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Need help with identifying this outbreak (corals dying)


s1ngle

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Please could you help me identify this 'algae'?
My 3 corals has been already suffocated by this 😞

I tried methods for cyano and for dino but both were futile:
- lower nutritients
- raise up nutritients
- increase flow
- scrubbing off
- dosing 'good' bacteria
- VSV
- frequent water changes
- infrequent water changes

- gfo in/out

ePXz5nM.png


https://i.imgur.com/GgaK9wU.jpg
 

https://i.imgur.com/FHJEJAi.jpg


It's really hard to remove, I basically cannot do it with fingers, only toothbrush helps.
No long strings rather turf.
And do not produce air bubbles (no photosynthesis?).


https://i.imgur.com/2XjxPIg.jpg


cIlKBJn.jpg


https://player.vimeo.com/video/328970393

 

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What kind of light cycle are you running? For how long, what lights, what intensity, and on what size aquarium? What is your feeding schedule like? What are your levels?

 

It looks like you have lots of algae, so I would say a combo of too much nutrients and too much light. If you cut off both of those it should go away.

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190 G.

Lights:
11h - 3x65W Jecod/Jebao Ak-70
5h - 8x80W ATI T5 Sun Power
    - 4 x Blue Plus
    - 2 x Coral Plus
    - 1 x AquaBlue Special
    - 1 x Purple plus

I feed a lot cos I've got a lot of hungry fish :d.

Feeding:
- Fish:
    - Pellets/flakes:
        - Fomula One Flakes
        - Formula Two Marine Pellets
    - Frozen:
        - Mysis / Mysidacea
        - Artemia / Euphausiacea
    - Defrosted and chopped with blender:
        - Coctail shrimp
        - Mytilus edulis
        - Venerupis decussata
        - Squid/octopus
- Corals:
    - Easy Booster 25 Marine Phytoplancton
    - Reef Energy Coral Nutrition A
    - Reef Energy Coral Nutrition B


I stabilised around January (no algae) but since early march it's been downhill.

NO3 is 5.0 and PO4 is 0.00 though.

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Have you checked the algae under a microscope?

 

There are MANY strains of dino and out competing it can be different methods for different types. 

 

It doesn't look like cyano.

 

Is it brownish or green under white light only?

 

It's hard to see in the video but is it stringy? Web like?

 

It kinda looks like its string in the picture posted of it in the Kleenex.

 

Is it gone when lights turn on and more developed later in the day after lights have been on for hours?

 

Is your phos always 0? Nitrates at 5 is not high but phos at 0 can be an issue for certain dino's.

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2 hours ago, Jon-Paul said:

Have you tried reducing your light cycle, or doing a blackout for a few days? How many corals do you have?

I am trying 3 day blackout now, I've got 17 softies, 4 LPS and 1 anemone.

 

2 hours ago, Clown79 said:

Have you checked the algae under a microscope?

I tried but it's too thick I cannot see anything 😞 I only have 300/600/1200 x though.

2 hours ago, Clown79 said:

There are MANY strains of dino and out competing it can be different methods for different types. 

Exactly.

2 hours ago, Clown79 said:

It doesn't look like cyano.

Cyano should be slimy and easy to brush off this stuff is thick and really hard to scrub off (impossible with fingers, only toothbrush does the trick and not a very good one actually).

2 hours ago, Clown79 said:

Is it brownish or green under white light only?

It's brownish red.

 

2 hours ago, Clown79 said:

It's hard to see in the video but is it stringy? Web like?

It's not stringy. The closest I could find is a turf algae.

2 hours ago, Clown79 said:

It kinda looks like its string in the picture posted of it in the Kleenex.

 

Is it gone when lights turn on and more developed later in the day after lights have been on for hours?

Nah, it's just more and more every single day. In a month from none to total overtake on basically every single rock 😞

2 hours ago, Clown79 said:

Is your phos always 0? Nitrates at 5 is not high but phos at 0 can be an issue for certain dino's.

I had NO3 0.00 for 3 months and I started dosing KNO3 for a week but it did not help.
I started overfeeding and this is the result I guess 😕

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27 minutes ago, Clown79 said:

Have you tried peroxide spot treatment to see if it works?

