Red stringy mucus growing on filter socks

[holy carp]

Has anybody seen this happen before? I have been fruitless in my searches.

I'm getting red stringy mucus growing from my filter socks. It appears pretty quickly after replacing them. The first time I noticed it was a week ago. It doesn't appear to be attached to anything but the fibers of the sock.

This photo was taken yesterday (Monday night) and the clean sock had been put in the sump mid-day Sunday (maybe 36 hours prior).

[amphipod]

Sounds like Cyanobacteria are growing.

[holy carp]

Thanks, Amphipod.

 

So the cyano is spreading? Every time I change the filter sock (twice weekly) it's got the red snot after a day or two. What's the best strategy to deal with this? It's on my sand a lot, too - has been for the last month or so. Invisible in the morning, and by mid day the sand is rust colored.

 

I've been trying to siphon much of it off the sand with my weekly 20% PWC, but that doesn't seem to knock it back for more than a day or two. Fortunately, it doesn't seem to grow on the rocks (yet), so it hasn't really bothered anything, but it ain't pretty.

[amphipod]

It spreads because there is available nutrients. What does your cuc consist of?

[holy carp]

Right now, I have roughly the following:

 

4 Astrea

4 or 5 Margarita

1 Trochus

1 Blue legged hermit

3 or 4 nassarius

~12 dwarf cerith

 

Also, 1 emerald crab, but I moved him to the sump about a month ago after I saw him attacking my fish.

 

What else should I add? Some of the scarlet or mexican red legs? Or some of the florida cerith? I read the turbos may help, but they sound like over-sized bulldozers for my small tank.

 

I've been doing 3gal/week water changes (20%) and yesterday did 5 gallons (33%)

 

Also, yesterday, I started to try what I read about 3 days with the aquarium lights off. Even after siphoning all the red slime off the sand with the 5G w/c, I noticed the red stuff returning pretty quickly this morning after the lights in the room were on for about an hour.

[metrokat]

how are you cleaning your socks?

[holy carp]

I clean them by hand as soon as I remove them.

 

First I turn them inside out, then I spray them down with scalding hot tap water until the runoff is clear. Squeeze them out and then soak them in clean hot water in a bucket for a few hours. Squeeze them like a sponge under the faucet until they no longer smell, and dry them in the window where the afternoon sun comes in. I haven't used any chemicals or detergents to clean them.

 

They are the BRS 200 micron felt variety.

 

(new shoes, btw?)

[amphipod]

This means there must be a good source of nutrients feeding the little bacteria, no amount of siphoning will be adequate control. I must ask how is your sumps algae growth rate?

[holy carp]

The chaeto growth has been quite weak lately, and the filaments are weaker than they used to be. I shook it a bit in a bucket to rinse out detritus and to pare back the cotton candy, and a lot of chaeto strands just fell off. I haven't had to cull it in a while. Actually, it's never really been growing that well since the cotton candy took over the sump. I've had the light (one of these 8W grow LED's) running on it 13hrs/day, so just assumed there weren't too many nutrients and that was good...

[amphipod]

Is the cotton candy still growing quickly? Or is the whole sump in a slumber? If the sump isn't giving full productivity, then that means the Cyanobacteria are doing the sumps job. If the cotton candy is still growing quickly, maybe you should put something like that plastic eggcrate material or something similar as a sort of anchoring point for the cotton candy, that way you can grow more of it in the sump space. Because chaetomorpha grows in a more suspended ball, and cotton candy grows always depending on the holdfasts.

[Reefington]

What kind of lights are you running? If your bulbs are even 6months old that can be a problem. I have a cyano problem myself. It SUCKS

[holy carp]

Is the cotton candy still growing quickly? Or is the whole sump in a slumber? If the sump isn't giving full productivity, then that means the Cyanobacteria are doing the sumps job. If the cotton candy is still growing quickly, maybe you should put something like that plastic eggcrate material or something similar as a sort of anchoring point for the cotton candy, that way you can grow more of it in the sump space. Because chaetomorpha grows in a more suspended ball, and cotton candy grows always depending on the holdfasts.

