cyano battle lol

[wreck]

kk i wont forget lol. hope the instructions are simple to use. can u feed the fish while treating?

[wreck]

one other quick question, not concerning cyano .

any suggestions on how to get a long spine urchin out of this tank??

[Ron99]

The KZ cyano clean sounds like an interesting option but I don't have first hand experience with it nor have I talked to anyone who's used it yet. But the concept is sound. It's a strain of bacteria that has a more aggressive metabolism and out competes the cyano for the nutrients in the tank. They say you can then do maintenance doses once or twice a week for long term control.

[Reef Pilot]

Originally Posted by wreck

one other quick question, not concerning cyano .

any suggestions on how to get a long spine urchin out of this tank??

Haha, just went through this last night.... Big net and gloves. Catching it is one thing, but getting him into a bag..., that is another. And then having to deal with leaks after, from the long spikes. Will need something better than your standard fish/coral bag, or use a small bucket. Good luck!

Re the cyano, had the problem a few years ago. Used Chemiclean once to get rid of it (and it definitely worked). But as others have said, get your parameters in line esp phosphates and nitrates. Then I also used MB7 which out competes the cyano bacteria. Have never had a problem since. I did have it start to reappear a couple times, but then just upped the dose of MB7 for a couple weeks and it disappeared.
http://brightwellaquatics.com/produc...robacter7t.php

[wreck]

thanks for the link!

lol this urchin is goin to be frustrating lol. been poked to many times, and its been smashing my corals over

[wreck]

should a person turn off the gfo reactor?

and install a couple air stones in the sump? when using chemi clean. just picked up a package

[kien]

Originally Posted by wreck

should a person turn off the gfo reactor?

and install a couple air stones in the sump? when using chemi clean. just picked up a package

You don't have to turn off the GFO, but you should turn off carbon if you're running a carbon reactor.

You can install an airstone. If you're running a skimmer you can either turn it off, or take off the skimmer cup and let the skimmer overflow into the sump. If you turn your skimmer off then make sure you do add an air stone to help keep your tank oxygenated.

[wreck]

Originally Posted by kien

You don't have to turn off the GFO, but you should turn off carbon if you're running a carbon reactor.

You can install an airstone. If you're running a skimmer you can either turn it off, or take off the skimmer cup and let the skimmer overflow into the sump. If you turn your skimmer off then make sure you do add an air stone to help keep your tank oxygenated.

thanks!! much appreciated

[asylumdown]

I'm going to be the dissenting voice and say that I doubt reducing your nutrients drastically will do much for the cyano.

a) it's commonly reported on fish forums that cyan thrives in ULN tanks and is often associated with organic carbon dosing.

b) mats of cyanobacteria are often the only organisms living in some of the most oligotrophic (i.e., nutrient poor to the point of being hostile to life) bodies of water on earth.

c) 'cyano' is in fact an incredibly sophisticated assemblage of heterotrophic and autotrophic organisms, including prokaryotes, dinoflagellates, diatoms, and cyanobacteria, all stratified along micro pH and oxygen gradients within the mat and fulfilling different roles in what is in fact a mini ecosystem. There is strong evidence to suggest that some assemblages can fix nitrogen directly from the atmosphere. The whole assemblage is designed to be as efficient at recycling captured nutrients as physically possible (i.e., they don't really lose any nitrogen or carbon once they catch it), and to be as efficient at scavenging nutrients such as organic carbon and nitrogen from the environment as any ecosystem can be.

I honestly think the best way to think about cyanobacteria is to equate it to an infection. It can thrive in your tank regardless of your nutrient profile, and has attributes that actually give it a competitive advantage in an extremely low nutrient environment. Once it's gotten out of control, I think hitting it with a chemical treatment is one of your best options. The goal after it's gone is to try and encourage the kind of microscopic competitive regime that favours forms of life other than cyano, which, given the fact that it's such a common and unending problem in the aquarium trade, seems to be incredibly difficult to do.

[Ron99]

Originally Posted by Reef Pilot

Haha, just went through this last night.... Big net and gloves. Catching it is one thing, but getting him into a bag..., that is another. And then having to deal with leaks after, from the long spikes. Will need something better than your standard fish/coral bag, or use a small bucket. Good luck!

Re the cyano, had the problem a few years ago. Used Chemiclean once to get rid of it (and it definitely worked). But as others have said, get your parameters in line esp phosphates and nitrates. Then I also used MB7 which out competes the cyano bacteria. Have never had a problem since. I did have it start to reappear a couple times, but then just upped the dose of MB7 for a couple weeks and it disappeared.
http://brightwellaquatics.com/produc...robacter7t.php

I've come to appreciate the KZ products because they are very concentrated and actually cheaper in the long run (although up front costs are higher). Most other products like Brightwell etc. are so dilute you dose so much more and end up buying more over 6 months etc.