Neto July 29, 2015 Share July 29, 2015 Greetings all! So, as some of you know, I was fighting a Dynoflangellate outbreak for the past 3-6 months & was unsuccessful. I tried a lot of additives & methods & still Dynos won. I also tried to save some of the corals & fish in hospital tanks, however due to a recent family emergency (unexpected loss of my father), the hospital tanks crashed. I lost all corals, and was only able to save some fish & 1 pistol shrimp... Enough with the bad news, so I bought new rock & sand from the LFS and started a dead rock cycle last month. I had enough zeovit supplies to start a zeo tank again so I did! Here are the details: Main tank: DIY 22g low Iron Glass Sump tank: 15g high Lights: ATI Powermodule 6x24w (b+, c+, p+, b+, c+, b+) Skimmer: ESHOPPS PKS-75 ATO: DIY with relay Return Pump: Mag Float 9B Water Movement: MP10WES & Return Pump Controller: Reef Keeper Lite Basic Dosing Pump: Marine Color 3 head dosing pump (CAL, ALK & diluted ZeoStart3) Heater: Eheim Jaegar I recently bought a clean up crew from the LFS & all fish & inverts are transferred after a fresh water dip. I know that inverts are sensitive to this but I couldn't risk getting a dyno seed again! He is doing good after one week. Diatoms cycle is done and now I am almost ready for some corals.. My plans is to have SPS only, we will see how it goes... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cliff Puckstable July 29, 2015 Share July 29, 2015 I'm sorry for your losses. Sometimes it's nice to start over. Those are some nice clowns. I'm sure your tank will be totm again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
surf&turf July 30, 2015 Share July 30, 2015 I'm sorry for your losses. Sometimes it's nice to start over. Those are some nice clowns. I'm sure your tank will be totm again. +1 Nice restart!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keraxis July 30, 2015 Share July 30, 2015 I like starting new tanks... something great about something new to look at. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neto July 30, 2015 Author Share July 30, 2015 Thank you I checked the parameters yesterday and so far so good, im waiting for this bacteria bloom to settle so I can add a few SPS. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sethsolomon July 30, 2015 Share July 30, 2015 Looks like its going to be an awesome tank! tagging along. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Apcoleman July 30, 2015 Share July 30, 2015 Looking good. Besides the main zeovit system, what other additives are you planning to use? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ridetheducati July 30, 2015 Share July 30, 2015 What do you plan to do differently so the dino will not return? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neto July 30, 2015 Author Share July 30, 2015 Looking good. Besides the main zeovit system, what other additives are you planning to use? In addition to basic 4 zeovit additives I will only dose: Zeo Spur2 Zeo K-Balance Zeo B-Balance Zeo Flatworm Stop Zeo Cyano Clean (as needed) Zeo Amino Acid Concentrate Fish Calcium & Alkalinity to maintain balance Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neto July 30, 2015 Author Share July 30, 2015 What do you plan to do differently so the dino will not return? My plan is to start fresh with rocks, sand & nothing from the other tank. I will dip all SPS in revive & melafix to kill any unwanted pests and in addition, I will buy from reputable sources that I see that are pest free. I did a fresh water dip on all fish and according to user named Pants (very knowledgeable in Dynos), this will kill these cells. If I get dynos after this, I will give up and sell everything! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ridetheducati July 30, 2015 Share July 30, 2015 My plan is to start fresh with rocks, sand & nothing from the other tank. I will dip all SPS in revive & melafix to kill any unwanted pests and in addition, I will buy from reputable sources that I see that are pest free. I did a fresh water dip on all fish and according to user named Pants (very knowledgeable in Dynos), this will kill these cells. If I get dynos after this, I will give up and sell everything! Concur, Pants is very knowledgeable on the subject. <soapbox> Strongly believe dinos are present in every system. Dinos will rear its ugly head when conditions are ideal. The challenge some hobbyists are facing is recognizing/avoiding the conditions and promptly taking action so dinos do not become a nuisance. What are those conditions? Many have theories as do I, but I do not know if anyone truly knows. I fought with dinos twice; the first time was in 1991. My system was a