The cotton candy is dying back as well. It still grows a little bit along the marinepure block that gets hit by the light, but the emerald crab that lives down there seems to keep it in check. The cotton candy in the chaeto seems to be wilting along with the chaeto, and I am noticing a lot of both algae in the filter floss before the return pump. Maybe I should be overfeeding more?

 

Now the sump does have some slow growing filamentous green/brown algae growing on the glass, but it doesn't build up much mass.

 

I think the cyano may be the true nitrate/phosphate boss - now if I could just contain it to the sump and out of the display, I might achieve the holy grail of complete biological filtration. ha ha (cyano > cotton candy > chaetomorpha)

 

What kind of lights are you running? If your bulbs are even 6months old that can be a problem. I have a cyano problem myself. It SUCKS

 

The lighting on the display is a current usa orbit marine led. I thought the bulb aging concern didn't really apply to led's the way it does to fluorescent. Otherwise, those LEDs would be a super pricey option.

 

 

I just turned the display lights on today to an 8hr acclimate setting after 3 days dark. I read about people having success with lights off getting rid of cyano, but I have to say the sand looked redder than ever this morning. The only difference was that the jelly didn't seem firm like it used to - it was just a very thin layer. But by the time I left, it looked like it had some red snot strands growing up from the sand. I'll try to snap some pics when I get home tonight. I'm tempted to stir up the sand - at least it looks pretty for a short time, but I don't know if that does more harm than good.

 

I just ordered some chemiclean, and while I'm very hesitant about using chemicals, I figured it's cheap enough to have on hand if this thing gets out of control...

[amphipod]

Don't over feed, that will only make things worse. I'd say that something isn't particularly favorable about the sumps environment for the algaes. Maybe there is too much light?

As for the Cyanobacteria, they are simply doing the functions that aren't being preformed by the other two algaes, that means if you were to go poison off the Cyanobacteria, you run a high risk of crashing the tank. So don't attack the Cyanobacteria. The only thing hurtful it's doing in your display tank right now is giving an eyesore lol.

[Reefington]

The cotton candy is dying back as well. It still grows a little bit along the marinepure block that gets hit by the light, but the emerald crab that lives down there seems to keep it in check. The cotton candy in the chaeto seems to be wilting along with the chaeto, and I am noticing a lot of both algae in the filter floss before the return pump. Maybe I should be overfeeding more?

 

Now the sump does have some slow growing filamentous green/brown algae growing on the glass, but it doesn't build up much mass.

 

I think the cyano may be the true nitrate/phosphate boss - now if I could just contain it to the sump and out of the display, I might achieve the holy grail of complete biological filtration. ha ha (cyano > cotton candy > chaetomorpha)

 

 

The lighting on the display is a current usa orbit marine led. I thought the bulb aging concern didn't really apply to led's the way it does to fluorescent. Otherwise, those LEDs would be a super pricey option.

 

 

I just turned the display lights on today to an 8hr acclimate setting after 3 days dark. I read about people having success with lights off getting rid of cyano, but I have to say the sand looked redder than ever this morning. The only difference was that the jelly didn't seem firm like it used to - it was just a very thin layer. But by the time I left, it looked like it had some red snot strands growing up from the sand. I'll try to snap some pics when I get home tonight. I'm tempted to stir up the sand - at least it looks pretty for a short time, but I don't know if that does more harm than good.

 

I just ordered some chemiclean, and while I'm very hesitant about using chemicals, I figured it's cheap enough to have on hand if this thing gets out of control...

The cotton candy is dying back as well. It still grows a little bit along the marinepure block that gets hit by the light, but the emerald crab that lives down there seems to keep it in check. The cotton candy in the chaeto seems to be wilting along with the chaeto, and I am noticing a lot of both algae in the filter floss before the return pump. Maybe I should be overfeeding more? Now the sump does have some slow growing filamentous green/brown algae growing on the glass, but it doesn't build up much mass. I think the cyano may be the true nitrate/phosphate boss - now if I could just contain it to the sump and out of the display, I might achieve the holy grail of complete biological filtration. ha ha (cyano > cotton candy > chaetomorpha) The lighting on the display is a current usa orbit marine led. I thought the bulb aging concern didn't really apply to led's the way it does to fluorescent. Otherwise, those LEDs would be a super pricey option. I just turned the display lights on today to an 8hr acclimate setting after 3 days dark. I read about people having success with lights off getting rid of cyano, but I have to say the sand looked redder than ever this morning. The only difference was that the jelly didn't seem firm like it used to - it was just a very thin layer. But by the time I left, it looked like it had some red snot strands growing up from the sand. I'll try to snap some pics when I get home tonight. I'm tempted to stir up the sand - at least it looks pretty for a short time, but I don't know if that does more harm than good. I just ordered some chemiclean, and while I'm very hesitant about using chemicals, I figured it's cheap enough to have on hand if this thing gets out of control...

you are right about the LED it is not the same as bulbs aging at all; however my cyano outbreak started while i was using my LED so i wouldnt say it is the light that is causing it. Also that three day rule is kind of a general statement maybe another 24 extra hour kick wouldnt hurt, but hey I'm still trying to finish off the last of my slime algea it is not all gone just yet! My ss starfish helps

[holy carp]

Interestingly, today was a short light cycle, and the sand looks a little whiter than it did while the lights were completely out.

 

 

Don't over feed, that will only make things worse. I'd say that something isn't particularly favorable about the sumps environment for the algaes. Maybe there is too much light?
As for the Cyanobacteria, they are simply doing the functions that aren't being preformed by the other two algaes, that means if you were to go poison off the Cyanobacteria, you run a high risk of crashing the tank. So don't attack the Cyanobacteria. The only thing hurtful it's doing in your display tank right now is giving an eyesore lol.

 

Thanks for the advice. I'll try keeping both the tank and sump on shorter light cycles for a few days and see what happens. I'm not going to feed more, but I'm going to go back to feeding like I used to. I had fed less during the dark days since the fish seemed less interested and active. I'm happy that my tank is finally relatively algae free in the display (except for the cyano, of course). Not long ago I was growing a lawn of GHA and a letuce patch of little leafy algae clumps. Do you think it would be a good idea to remove the filter sock for a while so any particles/detritus/food reach the sump and chaeto? Or is it better to just let it do it's nitrogen cycle. Might adding a capful of seachem stability help at all? Maybe I'm just clutching at straws at this point.

 

It still surprises me somewhat that the lighting and flow were identical when the chaeto was growing gangbusters. This tank is complicated...

 

you are right about the LED it is not the same as bulbs aging at all; however my cyano outbreak started while i was using my LED so i wouldnt say it is the light that is causing it. Also that three day rule is kind of a general statement maybe another 24 extra hour kick wouldnt hurt, but hey I'm still trying to finish off the last of my slime algea it is not all gone just yet! My ss starfish helps

 

I might try the complete lights out thing again later, but I want to give my elegance coral a chance to stretch out. It's been pretty contracted during the dark experiment, and I don't want to over-stress it. The cyano is ugly, but at least so far doesn't seem to be bothering anything - the only possible exception being the nassarius snails. I've seen them sleeping on the rocks with their little trunks retracted the last couple days instead of burrowing into the sand.

[amphipod]

Well the socks only job is to remove some of the organic particles from the water, which pretty much begin to decompose in the sock. Without it these particles will decompose elsewhere, that could be the filter media, the algae, the display tank, either way it lies to rot somewhere in the tank.

 

Let's wait and see if algae growth starts to perk up on the sump again with a little less light

[holy carp]

Well, I'm sad to report that the cyano isn't improving much...

Here's a little collage from this morning - this sock was in the sump for 24 hours.

The other spots were around the sandbed.

 

Meanwhile, my chaeto is almost gone, being choked by a combination of cotton candy and cyano. It's still on the reduced 9 hour light cycle from 10pm-7am.

 

Also, I've noticed that the cyano, while mostly on the sandbed, seem to like to grow on the little pineapple sponges. I think it's going to kill them. All their little pineapple tops are covered in red slime.

 

Fortunately corals look pretty unfazed.

