Hello,
My tank was going in the right direction but over the last 5 months it's spiralling out of control. I've been battling for months to try and rectify it back to its former glory. I'm not running CO2 and has been a low tank from day one.
Cyano is a cruel beast and I just can't get rid of it. It's mostly forming from the substrate and spreading where it likes. I've been doing all the reading I could and actioned with the below. No types algae are growing, just the cyano bacteria.
• every other day dosing of TNC complete.
Started with 1.5ml every other day. Then went on to 3ml every other day after 2 weeks. No joy. I'm now starting 5ml every other day this week.
• ditched sponge in my filter, kept the ceramic media and have just topped that off with seachem matrix. This has given me diatoms but I guess bacteria is growing on new media. I ditched the sponge as it seemed to be holding a lot of detritus and I don't need that right now.
• weekly 50% wc each week with a good siphon of the substrate. Removed the ramshorn snails from tank, they produced a lot of waste.
• added some more fast growing stems. As I cut back my other stems to get fresh growth from them I needed to bulk up numbers.
• dose TNC carbon at 1.5ml.
• cut light to 6hr photoperiod
The cyano is growing but not as fast as it had been. It's not a massive reduction but gives me a few more days grace.
The tank only holds one Betta and a handful of shrimp. Filter is from a Fluval edge and the moves the plants nicely, even at the substrate level. Light is an a zoo flexi mini M.
Tank is not heated but ambient room temp of aprox 22c. Substrate is a mixture of tropica plant growth topped with denerle scalper soil, all in all about 1yr old.
If anyone has some idea of where I can turn to next that would be great, I've tried a blackout which was one step forward and 3 back. Not very successful. I don't wish to add any potions really either, if I can solve this naturally then I'd be happy.
Thanks for reading!
My tank was going in the right direction but over the last 5 months it's spiralling out of control. I've been battling for months to try and rectify it back to its former glory. I'm not running CO2 and has been a low tank from day one.
Cyano is a cruel beast and I just can't get rid of it. It's mostly forming from the substrate and spreading where it likes. I've been doing all the reading I could and actioned with the below. No types algae are growing, just the cyano bacteria.
• every other day dosing of TNC complete.
Started with 1.5ml every other day. Then went on to 3ml every other day after 2 weeks. No joy. I'm now starting 5ml every other day this week.
• ditched sponge in my filter, kept the ceramic media and have just topped that off with seachem matrix. This has given me diatoms but I guess bacteria is growing on new media. I ditched the sponge as it seemed to be holding a lot of detritus and I don't need that right now.
• weekly 50% wc each week with a good siphon of the substrate. Removed the ramshorn snails from tank, they produced a lot of waste.
• added some more fast growing stems. As I cut back my other stems to get fresh growth from them I needed to bulk up numbers.
• dose TNC carbon at 1.5ml.
• cut light to 6hr photoperiod
The cyano is growing but not as fast as it had been. It's not a massive reduction but gives me a few more days grace.
The tank only holds one Betta and a handful of shrimp. Filter is from a Fluval edge and the moves the plants nicely, even at the substrate level. Light is an a zoo flexi mini M.
Tank is not heated but ambient room temp of aprox 22c. Substrate is a mixture of tropica plant growth topped with denerle scalper soil, all in all about 1yr old.
If anyone has some idea of where I can turn to next that would be great, I've tried a blackout which was one step forward and 3 back. Not very successful. I don't wish to add any potions really either, if I can solve this naturally then I'd be happy.
Thanks for reading!