Copepods adding them ugly phase?
- Thread starter Courtmich
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If you want to support local, bulldawg reef has copepods that Premier Aquatics carries. If you want to order, Reef Nutrition has great pods. Dinkins is also an option. There are also tons of people that post pods/phyto on R2R.
What is are R2R? I am new to the saltwater group
What is are R2R? I am new to the saltwater group
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That looks like a diatom. Does it smell sour?!
I would get the ones with variety of pods in a pack. And will need to feed your tank with phytoplankton to keep them populating.
I would get the ones with variety of pods in a pack. And will need to feed your tank with phytoplankton to keep them populating.
Hello and welcome to the hobby!
It does look like diatoms, I would beware of anything that might be leaching silicates into the water. I had a biobrick at one point that seemed to leach silicates. You may check out this article. https://www.bulkreefsupply.com/cont...ow-to-gain-control-of-your-silicate-situation
I found the Phosgard helpful.
Good luck
It does look like diatoms, I would beware of anything that might be leaching silicates into the water. I had a biobrick at one point that seemed to leach silicates. You may check out this article. https://www.bulkreefsupply.com/cont...ow-to-gain-control-of-your-silicate-situation
I found the Phosgard helpful.
Good luck
Pods are not going to cure your algae problem. They may help tho. If this is a new tank and its going through the ugly stage then time is your best friend.
It does not smell
. I even asked my wife to come smell and she said Nope.
Copepods are absolutely a must for all mixed-reef aquariums. It would be best to get a set that comes with the three major benthic (surface-dwelling) species, Apocyclops, Tigriopis and Tisbee.
However they alone are not going to solve this issue. My tank is new, and having a heck of a diatom outbreak in the fuge. I've also got pods swarming everywhere, but they're just not enough. I'm waiting on more CUC to clear observation before I put them in, they would no doubt help a lot, but even they I do not think would be enough - not at this stage in the tank's life-cycle. Early diatom blooms are just kind of a fact of life in any aquarium with lights and silica in the water.
I've actually got a 50% water-change planned for tonight/tomorrow (primarily because nitrates are high), and while I usually don't siphon the gravel directly, I'll be doing so in the fuge to remove the excess diatoms that I've blown off the rock or scraped off the glass and have settled on the bottom... R.I.P. to all the poor pods that are going to get sucked up in the process, but it has to get done, since removing the diatoms themselves will also export the silicates they've taken up.
Thankfully, said refugium is paying the bills and doing all the heavy lifting. Despite some remnants of the diatoms making their way from the fuge into the DT when I clean it, the DT is almost entirely free from them (PAR and photoperiod is also MUCH higher in the fuge than in the DT).
Still, simple export is the best way, especially if it's just a reasonably new tank (as it looks to be... less than a year old?), and getting some macro algae growing (or a turf scrubber) going in your sump will help in the long-term.
While Phosguard is also an option, if the tank is actually more mature, you'll want to find out why your silicates are high enough that diatoms are running away - are you using tap water? Do you need to change RODI filter media? Could it be your salt mix?
However they alone are not going to solve this issue. My tank is new, and having a heck of a diatom outbreak in the fuge. I've also got pods swarming everywhere, but they're just not enough. I'm waiting on more CUC to clear observation before I put them in, they would no doubt help a lot, but even they I do not think would be enough - not at this stage in the tank's life-cycle. Early diatom blooms are just kind of a fact of life in any aquarium with lights and silica in the water.
I've actually got a 50% water-change planned for tonight/tomorrow (primarily because nitrates are high), and while I usually don't siphon the gravel directly, I'll be doing so in the fuge to remove the excess diatoms that I've blown off the rock or scraped off the glass and have settled on the bottom... R.I.P. to all the poor pods that are going to get sucked up in the process, but it has to get done, since removing the diatoms themselves will also export the silicates they've taken up.
Thankfully, said refugium is paying the bills and doing all the heavy lifting. Despite some remnants of the diatoms making their way from the fuge into the DT when I clean it, the DT is almost entirely free from them (PAR and photoperiod is also MUCH higher in the fuge than in the DT).
Still, simple export is the best way, especially if it's just a reasonably new tank (as it looks to be... less than a year old?), and getting some macro algae growing (or a turf scrubber) going in your sump will help in the long-term.
While Phosguard is also an option, if the tank is actually more mature, you'll want to find out why your silicates are high enough that diatoms are running away - are you using tap water? Do you need to change RODI filter media? Could it be your salt mix?
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I also believe you need to export manually well.
Few days ago, I opened my sump and realized that the filter pad (very big) was black and It’s blue/green color usually. So I went and taken out the filter pad that was between my baffle in my sump. Ran it over the sink and it was so dirty. And was pulling out a tons. I washed it and put it back. But next morning, I decided to completely take it out since it was coated in something I figure it’s better not to put it back in. This filter pad was never moved or cleaned since the tank transfer little over a month ago.
So now, my Dinoflagellate is about 70% gone over two day course. So I’m winning. lol. No water changes. Getting the tank dirty by feeding more but also needed to make sure the tank isn’t getting dirty or trapping these late and bacteria’s.
Few days ago, I opened my sump and realized that the filter pad (very big) was black and It’s blue/green color usually. So I went and taken out the filter pad that was between my baffle in my sump. Ran it over the sink and it was so dirty. And was pulling out a tons. I washed it and put it back. But next morning, I decided to completely take it out since it was coated in something I figure it’s better not to put it back in. This filter pad was never moved or cleaned since the tank transfer little over a month ago.
So now, my Dinoflagellate is about 70% gone over two day course. So I’m winning. lol. No water changes. Getting the tank dirty by feeding more but also needed to make sure the tank isn’t getting dirty or trapping these late and bacteria’s.
Ah, probably just an ugly phase then. Use a turkey baster to blow the crud off the rock, then do a 50% water change, and siphon the surface of the gravel while you're at it.
Run some phosguard if you want, but get a phosphate test kit too, make sure you don't bottom phosphate out completely - phosphate should be somewhere vaguely around 1/10th of nitrate, which itself should be somewhere between 3 and 10, with 5ppm nitrate being a sweet spot.
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You can do water change at any time. Just try not to syphon the sandbed or substrates where pods will be around the most. Or do a sectional cleaning.
Just beef up your clean up crew. Now is a great time. Nassarius snails will be your best friend and some blue leg hermits! This is a normal phase and just means your tank is maturing!
Have you tested your nitrate & phosphate levels? Knowing those numbers is pretty much essential to knowing the best way to attack your algae problem. If you have a test post the results, and if not I’d go get a test kit ASAP.
I have just tested my levels. How do I get my numbers up?
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you should bring your salinity up. to 1.025-1.027 ideally. Its most important aspect to the reef tank. "Feed more". As your nitrate was at 20 but now zero. which means either your tank filtrations are too good or you not feeding enough. this is general idea since i cant tell what you got in there as livestock and size of the tank. You can also use pre-formulated solutions you can buy or make your own solutions to bring those numbers up.
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The light that i use is https://www.amazon.com/SMATFARM-Aquarium-Light-Moonlight-Suspension/dp/B0DBDTNMBT
The light that i use is https://www.amazon.com/SMATFARM-Aquarium-Light-Moonlight-Suspension/dp/B0DBDTNMBTAttachments
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