided not to buy a 2nd had IBC because I was not sure on what was in it before hand. Chemiclean do suggest In Severe cases a second. & even 3rd dose may be needed. I had a friend recently that needed 4 consecutive treatments to rid himself if it. It has been 4 months now. & it has not returned. ? So sorry to hear about the hassles.

 

[ezza]

I found peroxide very helpful in getting rid of cyano.

 

[Lesley]

@Nicksy23 I have 4 x programmable tunze's you could use & see if makes a difference ? You can borrow for as long as needed. They are in cupboard not being used at moment ? Let me know I can drop down with rowa. !

 

[Tannum_Paul]

Always found strong aeration when using chemiclean helps it really work well.

Do you have a skimmer? Is it a quality skimmer? If the IBC had sugars, carbon sources at all in it then bacteria could go into over drive like when using bio pellets or carbon dosing...........need good skimming in those cases to rid the system of excess bacteria.

 

[Nicksy23]

Have a feeling the IBC might be my issue but as said already hard to really test for it as maybe the suspect can't be tested for. Is there any method that people have used to clean out the IBC????

 

[ezza]

I was doing some reading about cyanobacteria on wikipedia. granted it's wikipedia... but it contains some really useful info. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyanobacteria

There are some facts that perhaps explain why we get outbreaks.

By producing gaseous oxygen as a byproduct of photosynthesis, cyanobacteria are thought to have converted the early reducing atmosphere into an oxidizing one, causing the "rusting of the Earth"[6] and dramatically changing the composition of life forms on Earth by stimulating biodiversity and leading to the near-extinction of oxygen-intolerant organisms. According to endosymbiotic theory, the chloroplasts found in plants and eukaryoticalgae evolved from cyanobacterial ancestors via endosymbiosis.

Heterocysts may also form under the appropriate environmental conditions (anoxic) when fixed nitrogen is scarce.

Cyanobacteria use the energy of sunlight to drive photosynthesis, a process where the energy of light is used to split water molecules into oxygen, protons, and electrons. Because they are aquatic organisms, they typically employ several strategies which are collectively known as a "carbon concentrating mechanism" to aid in the acquisition of inorganic carbon (CO2 or bicarbonate)....

In general, photosynthesis in cyanobacteria uses water as an electron donor and produces oxygen as a byproduct, though some may also use hydrogen sulfide[17] a process which occurs among other photosynthetic bacteria such as the purple sulfur bacteria. Carbon dioxide is reduced to form carbohydrates via the Calvin cycle.

I wonder... does the process of utilising carbon dioxide as a lot of the Zeovit guys do, reduce the incidence of cyanobacteria development. I always thought that oxygenating the water (as with peroxide) is how you remove cyano... but is it the opposite... gaaaaaaaaaaahhh!!! chemistry!!!! i have all these theories but they seem to not work as I attempt to clarify the theories.

 

[ezza]

some more reading with regard to cyano in nature... http://www2.epa.gov/nutrient-policy-data/causes-and-prevention

How do human activities affect cyanobacterial blooms?
There is widespread agreement within the scientific community that the incidence of HABs is increasing both in the U.S. and worldwide. This recent increase in the occurrence of HABs has been attributed to increasing anthropogenic activities and their interaction with the factors that are known to contribute to the growth of cyanobacterial blooms. Historically, HABs have been strongly correlated with excessive levels of nutrients in waterbodies with low turbidity. Point sources (which may include discharges from sewage treatment plants and confined animal feeding operations) and non-point sources (which may include diffuse runoff from agricultural fields, roads and stormwater), may be high in nitrogen and phosphorus and can promote or cause excessive fertilization (eutrophication) of both flowing and non-flowing waters.

 

[Tannum_Paul]

Have a feeling the IBC might be my issue but as said already hard to really test for it as maybe the suspect can't be tested for. Is there any method that people have used to clean out the IBC????

Never cleaned one out for reef purpose but in the aquaponics game they use biodegradable detergent. When it comes to a reef tank I would not run that gauntlet.

If your water changes are small why not just make salt mix up in a 20L bucket? Try that while adding a air stone and Chemiclean?

Another possible help could be Eco-Balance friendly Probiotic Bacteria by DrTim's

 

[Nicksy23]

guys i am heading to the LFS to pick up some salt mix @ 20% off this week. Might be back to mixing salt for the little bloke for a few months and see how we go.

I just switched the lights back to 30% and within a few hours the bloody Cyano looks like it is still there. This is after having no lights for 3 days and another chemo clean process, air stones in the sump and tank and just can't get it killed.

Salt mix time. Instant results will then be rewarding as at least i will have found the source of food for the bacteria. I may then even try after some time mixing the salt to do so in the IBC and see if that is what is contaminated. Good times

 

[Sam Parker]

Sounds like a game plan!