what is this stuff

[bwaller76]

OK so I had a clam die in my tank and I got it out fairly quickly after it died. well ever since this event (not even positive the two are related) I have had an algae that looks similar to spider webs. it covers my corals and of course they don't like it and wont come out at all and I'm starting to get worried. I mix the water up and allow for my Skimmer to remove it but it just can never take care of it. I'm going to post pics and get your guys take on it and hopefully some suggestions

 

[lilduud]

looks like diatoms? but slightly stringier... correct me if im wrong biff almighty...
how old is your tank? diatoms are a normal part of a new tank

 

[bwaller76]

it is several months old but I have had my Almighty diatom bloom. I recently added some chaeto to a hob filter that I am using as a hob fuge. I just don't think this is related. I agree to it looking like diatoms but its the stringy aspect of it that has me perplexed. I have been water changing like a madman and nothing. my next step is putting that filter back to carbon filters and running that for a while.

 

[dcantucson]

I would say some type of diatoms as well. I am battling it in my tank now too. It's a PITA.

 

[yote]

That is Dinoflagellates.
Dinoflagellates - Predators, Pathogens, and Partners by Eric Borneman - Reefkeeping.com
https://www.livingreefs.com/great-algae-genocide-war-2010-a-t24202.html

 

[Bifferwine]

I agree -- the stringiness indicates that they are dinos. A lot of us have had our struggles with them lately!

 

[lilduud]

so in looking into this further i have found some strange results... aparently dinos like clean water and do not liveoff of nitrates in the tank... in fact keeping you nitrate level between 2 and 3 ppm is effective in killing the dinos because the bacteria inside them reproduce at a rate too rapid for the dinos and thus they explode and die... the bacteria thrive when the nitrate levels are around 3 ppm which leads to the population boom and ultimately the end of the dinos.. its important to wait out the entirety of the process however because doing a water change before they are completely one will only bring the problem back even stronger... the person i am quoting skipped doing changes for 2 months because he made the mistake of doing one too early and back the dinos came. another method is drastically cuting back your light cycle as in 3-5 hours max.
good luck! keep up with the results and show us how it goes! it would be a great thing to know how to effectively destroy a dino population

 

[yote]

so in looking into this further i have found some strange results... aparently dinos like clean water and do not liveoff of nitrates in the tank... in fact keeping you nitrate level between 2 and 3 ppm is effective in killing the dinos because the bacteria inside them reproduce at a rate too rapid for the dinos and thus they explode and die... the bacteria thrive when the nitrate levels are around 3 ppm which leads to the population boom and ultimately the end of the dinos.. its important to wait out the entirety of the process however because doing a water change before they are completely one will only bring the problem back even stronger... the person i am quoting skipped doing changes for 2 months because he made the mistake of doing one too early and back the dinos came. another method is drastically cuting back your light cycle as in 3-5 hours max.
good luck! keep up with the results and show us how it goes! it would be a great thing to know how to effectively destroy a dino population

When I had em.I completely blacked my tank for a full 14 days.I also dripped kalk 24/7 to keep the PH at 8.6 during the black out.

 

[bwaller76]

OK so I bought some buffer because my alk was low and got that fixed... my calcium is at 400 so good there but I had a lot of nitrates present so I am working on that and also going lights out for a few days to fix the dino problem! I am certain that everything is going to work out. I also worked about 25 hours of overtime this paycheck and sold my archery equipment and this is going to allow me to ramp up for a 75 gallon upgrade! my fish Guy has an older 75 gallon with the older thick glass plus stand with overflows installed for 200 bucks... the stand needs work but I am up for the challenge so look out for that... gonna change the 55 to fowlr for non reef safe fish and my 75 for the reef cuz of the extra space. w00t