NEED HELP

[GaryP]

The Chemi Clean is because he has cyano starting to spread across his LR. I told him to give it a try as well as increasing flow and adding hermits.

Having a cyano outbreak is not surprising because of the age of his tank.

[MinnVikes]

And its working very very good i just added it about 2 hours ago and the rocks are looking great and the i added a better pump so the flew is amazing plus the crabs are cleaning all the sand and some of the rocks too. Also got a cleaner shrimp that is helping things out. So I geuss I will wait and see how the fish reacts to a much better invorment, so I geuss I am just playing a waiting game now. What do yall think? Do yall think I have done the right stuff?

[GaryP]

I'd do about a 20% water change this weekend.

What water are you using for make-up water and making salt water?

[MinnVikes]

do you mean what kind of water am i making into saltwater? well if thats the ? I am using tap water then adding conditoner, then after that adding oceanic salt to make the salt water.

[MinnVikes]

can the cyano alage kill you live rocks and or all your corals? can it kill everything, besides the fish? Thanks

[CD]

I am using tap water then adding conditoner, then after that adding oceanic salt to make the salt water.

Not good. Minn, you'd be better off using RO/DI water for topoff and mixing the Oceanic with. Most fish stores will have this type of water for you to buy and it's generally really cheap...especially if you have a smaller tank. Once you start getting into anything over say 45G in tank size, it saves money eventually to have a RO/DI unit installed in your house.

Wendy

[MinnVikes]

Ok kool. But can you answer this please can the cyano alage kill your live rocks and or all your coral? Can it kill everything, besides the fish, and when I say everything i mean all the rocks and corals?

[CD]

can the cyano alage kill your live rocks and or all your coral?

Well, I've had cyano in my tank before, but not very much. I suppose if it got thick enough it could choke out things on your LR and coral. When I had my little outbreak, I sucked as much of it out of the tank as I could with a turkey baster, and the clean up crew (snails & hermits) took care of the rest. I'll bet when you start using the RO/DI water it will help. You could also have a water flow issue (dead spots) and possibly other problems with the chemical balances of your water. Since you've already taken steps as far as inverts and flow, use the RO/DI and give it some time.

Wendy

[Ram_Puppy]

Minn, ditch the conditioner.

As long as your using TAP water fill up your container and mix your salt up, let it stand for a day before using, preferably with a small power head stirring it, no worries about chlorine. If I am not mistaken, salt water actually neutralizes chlorine and chloramine, but I could be WAY off on that, better to let Gary on one of the other chemistry guys comment on that.

[Instar]

Well, tap water just makes bad things happen all the way around. Sometimes you can get by with it for a short time, but, most of our tap here in this part of the country is crap. Just remember: Tap = Crap. You need at least RO. If you are going to use Instant Ocrean (IO) salt, then you can draw the water a day ahead of time, let it aerate for 24 hours or more, then add the salt. I wouldn't use any other brand if you're going to use tap water regardless of what anyone recommends. No matter, tap still ='s crap. Cyano really is annoying, but, unless its way out of control, it doesn't harm anything. If harm comes to things, it will be because of using tap water with conditioner. The water in Texas might be great for fresh water ciclids, but, NOT for your reef. Change a good bit of your water after the chemi-clean and run some marine grade of carbon in the filter too. You really want all the dead cyano out of there as well as the chemi-clean. Make sure your water change is heated to match the tank and take your time with it. You can shag water in a couple totes if you have to, until you figure out what to do about an RO/DI unit at home.