I have not yet I am trying a 3 day blackout cos there is no algae in the sump.

27 minutes ago, Clown79 said:

 

Are any of your snails eating it?

Problem is I have a picasso humuhumu, so the snail I think was eating it but not for long so I have no CUC 😞

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3 hours ago, s1ngle said:

I have not yet I am trying a 3 day blackout cos there is no algae in the sump.

Problem is I have a picasso humuhumu, so the snail I think was eating it but not for long so I have no CUC 😞

They can go after snails if they aren't being fed enough of the right type of food but that may be why the algae isn't under control due to lack of cuc.

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14 hours ago, Clown79 said:

They can go after snails if they aren't being fed enough of the right type of food but that may be why the algae isn't under control due to lack of cuc.

My Picasso is like a baloon 10 cm long 3cm wide it's almost ridiculous how fat he is. He eats like 3 shrimps a day. Still the snail is gone 😞
I need to overfeed a bit so the other fish have a chance to get something cos he goes after everything that's not plants/algae/herbs.

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Blackouts are band aids. As soon as the lights go back on, the problem resurfaces.

 

You have to evaluate what you are doing and what is leading to the algae.

 

Something lacking in maintenance

 

Filtration

 

Over feeding

 

Dosing products

 

Not enough cuc

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I have no CUC due to picasso triggerfish.

 

What is this algae 80 hours of a total blackout did nothing. It should disappear and reappear cool but it DID NOT disappear. Aqua was covered in blankets.

QXHWnKH.jpg

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Thrassian Atoll

What’s your filtration?  Skimmer?  Algae Scrubber?  Algae Reactor?  Do you have a refugium?  How long have you been dosing the reef nutrients?  I would cut back on the amino acids.  

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RO-DI:

  • Sediment 5μ -> Carbon -> Sediment 1μ -> Membrane -> Resin
  • TDS: 001

 

Filtration:

  • JBL Symec Filter Floss
  • 2L Sera Siporax
  • 1 kg Nano-Tech Bio-Sphere
  • Chaetomorpha Filter 3L, 3.5m LED (5 red + 1 blue) 50W,  1000 L/H
  • Live rock 37kg [81 lbs]
  • GFO
  • DSB
  • AquaNova NUV-18 (UV filter) 22.5W


Skimmer:

  • 1 x Tunze DOC Skimmer 9410.04 Water flow: 900 L/H Air flow: 600 L/H
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You need to check it under a microscope to determine if its dino's.

 

I just had dino's. 

 

Theres a lot involved to getting them back into a dormant stage. You need to identify what they are 100%.

 

You can get a cheap microscope on amazon.

 

 

What are your nutrient levels? Nitrates and phos?

 

What are you dosing? 

 

Once again, blackouts are a waste of time. 

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  • 2 weeks later...

This stuff is growing even on the cover of my chimney where there is almost no water, just drops of them... what is this curse 😕

I tried microscope but I could not see anything seems to dense ;/

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  • 1 month later...
On 4/11/2019 at 12:06 PM, s1ngle said:

I have no CUC due to picasso triggerfish.

Incorrect.   

 

Since you have this fish and no snails, YOU are the cleanup crew. 


I think this algae has been referred to as "cotton candy algae" by the way, and I'm sure it's from the crazy nutrient situation and lack of CUC/laziness combined with the wicked over-feeding that's going on.

 

You either have to apply more elbow grease to the problem or less food.   Use your first finger and thumb as a virtual parrotfish and pinch chunks of algae off the rocks.  It'll take a lot of persistence, but you should be able to get it.  If that seems like too much....

 

IMO, remove the triggerfish or remove the reef lighting and go with traditional (subdued) fish lighting.

 

You definitely need to stop trying to artificially lower nutrient levels -- there is no progress to be made in that direction unless you want dino's again. 

 

If anything dose nitrates and phosphates as needed to KEEP THEM BALANCED.  >0.03 ppm for phosphates.  >5 ppm for nitrates.  It's no good to dose one without the other...in fact dosing nitrates without phosphates can be a killer. 

 

Under good, balanced conditions you should see green hair algae predominate.  Easier to manage AND a cleanup crew will eat it (if they're permitted to live).

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