Considering total system reset...

[Wheelman76]

How many Berghia did you add the last two times you tried? As far as cyano goes , it's such a huge pain to deal with. It smothers everything and just stresses me out looking at it , not to mention all the time spent syphoning it. I've always been to afraid to use chemi clean because after all it is a chemical. A few weeks ago I decided to give it a shot and wow did it work well. Very easy to use , I just followed the instructions waited 48 hours did a 25% water change and changed the carbon. I used the trick that some member on here mentioned (sorry cant remember who it was ) and put the skimmer cup on at an angle so most of the water would pour back out but the skimmer would still be able to skim a little. To my amazement my skimmer was running normally with the lid seated properly within 45 minutes after doing the water change.

[tlhood]

As for the berghia, I've heard that some pods, and bristleworms eat them and their eggs (which may account for why yours aren't multiplying?), and that even aiptasia will eat the larvae. Filtration also can harm the larvae and kill them.

Perhaps try breeding them in a small barebottom tank with no predators, and feed the larva small aiptasia until they are big enough to mow down the ones in your tank?

[asylumdown]

Originally Posted by Wheelman76

How many Berghia did you add the last two times you tried? As far as cyano goes , it's such a huge pain to deal with. It smothers everything and just stresses me out looking at it , not to mention all the time spent syphoning it. I've always been to afraid to use chemi clean because after all it is a chemical. A few weeks ago I decided to give it a shot and wow did it work well. Very easy to use , I just followed the instructions waited 48 hours did a 25% water change and changed the carbon. I used the trick that some member on here mentioned (sorry cant remember who it was ) and put the skimmer cup on at an angle so most of the water would pour back out but the skimmer would still be able to skim a little. To my amazement my skimmer was running normally with the lid seated properly within 45 minutes after doing the water change.

I think 15 in January and another 11 a month ago. The first time I did it I added about 20, and it took three months for them to reach 'critical mass' and steadily take out all the nems. But at the time I added them, the tank had no fish in it and had been fallow for like 4 months or something. My worm and pod population had collapsed in a major way from lack of food, and I had no shrimp or crabs of any kind. This time around I have about 1000 bristle worms per square inch from the amount of food the cowfish eats and thus poops back out, a huge amphipod population, and 3 emerald crabs in there somewhere that I put in to deal with a concurrent problem with bubble algae. Lots more things to either eat them, or their eggs. Since they're not doing anything I'm considering peppermint shrimp, but those guys are hit and miss as well. My Copper band recently died, which in a way might be a blessing as he ate maybe 1 aiptasia a week. If I get another one it might like them better.

And yah I have had temporary success with chemiclean. Usually stays away for 2-3 weeks, then it slowly starts creeping back in. Slowly at first, but the end result is always the same. This stuff is insidious.