Vibrant Liquid Aquarium Cleaner review

[Sealybomb]

1 hour ago, Tamberav said:

 

Your question was well answered above but I just want to again... mention.. this is setting up a tank for dinoflagellates. They thrive in places of low nutrients where other algae is missing, they can kill snails and coral and are the ugliest and sometimes most stubborn form of pests. 

 

I have seen on bigger forums the cycle... try to get rid of algae with vibrant which works but end up with cyano, dose chemi clean for cyano, and end up with dinoflagellates.

 

Tired is correct in that live rock often ends up with a cleaner looking tank. I used that in my 5g pico for the contest and it is sooo easy to maintain. One has to familiarize themselves with certain pests though to know what and how to remove them if they hitch a ride. 

 

A small UV won't be harmful and can keep your water more clear if that is the goal but won't do anything for what is on the rock. I do run UV's in two of my systems. It is a totally optional piece of equipment that adds more cost and heat into the tank though. 

Won’t be using a UV as unfortunately I don’t have the room for it. The tank is on a bedside table and I am trying to keep it stock and “low tech” so no skimmer ect.

looks like I might be getting my first signs of GHA so that should keep my snails happy, time will tell if that gets out of hand or not!!

I have vibrant but it’s going to be kept as a last resort 👍

[Murphs_Reef]

Yeah vibrant in my experience has little to no impact on GHA anyway. I think it comes down to more than nutrients,.good flow, regulated lighting and we'll balanced parameters, skim well and it will all help.

[seabass]

Water changes and another round of Vibrant today.

[Jungle_vip]

How are things looking? Been a couple weeks since any other pics I think? The 40 was looking good but the 100 is the one I keep thinking about.  
 

I stopped dosing vibrant and went back to manual removal of GHA. Since not pulling on it for a month it grew to where I could really get after it. Not sure if the vibrant had any effects on it but the snails plowed right through the areas I manually removed. It was so easy to remove this time. I also noticed brittle starfish around more today. Wondering if they were in shock and hiding from the vibrant dosing. Did a big 50 percent change Saturday so timing seems about right to begin noticing any positives. 

[seabass]

I'm almost done with the first bottle of Vibrant.  I'm currently trying to evaluate the remaining algae, which is almost gone; so I'm trekking on.  I feel like I'm so close that it wouldn't make sense for me to stop at this point.

 

I'm wondering if dosing nutrients has been helping or hurting.  The cyano is relentless, so it's no wonder why people throw in the towel and just dose ChemiClean.  I will not do that; however, it's nice to know that the Re-Fresh and Waste-Away combo was effective against it.

 

The coral health in my 100 gallon tank has me the most worried, and baffled.  I don't know if I'm on the right track or not, but I've temporarily stopped dosing nutrients, as well as alkalinity, in an attempt to lower each.  The corals appear to be suffering from lack of nutrients, so it just feels wrong to attempt this move.  I'm also even contemplating switching to a lower alkalinity salt mix.

 

I know that I'm mostly just reacting to an unknown, which seems a bit desperate.  IDK, in my mind it makes the most sense just to quit dosing Vibrant, as my original goal has almost been achieved.  Then, I come back to the fact that I've come too far to turn back now.  But soon.

 

In addition (on a slightly unrelated note), my cardinalfish juveniles are ready for market, so those two tanks will be getting freed up soon.  I'm also hoping that my LFS is willing to take about 16 RFAs as well.  That will allow me to really clean up these Vibrant tanks when I'm done dosing.

 

Afterwards, I'll do a large water change, add new sand, dose a bunch phyto, and add some pods.  I'm even contemplating adding some new live rock from KP Aquatics, to add back biodiversity; because it feels like I've created a tinder box for dinos.

 

I'll try to take a few pics tomorrow.  Also, I need to test parameters to see what things look like now.

[seabass]

40 Gallon:

You can see cyano on the bottom left, covering the walls.  On the top of the rock, you can see some "decorative" red macro growing nicely through this.

 

 

Various montipora frags, doing pretty good.  That's cyano, not coralline, on the egg crate.

 

The coralline algae on the rocks is doing well; possibly even spreading.  However, I'm not seeing new coralline growing on the walls or equipment.  I wonder if stray coralline spores are affected, while the existing coralline continues to encrust.

 

100 Gallon:

In the center of the pic, you can see a lone blade of macro.  There are a few of these in various areas of this tank.  I want to remove these, then dose a few more rounds of Vibrant.

 

This bleached monti cap seems to have stabilized.  However, I'm still a little concerned.

 

Polyp extension is quite limited.

 

I'm thinking that this green "algae" might also be cyano.

 

Tissue necrosis on a few montipora frags in this tank.

[seabass]

I dosed another round of Vibrant today; this will be my last (at least for awhile).  I essentially finished off the first bottle (although there are a just few milliliters left to experiment with under my microscope).  If you recall, I purchased two bottles; I'll leave the other sealed if I decide to follow up with more treatments down the road.

