cnseekatz Posted December 9, 2014 Author Share Posted December 9, 2014 Read an interesting article on "blooms" in a cycling tank. We're all (hopefully) familiar with the stages of a typical Nitrogen Cycle, but the different types of blooms seem to be less documented, and less understood. My tank has been cycling for a little while now, and has recently grown a bunch of green filamentous algae, which suggests that the Ammonia and Nitrite have converted to Nitrate. Now my water has gone cloudy, and I'm experiencing a huge increase in the number of copepods at the same time. It seems as though I've had an Algae/Plankton Bloom, caused by high nutrients (nitrate &/or phosphate). The same nitrate that is produced at the end of a nitrogen cycle feeds the algae now growing on the rocks, as well as the phytoplankton suspended in the water column, which makes the water look cloudy (and a tiny bit green). The abundance of phytoplankton in the water column is producing a ton of food for all the zooplankton I'm starting to see everywhere (pods mostly). So as the pods reproduce and eat all the suspended algae, the water should clear. Patience seems to be my best bet here. Who knows if this hypothesis is what my tank is actually experiencing, but it's neat to try and understand what's going on. 2 Quote Link to comment
cnseekatz Posted December 9, 2014 Author Share Posted December 9, 2014 Added some snails and hermits! Hooray! It's always nice to get something alive in your tank after a cycle... plus I'm hoping they'll demo some of the green algae that's popped up. Stay tuned... Quote Link to comment
cnseekatz Posted December 9, 2014 Author Share Posted December 9, 2014 Is it safe to add xenia and kenya trees to a refugium? I want this to be a display 'fuge, but more importantly, a true safe place for pods to grow. I'm just not sure if the xenia will eat the pods I'm trying to grow and protect. Anyone know? Quote Link to comment
picoreef78 Posted December 9, 2014 Share Posted December 9, 2014 Yes safe to put in refugium. Quote Link to comment
cnseekatz Posted December 12, 2014 Author Share Posted December 12, 2014 I'm still in the midst of my phytoplankton bloom, but I'm getting a bit impatient. So, in the interest of keeping things clean(er), and giving me something interesting to look at, I'd like to introduce you to Brent. Brent is a portly Sea Hare, with a healthy appetite for green hair algae. He gets sleepy during the day and burrows under the sand when the lights are brightest, but when the sun goes down, Brent puts on his party shoes, and lays waste to any patch of GHA in his path. He's admittedly not much to look at, but he means well, and provides hours (or minutes as the case may be) of entertainment on demand! 2 Quote Link to comment
picoreef78 Posted December 12, 2014 Share Posted December 12, 2014 Good luck with the wait. 1 Quote Link to comment
cnseekatz Posted December 16, 2014 Author Share Posted December 16, 2014 So the wait continues. I re-tested my parameters this morning, and Ammonia, Nitrite and Nitrate all measured zero. I'm not sure how nitrates are reading zero, considering I haven't changed any water, but even if the test is a little off, I'm guessing that my nitrogen cycle is done. Only problem now is that the water is still all cloudy. From everything I've read, this is either a bacterial or algal bloom, it's normal, and I just have to wait and let it clear up. This is the tough part... waiting... But I know that patience is a virtue in this hobby, and rushing anything is a recipe for disaster. So, I'll continue to take it slow, and let this come along at its own pace. Quote Link to comment
cnseekatz Posted December 16, 2014 Author Share Posted December 16, 2014 Brent is a good slug... He has single handedly (er... zero handedly?) demo'ed every sprout of algae I had going in this tank. Now I'm concerned because he has nothing to eat. If any of you are in Orange County or LA County and have need for a Sea Hare with a voracious appetite, Brent is looking for a new mommy or daddy. Quote Link to comment
picoreef78 Posted December 17, 2014 Share Posted December 17, 2014 Took your Radion mount as inspiration and got one for my tank! Quote Link to comment
cnseekatz Posted December 18, 2014 Author Share Posted December 18, 2014 Took your Radion mount as inspiration and got one for my tank! Sweet man... let's see some pics! The tank seems to be clearing up a little bit. I think I'm going to start the process of moving things over. I plan on doing this very slowly, with the hardiest stuff I have (aka: the stuff I will miss the least if it dies). I'll probably start with a bunch of xenia and see what happens, then maybe a few zoanthid frags I have sitting around. Everything in my current tank is super happy, and I'd hate to cause any problems. I know that instant gratification is way more interesting when you're following a build thread, but I'm going to do my best to be patient. Thanks for understanding! 1 Quote Link to comment
metrokat Posted December 18, 2014 Share Posted December 18, 2014 Won't your LFS take Brent back? Give him some nori to eat in the meantime. Quote Link to comment
cnseekatz Posted December 18, 2014 Author Share Posted December 18, 2014 Won't your LFS take Brent back? Give him some nori to eat in the meantime. I'm sure I can take him to a fish store... but it feels like taking a dog to the pound. I'd much rather find him a good home, full of algae, and someone who will love him. Quote Link to comment
metrokat Posted December 19, 2014 Share Posted December 19, 2014 that's fine an dandy. Set a time limit before he goes to rabbit heaven Quote Link to comment
cnseekatz Posted December 19, 2014 Author Share Posted December 19, 2014 ??????????? 2 Quote Link to comment
picoreef78 Posted December 19, 2014 Share Posted December 19, 2014 Will do, need to set it up, just came in last night. Quote Link to comment
picoreef78 Posted December 19, 2014 Share Posted December 19, 2014 Did you have trouble turning the fixture connection and sliding on the rail system? Quote Link to comment
metrokat Posted December 19, 2014 Share Posted December 19, 2014 ??????????? she needs some fiber. Quote Link to comment
kimberbee Posted December 19, 2014 Share Posted December 19, 2014 ??????????? Very pretty kitty!! 1 Quote Link to comment
picoreef78 Posted December 19, 2014 Share Posted December 19, 2014 Ok done and looking good. 1 Quote Link to comment
cnseekatz Posted December 19, 2014 Author Share Posted December 19, 2014 Ok done and looking good. Nice. It took me a minute too. Just need a heavy hand! Quote Link to comment
cnseekatz Posted December 19, 2014 Author Share Posted December 19, 2014 Give him some nori to eat in the meantime. I took your suggestion. Brent seems like the stoner type... kinda fat, lazy, and always has the munchies. So I rolled him a fatty. 5 Quote Link to comment
Arkayology Posted December 19, 2014 Share Posted December 19, 2014 I took your suggestion. Brent seems like the stoner type... kinda fat, lazy, and always has the munchies. So I rolled him a fatty. Quote Link to comment
D Z Posted December 19, 2014 Share Posted December 19, 2014 I took your suggestion. Brent seems like the stoner type... kinda fat, lazy, and always has the munchies. So I rolled him a fatty. LOL I love it. 1 Quote Link to comment
cnseekatz Posted December 19, 2014 Author Share Posted December 19, 2014 Gettin' loaded 2 Quote Link to comment
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