Reef Central Online Community

Go Back   Reef Central Online Community > General Interest Forums > Reef Discussion
Blogs FAQ Calendar Mark Forums Read

Notices

User Tag List

Reply
Thread Tools
Unread 08/25/2019, 10:03 AM   #1
j.falk
Registered Member
 
Join Date: May 2017
Posts: 632
Question Lyngbya and Live Rock ?

I've been fighting Lyngbya for the better part of 6 months now. It came in with a piece of live rock and took over everything.

So I've decided that I'm going to break my tank down and completely restart from scratch to get rid of this problem once and for all.

My question is, how do I clean my rock so that I can reuse it? Can I soak it in bleach for awhile to kill everything off of the rock and then soak it in clean water? Or should I use peroxide instead since it's known to kill Lyngbya? Will soaking the rock guarantee that it will be Lyngbya free or would it be better to purchase all new rock and start from scratch?


j.falk is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 08/25/2019, 12:07 PM   #2
Daddi0
Registered Member
 
Daddi0's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2017
Location: Redwood City
Posts: 1,354
Is that the stuff that is toxic?
Cheers! Mark


__________________
2x 65g displays with a 30g cryptic refugium and 30g sump - 55g reef
30g Bio-cube reef - I.M. 30g reef - 45g freshwater
Daddi0 is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 08/25/2019, 12:43 PM   #3
j.falk
Registered Member
 
Join Date: May 2017
Posts: 632
Quote:
Originally Posted by Daddi0 View Post
Is that the stuff that is toxic?
Cheers! Mark
Yes which is why I want it eradicated.



Last edited by j.falk; 08/25/2019 at 12:58 PM.
j.falk is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 08/26/2019, 05:26 AM   #4
j.falk
Registered Member
 
Join Date: May 2017
Posts: 632
Would something like this work?

- Take the rocks out of the tank.

- Scrub all the algae off with a toothbrush.

- Pour 3% peroxide over the rock to kill off the algae or dip the rocks in a bucket of peroxide.

- Place the rock in a tote with new RODI saltwater, heater and powerhead.

- Break down the tank, clean everything, wipe it down with peroxide and then rinse everything off.

- Refill the tank with new saltwater and place the rocks back in the tank.

Is that a feasible plan to get rid of this cyanobacteria algae or would I just be better off bleaching the rock (or buying all new and tossing the old rock). I'm really hoping to be able to kill all the algae from the rocks and not have to completely restart the tank from scratch again.


j.falk is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 08/26/2019, 08:12 AM   #5
mcgyvr
Registered Member
 
mcgyvr's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: North Carolina
Posts: 20,050
Peroxide should be more than sufficient to kill the bacteria.
I would soak the rocks for 10-15 minutes or more in the peroxide... Adding some water to it would be fine to dilute it.. I've used 50/50 before with great results on algae.

I always think a process like a total tank break down is excessive but if you are willing to put in the time and are fine with it then go for it..


__________________
Who me?
mcgyvr is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 08/26/2019, 08:46 AM   #6
j.falk
Registered Member
 
Join Date: May 2017
Posts: 632
Quote:
Originally Posted by mcgyvr View Post
Peroxide should be more than sufficient to kill the bacteria.
I would soak the rocks for 10-15 minutes or more in the peroxide... Adding some water to it would be fine to dilute it.. I've used 50/50 before with great results on algae.

I always think a process like a total tank break down is excessive but if you are willing to put in the time and are fine with it then go for it..
Did you use 3% or 35% peroxide and is there a possibility that the peroxided rocks could cause the tank to cycle again due to die off?

It's only a 20 gallon so I think the total breakdown to get the carpet of Lyngbya off the back glass would be the best way to go in this case.


j.falk is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 08/26/2019, 09:30 AM   #7
mcgyvr
Registered Member
 
mcgyvr's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: North Carolina
Posts: 20,050
I use regular 3% peroxide..

Peroxide will kill the bacteria (both the bad and the good).. Your tank will ABSOLUTELY need to cycle again as you are going to kill all bacteria.. You are starting from a brand new basically dry rock tank..