toxic soup. Fish and snails were dropping like flies. It may have been a coincidence, but one common theme between the two instances was the food web was not fully mature. The system matured and I worked hard to build the food web from the ground up (plankton, phytoplankton, sponges, filter feeders, etc.) the dinos faded away. Some may remember when it was popular to dose DTs. Ordered a bottle from Marco earlier this week. Sorry, I digressed. I think establishing strong flora and fauna is key, especially for systems less than 12 months old. Do not get discouraged. Dinos have been known to drive hobbyist out of the hobby. Continue to build your food web and avoid using chemicals (Algae X and H2O2) that will destroy your food web. Excerpt from Hoppenrath, Mona and Juan F. Saldarriaga. 2012. Dinoflagellates. Version 15 December 2012 "Dinoflagellates are common organisms in all types of aquatic ecosystems. Roughly half of the species in the group are photosynthetic (Gaines and Elbrächter 1987), the other half is exclusively heterotrophic and feeds via osmotrophy and phagotrophy. As a consequence, they are prominent members of both the phytoplankton and the zooplankton of marine and freshwater ecosystems. The main ecological significance of dinoflagellates lies elsewhere, though. They are second only to diatoms as marine primary producers. As phagotrophic organisms they are also important components of the microbial loop in the oceans and help channel significant amounts of energy into planktonic food webs. As zooxanthellae, dinoflagellates have a pivotal role in the biology of reef-building corals." </soapbox> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neto July 31, 2015 Author Share July 31, 2015 (edited) Skimmer is working pretty good Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Edited July 31, 2015 by Neto Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neto July 31, 2015 Author Share July 31, 2015 Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neto July 31, 2015 Author Share July 31, 2015 Concur, Pants is very knowledgeable on the subject. <soapbox> Strongly believe dinos are present in every system. Dinos will rear its ugly head when conditions are ideal. The challenge some hobbyists are facing is recognizing/avoiding the conditions and promptly taking action so dinos do not become a nuisance. What are those conditions? Many have theories as do I, but I do not know if anyone truly knows. I fought with dinos twice; the first time was in 1991. My system was a toxic soup. Fish and snails were dropping like flies. It may have been a coincidence, but one common theme between the two instances was the food web was not fully mature. The system matured and I worked hard to build the food web from the ground up (plankton, phytoplankton, sponges, filter feeders, etc.) the dinos faded away. Some may remember when it was popular to dose DTs. Ordered a bottle from Marco earlier this week. Sorry, I digressed. I think establishing strong flora and fauna is key, especially for systems less than 12 months old. Do not get discouraged. Dinos have been known to drive hobbyist out of the hobby. Continue to build your food web and avoid using chemicals (Algae X and H2O2) that will destroy your food web. Excerpt from Hoppenrath, Mona and Juan F. Saldarriaga. 2012. Dinoflagellates. Version 15 December 2012 "Dinoflagellates are common organisms in all types of aquatic ecosystems. Roughly half of the species in the group are photosynthetic (Gaines and Elbrächter 1987), the other half is exclusively heterotrophic and feeds via osmotrophy and phagotrophy. As a consequence, they are prominent members of both the phytoplankton and the zooplankton of marine and freshwater ecosystems. The main ecological significance of dinoflagellates lies elsewhere, though. They are second only to diatoms as marine primary producers. As phagotrophic organisms they are also important components of the microbial loop in the oceans and help channel significant amounts of energy into planktonic food webs. As zooxanthellae, dinoflagellates have a pivotal role in the biology of reef-building corals." </soapbox> I agree with you that Dynos are present in every tank, the strain that I had is called ostreopsis (verified by Pants) which is the most toxic dynoflangellate out there. It all started when I changed from LEDS to an ATI powermodule, so probably because the light was stronger and I was doing an ULNS, it caused an outbreak. But also, if it was caused by strong light and the usage of zeovit, why other tanks that have the same setup have amazing growth, color, etc and no dynos? Maybe the rocks that I had where leaching some chemical that dynos like? Maybe since the tank is placed next to a window that has red curtains add some light spectrum that feeds these devils? Who knows... