Prophit911 Posted April 24, 2003 Share Posted April 24, 2003 First off sorry for the length of this thread to start but I am going to try to be as detailed as possible. I am in my third week of cycling my 11 gal nano which started with 8 lbs of Fiji and about 10 lbs primo ls with argonite mix. The cycling was going great until the second weekend which was this past Sturday I noticed a growth on the backside of the LR. Quickly (almost overnight) a red fuzzy looking algea of somesort had covered my entire LR and it is now on my sand bed. The color is a brown maroon and it spreads very rapidly. Just yesterday I put the second round of LR in and the algea is spreading to this Fiji rock as well. Currently I have an HOB (no media) for water flow, it's an aquaclear 200 and a minijet powerhead also running lower in the tank. I have 5 snails (cleaners but they dont seem to be cutting it, and a peppermint shrimp also) and thats it as far as inverts go. I am running 10 hours cycles for my light setup (2 pc 13x2 blue, white). My biggest concerns is theat my water levels are all testing almost perfect (weird huh) and the rock continues to thrive but the water smells almost pungent when you are close enough to it. Sorry if all of this is a little vague but my digital camera took a dump on me so I can post a pic. I am trying to find a way to borrow one. But if anyone has a suggestion on what to do or what this may be from there own experience I would appreciate any feedback. TIA for the help!!!!! Link to comment
Xavier Posted April 24, 2003 Share Posted April 24, 2003 Sounds like cyanobacteria... new tanks are especially suseptible to it.. keep the lights off or a day or two.. then slowly bring the lights backup over about two weeks... all the while doing water changes to siphon out the cyano (it should lift easily off the rock)... Some hermits and snails eat the stuff (but not as if it were ambrosia unfortunately) Also test your water for impurities (phosphates, nitrates, amnonia).. all of these assist cyano and pest algaes... there's chemicals you can use, but try the natural means of eliminating it... chemicals just get rid of it temporarily, they don't solve the problem... Link to comment
Satchmo Posted April 24, 2003 Share Posted April 24, 2003 What kind of water are you using? Link to comment
tinyreef Posted April 24, 2003 Share Posted April 24, 2003 drop a carbon cartridge or filter bag in the hob. that pungent smell should be gone in a day. your cycle's probably not finished yet so you should keep an eye on the snails and shrimp. i would've put off introducing them for another couple of weeks but if you watch them levels it could be ok. also, check the kelvin temp of your bulbs. the 13W are not well known for being true actinics or true high K's. it may look white to you but as a comparison, a regular GE 'white' incandescent bulb burns around 3000K or lower. hth Link to comment
tpallas Posted April 27, 2003 Share Posted April 27, 2003 cut the lights while your cycling the tank. doesnt need to be completely dark. Link to comment
Acoustic Posted April 27, 2003 Share Posted April 27, 2003 Use chemi-clean or wait it out. It will go away on its own. Link to comment
Prophit911 Posted April 28, 2003 Author Share Posted April 28, 2003 Thanks for all of the feedback. I did unfortunately lose 2 of my snails however. But the good news is that I have down a few water changes and the red algea seems to have diappeared but the smell is still terrible. Even after a 50% water change the odor coming out of the tank is putrid...What about the chemi-clean Does anyone have any experience with this. It's just frustrating because when you get close to the tank it really stinks!!!!! Thanks for the help guys! Link to comment
Xavier Posted April 28, 2003 Share Posted April 28, 2003 chemi-clean won't fix the smell I don't think.. it's mainly for the cyano... I say hang some pine tree air fresheners to the side all ghetto-like, and you'll be set... Link to comment
Crakeur Posted April 28, 2003 Share Posted April 28, 2003 incense and peppermints until the cycle is finished. Link to comment
Xavier Posted April 28, 2003 Share Posted April 28, 2003 I've been thinking about lowering my tank, and putting hydraulics in.. some sub-woofers and amps in the stand.. chroming the hood... it's gonna be phat... Link to comment
ajroahkni Posted April 28, 2003 Share Posted April 28, 2003 "Stink" is relative. Can you describe your stink? Is it "stink: the smell of decay" "stink: the smell of iodine" "stink: the smell of a freshly plucked scab" "stink: the smell of feces" "stink: the smell of fish" "stink: the other white meat" Also, how close are you to your tank? If it's nose-over-water, and you smell something (def'n. stink), that just may be normal. Link to comment
Crakeur Posted April 28, 2003 Share Posted April 28, 2003 stink: the other white meat. hehe, funny. Reminds me of my all time favorite Homer simpson line: mmmmmmm Purple. Link to comment
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