[seabass]

Just thought I'd share this series of videos with everyone:

[seabass]

4 hours ago, lorenzdenesiks said:

 Is it a good idea to use vinegar in a combinationwith other soft cleaning agents to clean the aquarium inside? 

When the tank is empty, you can use a distilled white vinegar solution to clean the inside glass surfaces too.  This is especially effective for removing any mineral deposits on the glass.  I wouldn't combine it with other cleaning agents, as they might not be safe to use inside a fish tank (and shouldn't be necessary).  However, this type of vinegar is safe when rinsed off with water afterwards.

 

A fairly weak solution can be used to remove water marks.  But you might need a much stronger solution to remove heavier deposits.  I typically use a clean new spray bottle that I've reserved just for vinegar solutions to soak deposits, then let it sit for awhile before wiping it down.  Make sure you rinse it off with clean freshwater before using the tank again.  I use RO/DI or distilled water to wipe down the outside of the tank, to help prevent streaks.

 

You can use vinegar to clean deposits off of most equipment too.  Just rinse it in freshwater afterwards.  If storing the equipment, I usually do a final rinse in RO/DI or distilled water to prevent hard water deposits from drying on moving parts.

[Tired]

Vinegar should only be used to clean glass and equipment, not rocks. You don't want your rocks to be clean, you want them to be covered in life, and vinegar will kill that. 

[seabass]

Water changes today.  Plus I started dosing the DrTim's Dinoflagellate Treatment Bundle, which is a 9 day program that uses DrTim's Re-Fresh and Waste-Away.  I didn't wrap the tanks, but I did shut off the tank lights.  I'm using this treatment for cyano versus dinos, but the treatments are practically the same.

[seabass]

Since there was enough Re-Fresh for a fourth dose, I extended the blackout and Re-Fresh by another day.  I've been doing manual cleanings as well (leaving the clownfish nesting site alone for now, as they have been tending to a clutch of eggs, and I'd prefer them not attacking me).

 

The cyano seems to be in check once again.  I'll start dosing Waste-Away later today (day 5), and resume the normal light cycle.  Pics to follow after the lights come back on.

 

Even though I've discontinued Vibrant dosing, I plan to continue this thread for awhile to document the recovery and/or any post-dosing issues that I might face.  Also, I still want to take some pics under the microscope before I write up my final conclusions.

[seabass]

Photo dump...

 

40 Gallon:

The lights just turned on so the zoanthids aren't fully opened.  You might notice a green baby RFA nested in the left colony.

 

Some encouraging PE on this purple monti digitata.

 

There has been a recent reemergence of pineapple sponges.  Another good sign.

 

The coralline algae on the rocks has spread since starting last September.

 

Originally, this rock was covered in turf algae.

 

 

 

I've spotted a copepod on the glass today, so not totally extinct.  Check out this worm on the glass, just below another baby RFA.  There were several of these in the tank.

 

FTS

 

I dumped about a quart of phyto into this tank today (and maybe a half a gallon into the 100 gallon tank).

 

100 Gallon:

This monti cap is very much bleached.  There are still signs of life, but it's a little touch and go right now.

 

Lots of tissue loss on this montipora too.  However, I feel pretty good about this one.

 

A bit of hair algae on this rock.  However, I'm happy with the new coralline growth.

 

There is some rust colored growth on the rock on the right.  I feel that it gets more prominent as the day goes on.

 

I accidentally scratched the crap out of the tank by wiping off the glass before I completely scraped it clean.

 

Some sad frags.  But most still have some signs of life.

 

This Christmas monit cap has held up fairly well; although PE has been fairly limited lately.

 

Vibrant has had no negative effects on zoanthids.  They never looked so good.

 

FTS

[Tired]

If you don't know already, that worm is a dorvellidae. Harmless little algae-eaters that get to an inch long at most. I like to watch them when I spot them.

 

At least your RFAs all seem fine. It'd be a shame to lose all those babies. Though I do wonder what's going to happen when they grow.

[seabass]

6 minutes ago, Tired said:

At least your RFAs all seem fine. It'd be a shame to lose all those babies. Though I do wonder what's going to happen when they grow.

They are almost a plague.   I don't mind them so much, but their numbers do direct the direction of the tank.  I'm sure that I've purchased less than a dozen RFAs in my lifetime.  One is approaching 20 years old (from before when RFAs were very popular; probably because they aren't host anemones).

 

They seem to be pretty comfortable right next to one another.  They move a bit if others are overlapping their space too much.  I'm trying to get my LFS to buy a dozen or so from me (I'm willing to part with any RFAs which are on the glass, but I'd prefer not to have to ship them).

 

[Jungle_vip]

Dang it! That’s a big scratch too. 👎🏼I feel your

pain. Some 20 year old blondie with a purse scratched mine the first day I set it up. Right in center of tank. 😢same one who popped the breaker last week and left house. About killed my tank. yes I still allow her to live at home. For the moment..... 😂. 

 

rocks looking really good. Super cool

the pineapple Sponges have rebounded. Can’t wait to see the rebounded coral six months from now.

[seabass]

45 minutes ago, Jungle_v_i_p said:

Dang it! That’s a big scratch too. 👎🏼I feel your pain.

