Disgusting Black Stringy Algae? (pics)

[pagoona]

My 20 gallons tank has been set up for about 4 months... 2 false percs, 2 peppermint shrimp, 1 turbo snail, 1 nassarius snail, several snails hitched in w/ the live rock. Recently I have been getting this gross black algae-looking stuff growing on my sandbed and making its way up the glass and the rocks. My levels last tested were:
pH - 8.0
ammonia - 0
nitrite - 0
nitrate - <10
alkalinity - 5 mEq/L
Temp - 81F
Based on the stated flow of my pumps I have a total flow of 454 gallons per hour. I don't have a sump, I use a HOB AquaClear filter (size 50 I believe). No protein skimmer, my previous skimmer wasn't removing anything so I sold it. I have about 12lbs of base rock and 10lbs of live rock. I use bottled RO water from the grocery store. I use a standard 15w florescent bulb (no reef here), on 10 hours a day.
None of my critters seem to eat this stuff. I've manually removed most of it once, but it grew back rather quickly. I recently performed a 50% water change, but that didn't seem to help.
Is this stuff cyanobacteria? It's not slimy. If I put some in a cup and shake it, it pretty much stays together and doesn't break up. Does anybody know what it is, and is there any critter that will eat it? Will it go away with time?
Pics:

 

[xokarmaxo]

Looks like cyanobacteria to me.

 

[nick76]

It is cyno, im having a similar problem but its on my rocks not the sand.

 

[pagoona]

Yeah, I was thinking it was cyano. I read that a big water change and increase in flow could help it, but I tried both and nothing happened. I read that astrea snails munch on cyano, but I have my doubts.

 

[snaredrum]

Its cyano. Try shutting off the lights for a couple of days. Reduce feeding and a water change. Make sure that you have no dead spots in the tank. When all else fails call in Antired. I had to use it. IF you do, please read the bottle and follow exactly. Your zoo's and any zenia's will look bad for about a week. My tank is back to normal with no cyano.

 

[michaeltx]

I dont know of anything that wil eat it. there is an under lying problem as to why you have it in the first place. There is nothing that you can do to completely rid it unless you fix the problem that is causeing it.
what type of water are you useing and flow rate of the tank.
most of the time is caused by bad source water, inadequate water, flow, over feeding, and or overstocking.
abit more on the tank will help in figuring it out.
also I dont suggest useing chemicals unless its a last resort its way to easy to use them wrong and wipe a tank out.
HTH
Mike

 

[pagoona]

I mentioned the type of water and my flow rate in the original post. I get my RO water from the grocery store... it says it is mechanically filtered, carbon filtered, RO filtered, then passed through a UV sterilizer. Of course, there is no way to trust its purity. Also, I do not overfeed. In fact, I've already cut back on feeding even though I didn't think I was overfeeding in the first place.
I'm going to try to leave it dark for a couple days and see what happens. Also, I got a few astrea snails just for the heck of it. I don't have faith in them to clean up the mess, but at least they're a good addition to my cleanup crew.

 

[michaeltx]

leaving it dark will not kill this stuff its a bacteria not algae so even though it reacts to light depriveing it of light wont kill it.
I missed the RO part in that.
on the flow I was asking how you have your pumps set up in the tank. you can have massive flow but if its all at the top of the tank it doesnt do much for the bottom of the tank.
Mike

 

[snaredrum]

This was taken from another post. I had saved it to Word Doc. when I had the problem. Thanks
"Although red slime is not actually an algae, it has very similar properties as algae does. The driving forces that cause it to grow are very similar that that of the typical algaes seen in reef tanks. Improper lighting, excess nutrients, carbon dioxide accumulation are all contributors to the growth of cyano.
Having lighting that is in the wrong spectrum is one thing that may very well lead to an outbreak of any algae, but especially red slime. I think that most of us are using the correct lighting sources for aquariums, but that does not mean that this is not your cause. Old bulbs can shift spectrums as they age, which will create an ideal growth environment for any algae. Try changing your bulbs. Dont change them all at once so that you dont shock the animals in your tank, but rather one at a time every week or so. Changin your bulbs is probably the easiest thing that can be done, and in many cases is the source of the problem.
Another problem may be that the light source is on for too long a period. True that over a natural reef, there may be light 12 out of the 24 hours in a day, but if you really think about it, the intensity of this light is only at its maximum for about 2-3 hours a day, and sufficient light for about 8-9 hours a day. If you turn on your lights for 12 hours a day, at full strength, then you are providing far too long of a lighting period. Try limiting the amount of time that lights are on to 7-8 hours a day. A good starting point is to cut the amount of time that your lights are currently on for in half. Then slowly bring the time period up over the next few weeks. Keep adding a half an hour every couple days until you reach 7-8 hours. If you see the cyano return, then back it off a little.
Adjusting the lighting is the easiset method to dealing with a cyano outbreak, but it is not always the solution. If either of these dont work, then keep reading.
Another fuel for the growth of cyano is an excess of nutrients. This is the most commonly thought of source for an algae bloom, but is not always the case. Excess nutrients can come from only two places. And you are adding both of them. They dont just appear out of nowhere. Phosphates, and nitrates are the two most common nutirents found to promote algae growth. These can come form a poor quality water source and excess feeding.
For startes, RO water is a must. RO/DI is even better. Using either of these as your water source will GREATLY aid in your battle. Expecially if you are currently using tap or another form of unfiltered water. Using RO or RO/DI water will eliminate any excess nutrients that may have been present in your source water which will help to reduce the accumulation of any excess nutrients.
Another cause for excess nutrients is over feeding. Feeding any aquarium properly is a difficult task for anyone, but especially beginners. Most of the time, people over feed their tank, BIG TIME! Rarely do people under feed a tank, otherwise their fish would be dead. This is the only area that I cannot give advise on as I dont know what kind of fish you guys keep, or what kind of food you are giving. But as a general rule of thumb, feed only enough food that it is all gone in under five minutes. I do advocate feeding on a daily basis, but some systems just cannot handle this. Personally, I feed about every other day. I may go two days once in a great while, but I found that feeding every day was too much for my system, and I got Cyano. Most people would be surprised to know that fish could go a good 4-5 days without food and be perfectly fine. I dont suggest this, as it is just mean to starve you fish, but I tell you as a frame of reference. So as another defense, cut down on feedings. Maybe less food, or less often, or both".

 

[michaeltx]

yes cutting the lighting down will cause it to subside but it wont kill it out since its a bacteria. It will get worse with more light is true .
Mike

 

[pagoona]

I found out that in the wee hours of the morning, sunlight is coming through my window and hitting the side of the tank. I never knew because I'm usually not up that early. I'm in the process of moving my tank away from the window and I physically removed most of the cyanobacteria while I kept my rock and livestock in a Rubbermaid tub. After I move it, I am going to get a new florescent bulb designed for saltwater use. I don't know what spectrum my current bulb is, it was included when I bought the light strip. But on the back of the light strip it says "Use only with fresh water." I'm also going to cut back the light to 7-8 hours and day and only feed once a day and hopefully all this will cause the cyano to stop growing.

 

[snaredrum]

Originally Posted by MichaelTX
yes cutting the lighting down will cause it to subside but it wont kill it out since its a bacteria. It will get worse with more light is true .
Mike
I think at this I would be trying to suck out as much of it as possible also. Hey Michael TX "Cyano Sux"

 

[michaeltx]

yes it does!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Here is a rather lenghty thread on cyno one thing is that it is exagertaed by the wrong spectrum light and sunlight hitting the tank along with excess nutrients.
cyno thread
HTH
Mike

 

[snaredrum]

Thanks you Sir!