You will need to wait 4-6 weeks just like a regular cycling process before you can start slowly stocking the tank again.. Or use other methods to "Try" to fast cycle


__________________
Who me?
mcgyvr is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 08/26/2019, 09:32 AM   #8
j.falk
Registered Member
 
Join Date: May 2017
Posts: 632
Thumbs up

Quote:
Originally Posted by mcgyvr View Post
I use regular 3% peroxide..

Peroxide will kill the bacteria (both the bad and the good).. Your tank will ABSOLUTELY need to cycle again as you are going to kill all bacteria.. You are starting from a brand new basically dry rock tank..

You will need to wait 4-6 weeks just like a regular cycling process before you can start slowly stocking the tank again.. Or use other methods to "Try" to fast cycle
Okay. That makes sense. Thank you for the advice.


j.falk is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 08/26/2019, 05:36 PM   #9
Daddi0
Registered Member
 
Daddi0's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2017
Location: Redwood City
Posts: 1,354
Considering that it is a poison, I would opt to throw the rock away and start with new.
Cheers! Mark


__________________
2x 65g displays with a 30g cryptic refugium and 30g sump - 55g reef
30g Bio-cube reef - I.M. 30g reef - 45g freshwater
Daddi0 is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 08/26/2019, 05:43 PM   #10
j.falk
Registered Member
 
Join Date: May 2017
Posts: 632
Quote:
Originally Posted by Daddi0 View Post
Considering that it is a poison, I would opt to throw the rock away and start with new.
Cheers! Mark
I already thought about that. I have a new box of rock coming in tomorrow...this old stuff I'm probably going to throw in a bucket of bleach water outside for awhile.


j.falk is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 08/26/2019, 05:51 PM   #11
j.falk
Registered Member
 
Join Date: May 2017
Posts: 632
Any ideas on how to clean my filter, powerheads and heater that all have the Lyngbya growing on it? I'm assuming vinegar should be effective.


j.falk is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 08/26/2019, 07:53 PM   #12
mcgyvr
Registered Member
 
mcgyvr's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: North Carolina
Posts: 20,050
Scrubbing/vinegar should be fine..
Dont soak more than 10 minutes in vinegar as you can damage the seals on pumps,etc...


__________________
Who me?
mcgyvr is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 08/27/2019, 04:28 AM   #13
j.falk
Registered Member
 
Join Date: May 2017
Posts: 632
Quote:
Originally Posted by mcgyvr View Post
Scrubbing/vinegar should be fine..
Dont soak more than 10 minutes in vinegar as you can damage the seals on pumps,etc...
Thank you. I'm glad you mentioned that. I've been soaking my powerheads for 24 hours in the vinegar/water solution. I probably would've done the same for everything else.


j.falk is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 08/27/2019, 09:24 AM   #14
j.falk
Registered Member
 
Join Date: May 2017
Posts: 632
Would it be possible to reuse my sandbed without adding the algae spores back into the tank? Perhaps rinsing the sand in a vinegar/water solution?


j.falk is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 08/27/2019, 11:46 AM   #15
slojim
Registered Member
 
Join Date: Jun 2003
Posts: 51
If you are going through all that trouble, my first inclination would be to dose peroxide into the tank directly and leave it circulating. It should just decompose into water and oxygen as it finds stuff to attack, but sometimes the bottles have a little something extra in them to act as a stabilizer, so the peroxide won't decompose on the shelf. So I would not overdose, and I'd do a full water change afterward. I think it should only take about an ounce of 3% in your tank. See how it responds and repeat if necessary.


slojim is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is On



All times are GMT -6. The time now is 08:19 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.4
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Powered by Searchlight © 2024 Axivo Inc.
Use of this web site is subject to the terms and conditions described in the user agreement.
Reef CentralTM Reef Central, LLC. Copyright ©1999-2022
User Alert System provided by Advanced User Tagging v3.3.0 (Pro) - vBulletin Mods & Addons Copyright © 2024 DragonByte Technologies Ltd.