Substrate Turning Red? Whats going on?

[Deejay]

Hey guys, wondering if anyone can give me some advice...

I got a 25 gallon salt water set up over a month ago. Cycled it nice with two damsels and just had it tested, and its cycled ok.

I have a hang on back filter with a powerhead and under gravel setup. The substrate is crushed coral. (Nice and white with the little shells etc)

I had a red lava rock in the tank, but wasnt told to boil it first, so we just put it in. I noticed around the bottom of the tank on the glass was collecting a red rusty looking stuff... It comes off with a plastic scrubber easily.

I took the lava rock out about 4-5 days ago when i noticed the stuff appearing on the glass around the bottom, but now days later, it appears to be propogating in the substrate and around the bottom of the glass again.

I did a 25% water change after taking the lava rock out too... fyi...

Is it the lava rock that is causing this reddish rusty looking crap to coat the crushed coral and the bottom of the glass, or is this a tell tale sign of something else I havent learned about yet?

I am just whipping out the big new test kit i bought to make sure the ph and other things are ok. The salt levels are ok, and just a couple days ago we checked to make sure it was cycled ok too, and it was.

Any hints or suggestions?

Here are some pics:

http://www.reeftalk.com/gallery/showphoto.php/photo/404/password//sort/1/cat/500/page/1

http://www.reeftalk.com/gallery/showphoto.php/photo/406/password//sort/1/cat/500/page/1

http://www.reeftalk.com/gallery/showphoto.php/photo/402/password//sort/1/cat/500/page/1

[Deejay]

As a followup, i just completed a whole slew of tests and nothing turned out abnormal, so i am at least relieved about that.

Any comments, or suggestions?

Im cycling a new 65 gallon tank now so after thats done, I will be moving the life in this 25 gallon to the 65, and then will probably completely clean this 25 out to be my quarintine tank anyway, but i would like some input on what this crap might be?

[tendar]

That is Cyano bacteria algea is nothing to really get to worried about it is just part of a new tank going through it different cycles. I would suggest getting some live rock it will help out the tank overall alot.
The cyano is usally a sign of overfeeding of your fish and not enough water flow in the tank but also part of just being a new tank.

[Katspaw]

One of the first problems that most marine hobbyists encounter is Cyanobacteria commonly referred to as either blue-green algae or slime algae. There are many different strains of cyanobacteria and can show up in many different forms, strains, and colors. While I was having my own battle against cyanobacteria in my tank, I wanted to learn more about it in hopes of finding out how to get rid of it. To start with the names cyanobacteria and blue-green algae are somewhat deceiving, as they don’t completely reflect what it is. It is neither a true bacterium, nor is it a true alga, in fact it has certain characterizes that apply to both categories of organisms. It is primarily a photosynthetic (alga properties) organism, but does have the ability to grow in low-light to no-light areas because of it’s unique bacterium like qualities. It's cellar structure closely resembles that of bacteria and on the whole can be treated like true bacteria. Cyanobacteria has the distinction of being the oldest known fossil and has been around over 3.5billion years. It is believed to be the first organism to start using photosynthesis for food production. . It is even found inside of plants today in the form of chloroplasts, which make up foods for the plants. Not only does cyanobacteria create large amounts of oxygen, it also creates a lot of nitrogen as well, making it great for fertilizing plants that live in water such as rice. Cyanobacteria is thought to be single most important factor in creating the oxygen rich atmosphere we have today. Before cyanobacteria came about our atmosphere was extremely toxic and life as we know it could not have even thought of existing. Even now, the amount of oxygen that exits is largely due to cyanobacteria. Since cyanobacteria has been around for such a very long time it has been able to adapt to living in the most unlikely places on earth. There are strains of cyanobacteria that grow in deserts, high up in the mountains and even in the coldest regions of the Antarctic where no other life can survive. It's ability to adapt to such extreme conditions make it somewhat formidable to control. In an aquarium, cyanobacteria can multiply so rapidly and that it can take over the system snuffing out the life you have tried so hard to keep. In our tanks, there are three major groups of cyanobacteria that are present. The first group is called Chroococcales and they most often occur as single cells living in the tank, and on the whole they are not a problem. The second grouping is called Stigonematales, which can form filaments, which branch out and attach to other surfaces, but again on the whole, they don’t create much of a problem and you most likely wouldn’t notice them in your tank. The third category is called Nostocalies. It’s this group of cyanobacteria that forms thick sheets or mats that can quickly cover any surface of your tank and causing the most problems to deal with. The primary requirements Cyanobacteria needs to thrive are lighting, nitrogen, phosphates, and relatively calm water. As I have mentioned earlier, cyanobacteria doesn’t require a lot of light, however it tends to thrive under a slightly redder spectrum then any other kind of light. So as your bulb get older and change spectrums, cyanobacteria will have a better chance of getting a hold in your tank. If you find the you are having cyanobacteria outbreaks at similar intervals…around 8-10 months at a time, chances are it’s your lighting that is to blame and your bulbs should be replaced. Nitrogen is a very difficult factor to control in a tank as it is constantly produced and converted into many forms such as ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, and nitrogen gas. Cyanobacteria has the ability to fix or hold onto nitrogen compounds so even if you can’t measure the nitrogen in the tank, chances are there will always be enough for the cyanobacteria to grow. Having said that, it is still important to reduce the amount of nitrogen compounds and nutrients in your tank. You can do this with a good protein skimmer, regular water changes and responsible feedings. High levels of phosphates are probably the most common cause of cyanobacteria outbreaks in a tank. A few ways it can be introduced through water change using tap water or well water or plain RO water (phosphates are removed during the DI process not the RO unit), food (especially flake food), through poor quality salt mixes, or putting your hands in the tank after washing with soap and water. There are products on the market that are available to safely remove phosphates from the water. One of the best products available is a polyfilter. They not only good at removing phosphate but help remove heavy metals like cooper as well. Once all the feeding requirements for cyanobacteria are met, the last thing it needs is a place to anchor itself down to. Since the film of bacteria can be somewhat delicate, it requires a relatively calm area to start forming a sheet. In order to prevent that, there should be good water circulation through out the tank. A good rate of water flow to aim for is a turnover of ten times the water quantity. This can be accomplished through the use of power heads and return pumps from your main filters or sump.
Hope this helps

Tracey

[Chuck S]

OK after Tracey's most nothing more needs to be added.

[Katspaw]

Always best to give complete and full information as possible. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

Tracey

[Deejay]

Wow... Thanks for all the input. I have been told recently that this stuff is considered normal and happens in most tanks and that its a part of the cycle of the tank. (And that a complete stable tank cycles for about 6 months before being really complete.) I will keep an eye on it...

The bulb is new, there is a powerhead in the tank turned up high (its a smaller one for this 25gallon) and the filter is also adding to flow. I was told when it looks like a "jelly" that is something to worry about, but this film sort of stuff is common to newer tanks...

Do i have to do anything else about it other than the regular wiping of the glass/cleaning the substrate?

Thanks again! Awesome help here.

Mike

[tendar]

If it contiues and gets worse vacuming it up will help control it till it passes.