what is this and how do i get rid of them?

[bluetangclan]

This started growing about a couple of weeks ago and now its everywhere. They are brown and fuzzy-like. Its all over the glass, overflow, and rocks. The pic below is the acrylic overflow.

 

[bang guy]

It resembles Cyanobacter. Does it wipe off in sheets or is it really hard to scrape it off?

 

[bluetangclan]

it wipes off easily

 

[bluetangclan]

Quote:
Originally Posted by Bang Guy http:///t/392969/what-is-this-and-how-do-i-get-rid-of-them#post_3492947
It resembles Cyanobacter. Does it wipe off in sheets or is it really hard to scrape it off?
googling Cyanobacter returns Cyanobacteria, is this what you meant? could it also be detritus?

 

[bang guy]

Cyanobacteria. I was using a very old term.

 

[bluetangclan]

I thought cyanobacteria is "red slime" which i do have some but these are brown and fuzzy.

 

[bang guy]

Dinoflaggelates are brown but more like snot than fuzz. Cyano comes in a lot of colors including bright green. Not sure about a brown fuzzy that wipes off easy.

 

[pezenfuego]

I'll give you a few questions that can diagnose the problem. See, algae/bacteria never really goes away. Shy of using chemicals (don't), the algae will survive. Fortunately, you remove its source of food and it will go dormant. So to do that we have to ask a few questions and assess what is weak here. What is your water-changing schedule like? What kind of filtration do you have? Your light schedule? Your powerhead output and configuration. What about your feeding schedule? Your water parameters?
Also, what you have is harmless, albeit unsightly so don't worry about it affecting the health of your critters. On the other hand, it is an indicator of either an immature or unhealthy tank. Just answer the above questions. There are some pretty smart people here that love helping out.

 

[bluetangclan]

1. water change once a month 20-25%
2. in-sump filtration with skimmer
3. 12 hr on/off light schedule
4. not sure what the powerhead output as i got it free when i bought the used live rocks
5. powerhead on both sides of tank about 2 inches below surface pointing down towards the other side
6. i only have test kit for salinity, nitrite, and nitrate and all are in check
Tank has been up and running for about 3 months

 

[noobzilla]

Do you have a clean up crew? Mine looked like that before I tossed a couple hand fulls of snails in, and now most of it's cleaned up.