light schedule...is this my cyano problem

[dieselndixie]

hey

my 55g is fairly new (5 mths) and I am having a red algae breakout. Is it my light schedule?

265watt PC

blues come on from 12 - 10

12k daylights 1-7

thanks

sidenote -- here are my lights ...anyone had these? I think my blues arent blue enough http://www.aquatraders.com/index.asp?PageA...&ProdID=13&HS=1

[hammondegge]

if it is Cyano it is not photosynthetic and should not be effected by lights - so they say. I have noticed in areas of low flow in my seahorse tank that it will disappear at night and reappear when the lights come on. Go figure. The only connection that i could think of is possibly PH. Maybe the Cyano does better as the PH climbs during the photo period.

As for getting rid of it - increase your flow and it will go.

If that doesnt do it then look at reducing nitrates and phosphates. Perhaps a phosphate reactor.

g'luck

**** - only 16 shells

[GKarshens]

Actually, Cyano is affected by light. I had it terrible in my old 29 and tried everything. I went away for the weekend and left the lights off the whole time. Came back and it was gone. Everything else stayed the same so it had to be the lights. I've also read that once your bulbs shift spectrums from aging that Cyano is more likely.

[hammondegge]

this may help.

http://www.wetwebmedia.com/bluegralgae.htm

[dieselndixie]

do you think my corals could tolerate the lights being off for a day or two, or should I just lower the light times to like 3 hrs a day until it goes away?

I tried an expirement yesterday....let only the actinics come on...I think the red algae has gotten better just by doing that. or its just my imagination.

[dieselndixie]

great link by the way....

[hammondegge]

i have seen that kind of a relationship too Gabriel. however all the sources that i have read on Cyanobacteria suggest that the quality of light effects Cyano in an inverse way, ie. old bulbs allow the cyano to out compete good algaes and fresh lighting promotes good algae growth that will outcompete the Cyanobacteria. i should correct the not photosynthetic comment, i do believe there is photosynthesis in cyano (though it is hard to find any reference to this in articles) however it is nutrients that fuel the outbreaks. Gabriels experience with cyano recession leaving the lights off may have been a result of lowered PH or perhaps there was no feeding during that time. I have read that the cyano that we find in our marine systems prefer PH of 8.0-8.3. If you successfully reduce or eliminate the cyano by reducing or leaving the lights off all together, and do not change anything else then it will return when you increase your photo period.

What are your Nitrate and Phosphate levels?

[GKarshens]

That was an interesting article. It did mention that they are photosynthetic here: "algae are autotrophic (self-feeding), have no complex organization (no leaves, roots, stems, xylem/phloem vascular network); but do contain chlorophyll and other photosynthetic pigments."

When I left my lights completely off for about 40 hrs, my corals had no adverse effects. I read someone's thread on Reef Central that once a year they leave the lights off for 3 days to mimic a tropical storm. He claims he has better polyp extention in the days that follow than any other time. It is worth a try.

[PeeperKeeper]

I just started noticing some cyano in my tank too and it definitely correlates to me feeding more because I recently added a sailfin tang. Previously I only had a couple cardinals a firefish goby and a 6 line wrasse in my 75g. Also, I recently started feeding more planktons for the corals so both those things have added up to give me the start of a cyano bloom. I had been ignoring it until now, but I better get after it before it becomes a big problem.

Robert, thanks for the link. That was indeed very helpful. I need to cut back some on my feeding and keep the skimmer nice and clean, and get out the turkey baster to suck that stuff out!

[GKarshens]

Just a hint on sucking it out. A turkey baster is very hard to use. It sucks it up but parts of it fall out before you can get it out of the tank. The best thing I found was using airline to syphon it out. It clogs with pieces of sand but it doesn't break up the cyano and spread it back into the tank.

[Austinvines]

The best thing I found was using airline to syphon it out.  It clogs with pieces of sand but it doesn't break up the cyano and spread it back into the tank.

I agree with siphoning and do it fairly regularly since I have a terrible cyano outbreak that has come back after days of 10g water changes on my 75g system. I just added a phosban reactor and used the entire package of phosban that is suitable for a 150g tank and will see what this gets me. I have added flow but haven't really noticed a difference. My lights (vho) are 6 weeks old and are on for 12 hours each day.

My only conclusion is that it is related to how much food I give the fish and corals. Since I am so new at this, I keep thinking that think my fish are on the brink of death - so what do I do? Make sure they are happy and feed them lots of small meals when they are probably just suffering from indegestion in the first place.

If phosban, a new skimmer and lessend feedings doesn't clear it up, I am prepared to call DefCon 2 and release the chemical weapons. cwm21.gif

[dieselndixie]

i cut my lights down to 10 hrs actinic and 5 hours of both.....and it made a noticable difference in 2 days...I think I had the lights on too much before. I am also much more cautious now as to how much food it going in there.

[reeferRob]

I've cut my 3 - 150MH back to 3 hours a day!! After the 1st hour the tank just starts bubbling and the red crap covers everything!! Actinics run about 12. I've had people tell me how pretty/cool all those bubbles are under that red stuff! LOL!!