Yeah, eventually I'd like to switch this to a 75 gallon glass tank, as it's a pain to tip toe around acrylic worrying that a grain of sand might get caught up in an algae pad.  That, and the large bracing on top makes maintenance harder.  My rocks and livestock would also be fine with the downsize.  Well... maybe someday.

 

Current TRUVU Reef Ready 100 gallon acrylic tank:  48" x 24" x 20")

• Standard 75 gallon glass tank:  48.5" x 18.5" x 21.25"
• Standard 90 gallon glass tank:  48.5" x 18.5" x 25.375"
• Standard 120 gallon glass tank:  48.5" x 24.5" x 25.5"

[Gunner24]

Wow this is looking much better! I appreciate your long-form observations on this stuff! I was using vibrant for quite awhile but have switched to Dr. Tim's Refresh (here and there) and the Waste-away slow release gel sticks. Have you tried those? Or do you go with the liquid-form and manual dosing?

[Murphs_Reef]

16 hours ago, seabass said:

 

 

This Christmas monit cap has held up fairly well; although PE has been fairly limited lately.

Hold on!!! Stop!! No further.... That's a Christmas Monti cap? I think that's what my Monti is. I need a closer look at yours 

[seabass]

36 minutes ago, Gunner24 said:

I was using vibrant for quite awhile but have switched to Dr. Tim's Refresh (here and there) and the Waste-away slow release gel sticks. Have you tried those? Or do you go with the liquid-form and manual dosing?

I tried the gels, but had a bacterial bloom because I didn't dose the liquid first.  Then, I had no way to control the bloom besides pulling out the gels.  The liquid allows for more control, so I switched back.

 

I don't see myself using Waste-Away continuously.  However, I do see it as a much better option than ChemiClean for cyano, and occasionally to help remove built-up organics.  Re-Fresh seems a bit more aggressive, as it warns about potential problems with shrimp and snails.  But I haven't noticed issues with snail when I've used Re-Fresh.

[seabass]

51 minutes ago, Grimes said:

That's a Christmas Monti cap?

IDK, that's what they called it when I purchased it.  I typically don't get too caught up in marketing names.  For some reason, that name stuck in my mind.

 

42 minutes ago, Grimes said:

I need a closer look at yours

Here's a pic of it with better polyp extension:

[Murphs_Reef]

No not my Monti 😱😭

[seabass]

Test day:

 

40 Gallon	02/27/21	01/30/21	01/07/21	12/16/20	12/06/20	11/29/20
Phosphorus:	0 ppb	7 ppb	1 ppb	8 ppb	7 ppb	2 ppb
Nitrate:	0.0 ppm	1.0 ppm	0.0 ppm	2.5 ppm	2.0 ppm	2.0 ppm
Alkalinity:	9.3 dKH	12.5 dKH	10.2 dKH	11.5 dKH	11.8 dKH	12.5 dKH
Calcium:	-	400 ppm	-	-	-	-
Magnesium:	-	1470 ppm	-	-	-	-
100 Gallon	02/27/21	01/30/21	01/07/21	12/16/20	12/06/20	11/29/20
Phosphorus:	13 ppb	11 ppb	7 ppb	11 ppb	10 ppb	22 ppb
Nitrate:	2.5 ppm	2.5 ppm	5.0 ppm	5.0 ppm	2.0 ppm	2.0 ppm
Alkalinity:	8.6 dKH	11.6 dKH	10.5 dKH	11.5 dKH	11.8 dKH	11.8 dKH
Calcium:	-	500 ppm	-	-	-	-
Magnesium:	-	1460 ppm	-	-	-	-

 

Nutrients have bottomed out in the 40 gallon tank.  This is a little surprising because I dosed both nitrate and phosphate earlier in the day.  So I dosed a little more phosphate and nitrate into the 40 gallon tonight.

 

I haven't dosed alkalinity since testing last, so you notice the decline (even with fairly frequent water changes).  So I dosed alkalinity tonight too.

 

Note: Both tanks are experiencing slight bacterial blooms due to dosing Waste-Away.

[seabass]

I ordered some pods, macroalgae, and snails from Reef Cleaners this weekend.  The macro is primarily for diversity, as macro usually comes in with other beneficial life.  But currently, I'm not thinking that I'll keep the algae in the tanks long-term.

 

As a side note: My LFS agreed to buy my Banggai cardinalfish juveniles, and is interested in buying my loose RFAs in the 40 gallon tank.

[seabass]

Yesterday I discontinued Waste-Away dosing and switched to MicroBacter7.  I have the small bottle, which I'll dose daily on these two tanks (until it's gone).

 

Also, my Reef Cleaners order is supposed to get here on Friday.

 

Qty    Product Name
1    Caulerpa Prolifera

1    Red Gracilaria

1    Halimeda (Money Plant)

6    Astraea Snails

6    Florida Cerith

12    Nerite Snail

1    Pods+

1    Reef Pods Tisbe

1    Scarlet Hermit Crab

2    Blue Leg Hermit Crab

 

$65.20 (with free shipping)