# cyanobacteria?



## Neophyte34 (Nov 9, 2007)

I have set up my first planted tank, and it's been up about 2 weeks now. It's a 55 gallon with 2 x 96 watt AHS compact flourescent bulbs, pressurized C02 at about 30ppm, sand over ADA aquasoil. i had the aquasoil in the tank soaking in water from another established aquarium for about 2 weeks before i planted this tank to give the beneficial bacteria a head start.

i was doing OK for the first week, but all of a sudden the tank is suffering a infestation of what i'm guessing is cyanobacteria. however i'm new to this so i'm not sure, i'm just basing that off what i've read on the net.

it's light green/gray with long, stringy strands floating from every surface.. the glass, the sand, the plants, the mopani wood. i've had hair algae in my other non-planted tanks before, but that stuff i can remove easily by wrapping it around anything long and slender. the algae pulls off. this stuff is slimy and weak, though, and doesn't easily pull off anything. 

i have no fish, yet, in this tank.

tonight i scraped the sides of the tank off and did a 50% water chagne. 

any recommendations?


----------



## Gatekeeper (Feb 20, 2007)

Why would you start the planted tank without plants? AS is so righ in nutrients... I am not surprised you have algae at all.

I would suspect staghorn because of the ammonia in the AS. The only cynobacteria i know of is BGA (Blue Green Algae).


----------



## Neophyte34 (Nov 9, 2007)

sorry, i wasn't very clear.

i let the aquasoil sit with the tank water from my other tank, just to soil level, for about two weeks (before my lights arrived).

when my lights arrived, i planted the tank with fast growing plants from my LFS and filled it up the tank, put the lights on, C02, etc.

does staghorn appear goopy when you scrape it off the side of the tank? i mean, the main characteristic is that it's long and stringy, but it's also very slimy.


----------



## Homer_Simpson (May 10, 2007)

Neophyte34 said:


> I have set up my first planted tank, and it's been up about 2 weeks now. It's a 55 gallon with 2 x 96 watt AHS compact flourescent bulbs, pressurized C02 at about 30ppm, sand over ADA aquasoil. i had the aquasoil in the tank soaking in water from another established aquarium for about 2 weeks before i planted this tank to give the beneficial bacteria a head start.
> 
> i was doing OK for the first week, but all of a sudden the tank is suffering a infestation of what i'm guessing is cyanobacteria. however i'm new to this so i'm not sure, i'm just basing that off what i've read on the net.
> 
> ...


Reduce your lighting period, raise your light canopy/enclosure a few more inches, and burn only one tube if you have to until you can clean up the mess. This is more an issue related to your lighting. Eventhough you may think that your lighting is not very high, those AH Reflectors greatly amplify useable light, so you almost have to limit your lighting to 7-8 hours and possibly even split that photoperiod up when you start off to avoid an algae bloom. You can always work your lighting intensity/duration up gradually. Also bump up your c02 levels to 40-50 ppm, it won't harm your plants and you have nothing to kill. I have 40 ppm in my 15 gallon high ADA Aquasoil II tank. The floating plants like riccia and cardamine are pearling like there is no tomorrow. But the stupid snails, which I hoped to poison with the extra c02, are still alive and kicking  Go figure.

When I converted my 40 gallon non planted to planted using only a AH supply 2 55 watt bright light kit, 10 hours lighting duration with both tubes on, pretty much did me in with a huge algae bloom with each and every kind of algae imagineable when I started out. I was pretty much running an algae farm for 3 months and it was a real dog's breakfast.


----------



## EdTheEdge (Jan 25, 2007)

I might be missing the point here but isn't cyano blue-green algea? If so what you described does not sound like cyano to me it sounds like regular old fashioned algae to me. Easily contained with the right parameters

Just start doing as many water changes as often as possible. Add fast growing plants and start fertilizing.

Aqua soil problems always crack me up. I have heard so many good things and so many bad things about it. One day I will have to try it to see what all the hub bub is about.


----------



## Neophyte34 (Nov 9, 2007)

thanks for the responses, guys.

after looking at more pics of cyanobacteria i think that you're right.. i think it is just plain old algae. a lot of it.

i'm going to take all of your suggestions, here. limit light time, increase C02 to 40-50ppm, and do lots of water changes. and i've added ferts for the first time (this stuff: http://www.aquariumplants.com/MILLER_IRON_CHELATE_p/fert1339.htm ).

how much does water circulation help, by the way? the outflow from the canister filter really only gets good water flow on one end of the tank. i think i may get a power head for the other side to improve flow.

also, while i know the overall anwser to my algae problem is to control the causes, what do you think about using the API algae killing stuff for the short term while i get those causes under control? bad idea?


----------



## Homer_Simpson (May 10, 2007)

Neophyte34 said:


> thanks for the responses, guys.
> 
> after looking at more pics of cyanobacteria i think that you're right.. i think it is just plain old algae. a lot of it.
> 
> ...


A 3 day blackout where you fully cover the tank, no c02 will also knock out the Blue Green Algae. You still have to follow up with the increased water changes, increased circulation, light limiting, and 40-50 ppm c02 after 3 days.

For the Blue Green Algae, I would stay away from API algae killing stuff. Erytromycin, as a last resort, will totally destroy the Blue Green algae, but you will still need to focus on prevention after it is gone. I have successfully used Blue Green Algae in my tank to get rid of Blue Green Algae and I monitored water parameters before, during and after treatment. The water parameters were not effected and there was no impact on my biological filtration. So, use Erythromcyin if all else fails rather than API algae killing stuff. 

Good luck.


----------



## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

I had a cyanobacteria problem when my bulbs were spent in my canopy and my potassium was low. Fixed both problems and now no nasty!


----------



## putty (Nov 19, 2003)

BGA is usually a sign of low nitrates as far as I know. 

Did you check your nitrate levels, and if so what were they? I would be willing to bet that they were low.


----------



## Neophyte34 (Nov 9, 2007)

i have near 0 nitrates according to my tests. 

also, i'm pretty sure now that what i have is a very bad case of bear algae. the description of it sounds exactly like what i have in the tank. very hard to mechanically remove, very slimy, undulating strands...


----------



## @[email protected] (Oct 24, 2007)

doesnt sound like cyano, it is slimy but comes of pretty easy. if it is cyano, then you may want to read my experience with it, if not the rest of this post is useless unless you're just curios.

i had it once in my 2.5. nothing worked. i tried black-outs, dosing fertz more, not dosing fertz, even tetracyline (its a bacteria not an algae which is a group of protists). nothing worked. not until i took out the fish out, saved a specimen of every plant (cleaned, bleached, and quarantined) and dumped bleach in and let it stand over-night. later i threw all the water away and gravel too. The cyano took over every plant i removed from the tank except the dwarf hairgrass which was remarkably easy to clean. 

basically im saying, nuke the tank. dont let anything capable of having any bacteria growing on it live, or quarantine it for weeks. however, if its only a small patch (which it didnt sound like), putting a powerhead may get it under control, but a little bacterium here and there will always be there waiting for water conditions to become to their liking.


----------



## putty (Nov 19, 2003)

I have had very good effects with antibiotics against BGA, but it sounds like you do not BGA. 

If your nitrates are near 0, I would say add some, or you may get BGA on top of the issue you already have.


----------

