Red slime (red cyano bacteria) problem

[Reeferman122]

im having problems with red slime in my tank. its a 30 gallon with a bakpak 2 protein skimmer, fluval 204 canister filter, a current satellite 96w light
specific gravity is 1.020 and i dont know any thing else except temp (ran out of test supplies and have been procrastinating to get some-and just order some via that fish place)
also, a mysterious disease swept through my tank, killing my tomato clown dwarf zebra lionfish and royal gramma
the tank has been up and running for about a year and a half and its current inhabitants include 2 blue legged hermit crabs, a cluster of about 20-25 small feather dusters and two mushroom polyps(red slime hit my corals pretty hard)
i try to clean the slime everyday and reduced the time the light is on from 9 hrs to 7hrs with no results(i dont want to reduce the time anymore, thus depriving my two polyps of photosynthesis)
as for the disease, it looked like ich, but the medication didnt affect it at all(took coral out to medicate)
would a uv sterilizer work to reduce future outbreaks of this mysterious disease??
any replies would be greatly appreciated

[jerryc]

Best advice i can give is get the test kits you wont no whits wrong with out them

And then you can eliminate potential water problems

[Reptoreef]

Wow... there's quite a bit that can be the prob... definitely need test kits!!! A few large waterchanges of ro/di water/salt mix(25-50%) and absolutely NO additives(food, chemical, or eliments) until the slime is gone. Without knowing test results, these are some general ways of nutrient reduction and better water quality. IMO, if the slime continues, you may end up losing those polyps, anyway. Do you have a reefer buddy that will baby sit??? The less lighting the better. BTW, how old is the current lighting? I'm willing to bet that the bulb is near a 2500-5500k which is great for producing algae or cyano if it's a GE... Goto Hellolights.com and check out their pc lighting. If it's a single bulb you have, maybe a 50/50 would be a great swap.

Good luck, Repto

[Reeferman122]

the light is only 3 months old

[jerryc]

Whit kind of water or you using ?

[Reeferman122]

R.O.

[jerryc]

If you or using RO only not RODI or even if using the later id run a phosphate test
on the water i have a RODI and still run one ever ones in a while

[Reptoreef]

What is the kelvin of the bulb??? Have you tested yet???

[Reeferman122]

tested yesterday
pH-8.2
Ammonia-0
Nitrite-0
Nitrate-0
Alkalinity-3
added chemi clean, algae growth this morning was substantially less, all polyps alive(for now)

[Grandmaster_Toad]

Permenant fix..... Better Skimmer
Quick fix to help get back to no slime....(dont uualy like chemicals...) A chemical called Red Slime away. Works GREAT....wont hurt anything.
Again....chemical will get rid of the slime but not the cause
GT
If you want to know manufacturer let me know.....Ill dig it out.

[Reptoreef]

All chemicals have side effects... some are less obvious than others. BE CAREFUL of chemical "all-betters-now".

Repto

[Reeferman122]

most of red slime gone, used a product called "chemi-clean" everything seems to be okay copepod population has sky rocketed (maybe because of the death of the fish or the effects of the chemi-clean....i dunno)

[Bender]

#ed_op#DIV#ed_cl#Red Slime can get out of control with over feeding. You must be very careful because the wasted food can bring up phosphate levels quickly. Lighting shouldn't be ollder than eight months max with like Coral Life and GE type bulbs. I like to change bulbs every 5-6 months.Yes ro water is best, and even though it's the purest, it never hurts to test it to error on the side of caution.#ed_op#/DIV#ed_cl##ed_op#DIV#ed_cl##ed_op#/DIV#ed_cl##ed_op#DIV#ed_cl#Good Luck,#ed_op#/DIV#ed_cl##ed_op#DIV#ed_cl##ed_op#/DIV#ed_cl##ed_op#DIV#ed_cl#B#ed_op#/DIV#ed_cl##ed_op#DIV#ed_cl##ed_op#/DIV#ed_cl#

[GiseleSoul]

#ed_op#DIV#ed_cl#It is a bacteria, which I've noticed occurs more often during warmer temperatures.... why not treat it with an antibacterial remedy. I have, and it works. I've used several different types of antibiodics without harming any corals, fish or inverts.#ed_op#/DIV#ed_cl#

[jerryc]

The worst part of chemicals is that a Small amount can remain in your sand and rock
and can build up over repeated uses [from all iv read]
Cant go with personal experience as iv never used them
Waite i may have i used a phosphate filter one time? don't no if that is a
chemical or not?

[Reeferman122]

everythings fine, just added a colt coral and 2 peppermint shrimp a month ago, colt flourishing, one shrimp fat with eggs