[amphipod]

Those are tiny little microbe mats, imagine the ediacaran oceans, sea floor coated with a mats like that and stromatolites peaking up majestically, while small organisms dwell in the layers of microbes feasting like kings.

 

Unfortunately those pineapple sponges aren't so resilient in our aquariums, they have needs that can be difficult to match long term.

[ndrobey]

Are you vacuuming the sand bed thoroughly every week? And using a turkey baster to blast detritus out of the rock cavities?

[holy carp]

Those are tiny little microbe mats, imagine the ediacaran oceans, sea floor coated with a mats like that and stromatolites peaking up majestically, while small organisms dwell in the layers of microbes feasting like kings.

 

Yay, I'd love some stromatolites... But, how many millions of years will I have to wait? Patience...

 

 

Are you vacuuming the sand bed thoroughly every week? And using a turkey baster to blast detritus out of the rock cavities?

 

I squirt the rocks clean a few times a week when I'm feeding with a pipette. There are a few pockets that collect snail turds, but there's usually not much collected in the rock. For the sand bed, I don't know that I would say I vacuum thoroughly... The sand I have is the CaribSea Ocean Direct. It has a lot of fine sand that gets sucked out when I'm too aggressive vacuuming, so I mostly try to get the top layer. Occasionally, I'll also use the pipette to squirt into the sand to churn it a little and release built up detritus before I do the water change.

[amphipod]

Honestly I'd expect them to start forming within a few years if you get the right Cyanobacteria species and a good amount of calcium in the water, the hardest part is getting the right species to do the trick, some Cyanobacteria simply make a mat that begins to feel firm and rubbery after a few years, doesn't last up to snails all the time.

[gulfsurfer101]

Sounds like you have a source of silicates that are feeding your bloom. Try running a small bag of phosguard in your filtration to bind up phosphate and silicates. Should clear up or help reduce clear up. Also the thing about silicates is people will goo crazy trying to battle and preform many water changes sometimes daily just to battle the algae growth. They don't know that all their doing uggs feeding the problem. The less water changes you do the better. This way they are binded up and starved out of your water. I might do one every three months now because I'll on well water and even with rodi they are still present in trace amounts. I had lots of problems in the beginning till I came across this tidbit of information.

[holy carp]

What the What!!?!?!?!

 

even with rodi they are still present in trace amounts.

 

Do you mean the water tested as 0 TDS can still be introducing problems? If so, I was totally misunderstanding that...

 

I don't have any phosgard, but I do have some chemipure elite that I could throw in. Would that accomplish the same?

 

 

I was more aggressive sand vacuuming this past Sunday, and now the cyano is growing in a dark brown, almost black color in some areas on the sand. Other areas are almost a golden brown (more gold than brown, so I hadn't thought it was diatoms again) The cyano still forming, but it has slowed down slightly. The filter sock is only growing mucus at 1/3 the rate in the photo above. Interestingly, the filter sock cyano is always red, even though there's not much light there, but the sand cyano varies in color in different areas and at different times of the day.

 

And And And I've been getting some GHA filaments growing on the rocks in a few places over the last 2 days. It's still pretty minor, but I hadn't seen any since before the cyano appeared. Is that starting to grow if I suck out too much cyano from vacuuming? I'm starting to think this hobby is to strike a balance that is the lesser of 20 gazillion evils... Maybe I need a cyano fuge to keep the DT clean. Is that what a DSB actually is? Perhaps it's time to add a skimmer?

[gulfsurfer101]

Skimmer should've been one of the first items in your reef. And yes 0tds doesn't always mean your in the clear. There's another factor at work your not seeing. Perhaps the sand contains silica or the salt your using to the rock in your tank. Whatever is causing it though cpe won't get it out. Petco sells a thirty gallon treatment of phosguard for like 6 bucks. It can be used over and over before it expires or left in and replaced every so often. It's well worth the price.

[metrokat]

coral snow+MB7 - mix and keep aside for a day or two. dose in the tank 1ml at a time over several days.

You can also try a 3 day light out while you dose the coral snow combo.

I fixed my cyano in a week this way.