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neto August 15, 2015 Author Share August 15, 2015 Maybe dynos again? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neto August 15, 2015 Author Share August 15, 2015 Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WheresTheReef August 16, 2015 Share August 16, 2015 I had a 6 month battle with dinos. Lost lots of sps and a few other coals. Some of my sps are still brown and stressed after a few months. Even a foxface fish who kept eating it died. I only beat it after siphoning out my sand, lowering light schedule and using ultra algaeX. IME dinos are more stringy than what you have now. Looks more like diatoms to me. Good luck moving forward with this tank. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YHSublime August 16, 2015 Share August 16, 2015 Diatomes, I agree. Ride it out. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neto August 18, 2015 Author Share August 18, 2015 I think they are dyno's again... I am not sure why they came back but it is very stressful. I bought new rock, sand, cleaned the whole tank 7 equipment with water & chlorine & still have them... I am thinking that my light is causing them to outbreak but I cannot explain myself why? On my previous tank, when I had LEDS, it was dyno free but when I changed to the ATI fixture, they came up. The ATI fixture has been proven to work on tanks, maybe my bulb combination is causing some spectrum that dyno's like? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HgrReefs August 18, 2015 Share August 18, 2015 This was dry rock you started with correct? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neto August 18, 2015 Author Share August 18, 2015 correct Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HgrReefs August 18, 2015 Share August 18, 2015 Possible the issue you are experiencing is due to this being dry rock? Every system I have started with purchased dry rock has led to a nuisance algae outbreak. I've experienced dinos, cyano, and HA, typically one will lead to another over the course of the tank's maturation. That said, I've never had these types of issues when I've used established live rock. Could be completely coincidental, but worth thinking about prior to jumping ship. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WheresTheReef August 19, 2015 Share August 19, 2015 Some things like cyano and diatoms come and go as the tank matures. Dinos and some other pests have to be introduced. So dry rock wouldn't matter there. Dry rock can leach phosphates sometimes which could make things worse after it's introduced. Testing would tell you if this is an issue. Diatoms can have air bubbles and grow back really fast. You can use a microscope and confirm. Search online what both look like under magnification. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neto August 19, 2015 Author Share August 19, 2015 Some things like cyano and diatoms come and go as the tank matures. Dinos and some other pests have to be introduced. So dry rock wouldn't matter there. Dry rock can leach phosphates sometimes which could make things worse after it's introduced. Testing would tell you if this is an issue. Diatoms can have air bubbles and grow back really fast. You can use a microscope and confirm. Search online what both look like under magnification. According to username Pants (I consider him an expert on dynos), if you take any sample of saltwater from our tanks, you will find dynos in it. All algae types are competing for space and for some reason, in my setup, dynos are beating other algae types such as diatoms and hair algae. Well see, right now I see spaghetti like brown algae on the crushed coral substrate & some brown snot like algae on the rocks. From my experience with this algae I can tell you it looks almost exacly the same as the one I had before but I havent confirmed this yet with a microscope since I dont have one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WilRams August 19, 2015 Share August 19, 2015 I somehow recently got it myself. At first I thought it was hair algae but then realized as it grew that was not the case. It's just as you described and after reading assumed it was also Dino's. Really easy to siphon with a turkey baster so I removed as much as possible. Today will be day 3 in total black out. Fingers crossed when I remove the covers tonight. Not quite sure how I got it but at least I can try to nip it now before it's a tank full of coral. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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