Red Slime removal

[gastineaub]

I was told that Maracyn by Mardel will treat red slime. I know they both have the same active ingredient (erythromycin) but will this work??? I have some but the package clearly states it's for disease on fish. Should I use it??

 

[beaslbob]

Originally Posted by gastineaub
http:///forum/post/3235001
I was told that Maracyn by Mardel will treat red slime. I know they both have the same active ingredient (erythromycin) but will this work??? I have some but the package clearly states it's for disease on fish. Should I use it??
You can kill off red slime with antiboticts but I highly recommend you not do it.
red slime is cyano bacteria which will die off by just killing the lights for a few days. What probably happened is the nutrients changed to favor cyano over other plant life like corraline, macros and other algae. Specifically low nitrates. Cyano can take its nitrogen from the dissolved nitrogen gas and therefore blooms. Killing the lights kills off the cyano very fast which returns nitrogen on the form of nitrates for the other plant life.
my .02

 

[beth]

It will and it will also kill off your biological filter.
I've used chemiclean with success. Do not overdose!
Address the causes of red-slime; there is info on this in the Archives Forum.
Also, try using your tank lights sparingly over a week's time.

 

[renogaw]

i nuked my tank using red slime remover...
pH dropped, killed my snails, killed my bristle stars, which in turn proceeded to kill off some corals, which lead to dinoflaggilates...leading to a total scrub down of my tank and the loss of a whole bunch of stuff...
figure out why you have red slime, don't just put a bandaid over a bleeding wound

 

[florida joe]

I've used chemiclean with success. Do not overdose
I have also used this produce with success but as Beth said follow instructions and turn off your skimmer

 

[spanko]

Originally Posted by gastineaub
http:///forum/post/3235001
I was told that Maracyn by Mardel will treat red slime. I know they both have the same active ingredient (erythromycin) but will this work??? I have some but the package clearly states it's for disease on fish. Should I use it??
No.
Red Slime (Cyano Bacteria)
Cyano grows on top of nutrient rich areas of low flow. There are a number of things that need to be correct or possibly corrected to combat this without the use of chemical additives. The biggest thing is to get rid of the extra nutrients.
1.Evaluate your feeding. If you are feeding more than can be eaten in about 1-2 minutes it is too much and the remainder of it is falling to the rock and sand and becoming nutrient.
2.Evaluate your flow. If you have areas in the tank where there is little to no flow this can be corrected by adding power heads or repositioning the ones you already have. You don’t need to create sand storms just have water moving over the area to keep detritus suspended in the water column for removal by your filter – skimmer.
3.Evaluate your water changes. The solution to pollution is dilution! You want to continually remove unneeded nutrients as well as replace those things that are used by the system. 10% weekly is a good change schedule. Some do 20% every other week and some vary the schedule from there, but a good start is 10% per week.
4.Evaluate your lighting schedule. About 10 hours of daylight is all that is needed.
5.If you have a Cyano outbreak do the above 4 items and:
a.At water change time siphon off the Cyano first. It will come up easily almost like a blanket.
b.After siphoning stir the affected areas a little to suspend any detritus for the water change and filtering - skimming removal.
c.Use a turkey baster on the rockwork now and at every water change in the future to again suspend the detritus for removal by the water change and your filtering – skimming.
Keeping nutrient levels low to non-existent will help to avoid Cyano outbreaks and any algae outbreaks as well as keep your tank and you happy happy.
Hope that helps.
IMO if you are going to use one of the red slime removers on the market you do so at your tanks own peril.

 

[florida joe]

Originally Posted by spanko
http:///forum/post/3235996
No.
Red Slime (Cyano Bacteria)
Cyano grows on top of nutrient rich areas of low flow. There are a number of things that need to be correct or possibly corrected to combat this without the use of chemical additives. The biggest thing is to get rid of the extra nutrients.
1.Evaluate your feeding. If you are feeding more than can be eaten in about 1-2 minutes it is too much and the remainder of it is falling to the rock and sand and becoming nutrient.
2.Evaluate your flow. If you have areas in the tank where there is little to no flow this can be corrected by adding power heads or repositioning the ones you already have. You don’t need to create sand storms just have water moving over the area to keep detritus suspended in the water column for removal by your filter – skimmer.
3.Evaluate your water changes. The solution to pollution is dilution! You want to continually remove unneeded nutrients as well as replace those things that are used by the system. 10% weekly is a good change schedule. Some do 20% every other week and some vary the schedule from there, but a good start is 10% per week.
4.Evaluate your lighting schedule. About 10 hours of daylight is all that is needed.
5.If you have a Cyano outbreak do the above 4 items and:
a.At water change time siphon off the Cyano first. It will come up easily almost like a blanket.
b.After siphoning stir the affected areas a little to suspend any detritus for the water change and filtering - skimming removal.
c.Use a turkey baster on the rockwork now and at every water change in the future to again suspend the detritus for removal by the water change and your filtering – skimming.
Keeping nutrient levels low to non-existent will help to avoid Cyano outbreaks and any algae outbreaks as well as keep your tank and you happy happy.
Hope that helps.
IMO if you are going to use one of the red slime removers on the market you do so at your tanks own peril.
also remember no matter how you kill the cyano you will be releasing nitrates into your tank so as Henry stated water changes are a must

 

[bang guy]

Originally Posted by florida joe
http:///forum/post/3235998
also remember no matter how you kill the cyano you will be releasing nitrates into your tank so as Henry stated water changes are a must
And Phosphate...

 

[renogaw]

Originally Posted by florida joe
http:///forum/post/3235991
I have also used this produce with success but as Beth said follow instructions and turn off your skimmer
yet turning off your skimmer is a very good way to remove an oxygenating process...

 

[florida joe]

i do not believe that turning off his protein skimmer will lead to oxygen deprivation but he can always leave his lights on 24 hours while he is medicating

 

[mrdc]

The slime remover is good stuff but it is something to use with care. My approach was to syphon out as much as I could and then follow the directions that came with the remover. It worked well for me but I still had to figure out why I was getting it. i attributed it to lack of water flow in certain areas, overfeeding and keeping a slim CUC for my tank size.

 

[pezenfuego]

Originally Posted by renogaw
http:///forum/post/3236351
yet turning off your skimmer is a very good way to remove an oxygenating process...
It's all about surface agitation. While a skimmer does an adequate job at doing this, it isn't any better than a few powerheads pointed at the surface of the water. So, I agree with Joe.
One more thing-this stuff is very similar to the kind of antibiotic one would use in their own bodies. If you stop taking an antibiotic as soon as you start feeling better, then there is a chance that the more resistant cells can live through the medication and completely repopulate. If this happens in your tank, then not only will you still have a cyanobacteria problem, but it will be worse than the last time.
Using the medication in its entirety will help to prevent this from happening.
I would still advise against it due to the chance that it can crash your tank. You can beat this without the medication.

 

[florida joe]

Using the medication in its entirety will help to prevent this from happening
excellent point and i am sure you mean to use it for the proscribed time frame