another cyano help thread!!

[wozza]

i had cyano all over my sand bed, but now ive stired it all up and now its just like all mixed in with it.
my question is if i leave my lights off for about a week will my brown star polyps die?

cheers james

[sihaya]

Well, that wasn't the best move, but I wouldn't worry too much about it. Cyano isn't going to hurt anything unless it's smuthering your coral. If it's just on the sand bed, from now on just suck it up with a turkey baster or just peel it off by hand.

[wozza]

when i suck it up with a siphon it takes up loads of my sand.
im selling some of my fish and down sizeing my tank to a 2'x1'x'1 because i cant afford to keep on buying slt and r/o water now im at college.
but when i start the new tank im going for a sand less bottom so i can have loads of flow so hopefully cyano wont beable to grow.

cheers james

[sihaya]

going for a sand less bottom so i can have loads of flow so hopefully cyano wont beable to grow.

LOL Don't count in it. I have a Tunze, maxijet and hot magnum all producing loads of flow in my 65g and I still get cyano. Cyano doesn't need low flow to grow (even if it does grow more easily in low flow). All it needs is a surface (and it doesn't have to be sand). It might be easier to remove cyano in a BB tank, but it can still grow. And even if you don't get cyano, you might get an even more annoying nuissance algae.

What you need to do is figure why you're getting so much cyano. If it's just a bloom, then it's likely no big deal and will correct itsself in a month or so. But if it just keeps getting worse or never goes away, then your tank is out of balance somehow.

[wozza]

oh i know why its there i used to use tap water for my water changes and when i fiannaly had enuf spare cash to by some test kits my nitrates were at about 60+ppm.
my phosphates were probly very high as well but i didnt have enuf cash for that one.
my LFS has finally got some water containers for the r/o water and ive been useing that for the past month for my changes and top off, and my nitrates are down to 30ish ppm but still there clearly far to high.

cheers james

[sihaya]

Ah, gotcha. But all the more reason why just going BB won't be a complete solution...

[wozza]

true, but i think going BB will be benifical in the long run.
It also makes it easyer to spot and siphon out any crap, were as with the sand bed it will just stays there and rots.
im not gonna have just plain glass bottom im gonna buy some slate and cover the bottom in that and silacone arond any cracks so the crap doesnt just get blown under it and rot anyway oh and of course on the new tank im only gonna use r/o water not making the same mistake again.

cheers james.

P.s. do you think 1x36watt compact T5 would be enuf to keep star polyps alive?

[sihaya]

I don't want to start a BB/DSB debate here (god knows there are enough of those). But I'll still encourage you to read more about the pros and cons of BB vs. DSB. That "crap" at the bottom of your tank doesn't always need to be siphoned out (you might not even want to take out all of it).

I think the best part of your plan is using R/O. That will definitely make a difference!

About the lighting for star polyps. It depends on how far down the tank they are. Maybe if they're at the top, close to the light, they'll be ok. But I'd try to get them under better lighting if I were you. Star polyps and zoanthids can adapt to a wide range of lighting conditions, but they do usually like more light than that (I believe).

[wozza]

i know a bit about the DSB thing ive read a few good articles on them i think there are very good it just that i think the pros out weigh the cons in this case.(for the display tank any how)
im gonna have a small 2.5gal sum in wich ill have a small RDSB and some macro algie growing on a reverse photoperiod.

here are the articles ive read about DSB's i think there quite good
Seabay Article- Are Plenums Obsolete? Another Viewpoint Part 1 by Dr. Rob Toonen
Seabay Article- Are Plenums Obsolete? Another Viewpoint Part 2 by Dr. Rob Toonen
Jonathan Lowrie, Sand Beds, June 14, 1998 - www.reefs.org

cheers james

[sihaya]

Oh yeah, Toonen is great... one of the few true scientists in the hobby.

[wozza]

yeah i dont know many of them, only Dr Ron and that dude.
Maybe one day when ive done my degree ill go on to do Doctorate and be one of them............haha in my dreams will i

[sihaya]

You know what, I actually like Toonen's articles on sandbeds better than Dr. Shimek's... but yeah, Shimek is another one of the real scientists (so is Farley).

[wozza]

me to toonen's is easyer to read in IMO.

james

[sihaya]

haha... in a way, yeah. Toonen's are more complete, but they're also very science-professor-ish. Shimek's are more appropriately written for hobbyists, but they're almost over-simplified. (imo) One of these days I'm going to back-source Toonen's article and see if I can't learn even more about it all.

But come on James, are you telling me you read all these articles and you still want to go BB?!

[wozza]

yep im affraid so.
The problem with living in the uk is, as far as ive been able to find its impossible to buy live sand or any kind of detrivour kit.
Ive been searching for about 3 months and not one site or LFS sells it here(that i can find).
So all i would get from a DSB is the denitrification, a slightly better looking tank and non of the waste prosesing capabilatys.

james