Yep, that link I had in the "Secrets" thread is no longer good. I don't know what happened. Here is another one that can help with figuring out Cyano:
http://www.utahreefs.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=27443Several interesting points have been brought up that I'd like to comment on.
1. The reason N compounds test at next to zero is that the Cyano is helping eat them up. It's normal for a tank with good algae growth to have zero Nitrogen.
2. Rinsing frozen food removes small bites of the food that can be eaten by coral and small inverts, including sponge and tunicates. These are some of the best organisms to have growing in our tanks. They create the marvelous stability seen in older tanks. I've never bothered with rinsing food, but neither do I feed dry prepared pellets or flake. I have seen how they are made...gross.
They can contribute to cyano.
3. A TDS of 6 ppm of the purified water is good and reducing TDS to zero will probably make no difference in Cyano growth. To check the DI resin, simply check the water going into the DI chamber, the RO water. If the RO water has a significantly higher TDS than the water leaving the DI, then the resin is working and does not need to be replaced.
4. Cyano needs both N and PO4 to grow. It is one of the oldest organisms on the earth. It can survive in all kinds of conditions. It was always in the tank. Once it gets a good start in a tank, it may always show up in one spot or another, so I don't worry about small patches.
5. Water changes, even with really pure water can often contribute to Cyano growth. As was mentioned it is because of the addition of the typical trace elements. In a reef aquarium with good biological filtration, water changes are mostly for replacing trace elements that have been used by the tank inhabitants. If a reef tank consistently has greater than 25 ppm of Nitrates, something is not tuned right with regard to the biological filtration. A hobbyist should look at increasing the biological filtration rather than doing frequent or large water changes to reduce N compounds.
6. Some pollutants/toxins do not break down fast enough. For that we need AC (Activated Carbon). AC should be used at least one week per month but does not need to be used continuously. It removes the toxins produced by coral and algae which if allowed to build up can seriously degrade tank health. The use of a skimmer or Macroalgae harvesting to remove organic waste is good but cannot remove some toxins. We rely on AC for that but the use of AC typically does nothing to slow the growth of Cyano.
7. The dosing of sugar/alcohol feeds the bacteria population. This artificially enables the aquarium to handle a larger load of pollutants. Reducing the sugar dosing causes those bacteria to seek other food, stealing it away from the Cyano. It is a risky practice if not monitored closely.
There are more natural and no risk ways to ensure sufficient biological filtration. The use of good skimming, the regular harvesting of macroalgae from the display or Refugium, 24/7 lighting of the Refugium or the display(temporarily), changing the lighting intensity or duration up or down, and the use of good LS. A hobbyist must search for a way to steal the nutrients from the Cyano.
A little Oolitic sand can work a miracle in eliminating Cyanobacteria. Dig three deep depressions, down to the glass, in the existing substrate. In each depression pour a quart of clean Oolitic sand. Cover the new sand by spreading the old sand over the top. Many times I have seen this procedure eliminate the Cyano within a week and it never came back.
Hope this helps.
Edited by Mark Peterson - February 27 2009 at 10:50am
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Cameron wrote: