Cyanobacteria

[Vallisneria]

I'm having a little problem in my 15g. I think i'm getting Cyanobacteria. I have patches of bright green and brown growing on a couple rocks but mostly on the sand and glass. It looks like this I tried cleaning it all out and yes it did come off in "sheets", except for the stuff growing on the sand. I read a bunch about getting rid of cyanobacteria in aquariums. Most said to either use erythromycin or to use a dark out method.

I"m not sure why this tank is getting this all of a sudden. In Feb. I changed the substrate from gravel to sand and basically "started over" completely changing the design of the tank. I"ve also kept the same water change routine, 30% once a week. I have 3 N. caudopunctatus in the tank and a couple Crypts. All my parameters are good(ammo-0 Nitrite-0 Nitrate-10ish ph 7.8).

So has anyone had to rid their tank of cyanobacteria? Can you give me any tips on what to do. Just now I removed as much as i could but I couldnt' get it out of the sand. I mostly just cleaned it off the glass and rocks. I also blacked out the tank with a towel and added a powerhead because it said to increase circulation to help prevent it from coming back.

Sorry for the long post but i want to fix this before it gets out of hand.

[Madness]

Best way I know of is EM

[Garhan]

I posted a response in the planted tank section to someone who has the same problem. EM works, but this algae can quickly develope a resistance to EM.

Alter your lights by 4 hours on, 2 off, and 4 on again. Up water changes to 2-3 per week at 50%. Remove all phosphate input via ferts. Remove all chemical filteration and polish your water with more filters. (powerheads etc....

Garhan

Edited June 12, 2005 by Garhan

[Vallisneria]

I already was altering my lighting. I used to have the lights on for about 10hours but when i started seeing algae(i was getting brown algae and a bit of green hair) i cut them back to 4-5 hours a day.

So garhan, do you suggest i not do a blackout and to try your "on and off" lighting?

I already added a powerhead(with prefilter) and i added more filter floss in my AC 200 filter. I also dont' have any chemical filtration and i dont' add ferts. So basically you are saying i just need to increase my water changes to a couple times a week? That will get rid of it, or keep it under control?

[Garhan]

Here is more detail, if you need more options.

BGA/Blue Green Algae/Cyanobacteria

This is an organism that is closely related to bacteria rather than algae but it is lump into algae. BGA has many species and forms and causes great angst hobbyist. Some forms of BGA grow slow and are very difficult to kill, other species grow very quickly and overwhelm and "smother" all the plants in short order. Some species are especially difficult types that won't die without treating the tank with antibiotics.

Treatment Option 1:

Tank blackout. This method is very effective against most species of BGA. Manually remove as much of the slimy BGA as possible. Then do a large (50-70%) water change and cover the tank with trash bags or thick blankets for 3-4 days. No light whatsoever should enter the tank. Your fish and plants will be fine, some plants like Glossostigma may get a bit "leggy" but you can give it a "haircut" and it will return to proper form in short order. Upon removal of the trash bags/blankets do another 50-70% water change, this helps get rid of all the dead BGA. Dose 10 ppm of nitrate and maintain nitrate at 5-20 ppm throughout the week.

Option 2:

Many times if the BGA is located in just one spot in the tank you can redirect the water current to kill the BGA. Stagnate spots are prime areas for BGA to develop. Generally speaking BGA doesn't like heavy current. I have positioned a power head directed into a patch of BGA and caused it to shrink and even disappear within days. Insuring that water circulation is ample in a planted tank helps thwart BGA outbreaks. Dose 10 ppm of nitrate and maintain nitrate at 5-20 ppm throughout the week.

Option 3:

Sometimes aquarists will inadvertently allow nitrate to drop to zero and remain there for several days to even weeks on end. When plants are nitrogen starved the environment is ripe for a BGA infestation. Increasing current and adding nitrate via potassium nitrate additions can often times eliminate BGA under these circumstances, so dose 10 ppm of nitrate and maintain nitrate at 5-20 ppm throughout the week.

Option 4:

Some species of BGA are extremely difficult. Repeated changes in current, blackouts, nitrate additions...nothing is able to fully beat back the BGA. In these extreme cases it may be necessary to, as a last resort, use an antibiotic such as erythromycin to kill the bacteria. Treatment with lower doses or shorter times can lead to not fully killing the bacteria and "could" lead to a more resistant strain. Like the use of any medication this should only be considered after repeated other methods fail. Do a 50-70% water change after the full treatment and dose 10 ppm of nitrate and maintain nitrate at 5-20 ppm throughout the week.

[Garhan]

Degrassi, if you need any KN03 (Potassium Nitrate) let me know and I will mix some up for you.

Garhan

[Vallisneria]

Thanks, so i think i'll try the blackout/powerhead treatments first. See if that works before i try anything more drastic.

Thanks for the offer Garhan, I'll let you know if i need some. What type are you using? where did you get it from?

[Garhan]

Home made from my garage.

Garhan

-roll-

[Vallisneria]

lol, but can you get the KNO3 at a local store or do you have to order it? I heard you can get it in this certain brand of stump remover. Do we have that here?

Right now the tank seems to be doing better. I had it blacked out for 3 days then had a day where i put the lights on for 4 hours then off then one again for a couple hours Then i blacked it out again untill today. I was also doing 40-50% water changes and removing as much of the algae as i could every 2 days.

Right now i can't really see any cyanobacteria. There is still abit of brown stuff in the sand but i'm not sure if that is brawn algae or cyanobacteria. I tried removing as much of the dirty sand as possible but i couldnt' get it all.

So it atleast its better then it was last week