Extreme Water Clarity and Cyano Eradication, Made Easy!

[FreshCoastReef]

Yes, a bit of all of the above. I do not like to use backgrounds and will place peninsula aquariums against the wall so that there is no overflow behind the aquarium, distracting the viewer from the reef. I also place my power heads on the sides and run them as low of a profile as possible.

The animals are the star of the show here and I need to make the system look as natural as possible. Hiding equipment, or at least keeping it off to the side helps in that regard.

The rock and coral placement also plays a key roll. If you’ve ever dived over a reef you will see that in most cases there is a lot of negative space. Be it sand or or the surround empty spaces, it gives the reef a much more open look. While it’s not as abundant today, there was a time when people would create setups that resembled a fruit stand, giving no thought to athetics and potential coral growth.

Fish also play an important role in the overall look and energy in the reef. For that very purpose I love to stock Anthias. These fish swim mid level, rarely hide and help to bring out shyer fish into the ocean. I also like to sprinkle in a school of Chromis and then some other large fish such as angels and tangs. The size of the fish also helps to give things a sense of scale.

Lastly, great care must be taken when placing corals next to each other. The corals colors and growth patterns, when employed correctly, can help to maximize their impact on the viewer. For that reason, I like to place purple next to green, blue next to red, yellow next to blue, and so forth. Concerning the shapes, I will place stays next to tables and montiporias, perhaps even throwing in some Zoas. I will also selectively place corals closer or further away from the viewing pame to create a sense of depth.

As time goes on I will post out some information on design philosophy and how to better setup a display. I will discuss things such as the golden ration and rule of thirds.

From time to time I still see setups as such, and it has me scratching my head as to why they would like their setup to look like an LFS stock tank, but to each their own. Each of us is in the hobby for our own reasons. Some are happy enough simply stocking the tank and keeping things happy, others use the aquarium as a canvas to display their art and creativity. I happen to be in the later group as this hobby aids in my creative expression, allowing me to channel my energy in a positive manner.

Reguardless, we’re all here for the enrichment that the reefs provide us, and are each students of nature and constantly looking to improve and grow.

Nature has patterns but is also random at the same time. I probably spent 30 minutes placing the rocks and corals into my latest setup and that was by design. I knew the structure I was looking for, and I let the shape of the rocks and corals guide me to the final product shown.

-Sonny

Looking forward to your post on design philosophy. In comparison to freshwater aquascapes reef tanks often seem much further behind with respect to aesthetic considerations.

 

[polyppal]

Just come up with a fancy name and bottle and you can count on us chemistry ignorant hobbyists to make you rich!

Coming Soon from UWS:
VibraSnow!

 

[Jesse571]

Hello all!

I have been reefing now for about 25 years, and over those many years I have picked up many tips, tricks, and best habits/practices. From a hobbyist and even a coral vendors perspective, I have gained quite a bit of valuable information. Many of you likely even have a coral that came from company, Pro Corals. The most popular of which being the PC Rainbow Acro.,

Over those years I attempted to pass on as much information and knowledge as possible. Now, I am compiling all the knowledge into one area and will be releasing articles and likely some YouTube guides on a weekly basis.

This is a great hobby and what makes it great is the wonderful community of reefers. Almost all are extremely helpful and it is our duty to aid one another and when we can, impart the little knowledge that we pickup along the way to aid others in their journey. We, and myself included, can easily forget what it was like entering the hobby. Its a minefield and much livestock and funds can be wasted. For someone like myself, books and online forums were my only sanctuary as I did not have any local hobbyist to gather knowledge from. There were many issues, losses and way too much money needlessly spent. Hopefully this series of guides will help those just entering the hobby and perhaps even help some reefing veterans to polish up their game.

The articles will be posted on my blog and right here on Reef2Reef. I am slowly building up my online presence through FB, Instagram and YouTube. If you'd like to follow along and receive the most up to date information please feel free to follow. I will try and keep the articles and video brief. We all have busy lives so I will attempt to post only the cliff notes.

www.ReefSite.com
Instagram: @Reefsite
Fb: @ReefSites
Twitter: @RimlessReef
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/SonnyM63



Now, enough yammering. Onto the article!


Extreme Water Clarity and Cyano Eradication, Made Easy!

One of the most frequent questions I receive is how do I have such amazing water clarity and an overall clean looking setup. Well, it quite simple and you can easily do the same while also helping rid yourself of cyano or and the very least not allowing it to gain a foothold in your system. While this is not a cure-all, it will help you achieve your goals and help maintain a healthy aquarium.


For a number of years I had purchased branded products of Coral Snow to help achieve water clarity. That is, until I asked around and found that you can simply make you own Coral Snow solution, saving you hundreds of dollars.

What is Coral Snow?

At its simplest, Coral Snow is a Flocculant.

Flocculant’s work by binding small particles together into a larger mass that can be easily removed via filter socks or a proteins skimmer. The Coral Snow can also help to removal yellowing compounds such as phenols while at the same time helping neutralizes some undesirable chemicals in the system.

Personally, I use this powder Calcium Powder and one jar should last you years. Creating the solution couldn't be any simpler.

• Select a clean container, one that is resealable and able to be shaken. I use an old creatine bottle.(Yes, I am on the GAIN TRAIN)
• For 500ML of solution, add 10 level tablespoons of powder to roughly 425-450ML of RO/DI water.
• Shake the bottle up, and let it sit for two hours. After which, it will be ready to use.
• Now, I don’t believe that you can overdose with this product, but a good recommended dose is 5ml per 50gl of aquarium volume.
• Be sure to shake up the bottle prior to each use as the powder can settle.

The best time to add the solution to you aquarium is after conducting maintenance such as blowing off the rocks, cleaning the glass, siphoning the sand or conducting a water change. Ideally, you should be doing all of the aforementioned maintenance items during a water change, but that discussion is for another time.

Now, on to my personal favorite use of the product: preventing and getting rid of Cyano!

Cyano Solution

Cyano, in all its forms, has been the bane of many a reefers existence. Nothing can upset or ruin the appearance of an aquarium display like that nasty, slimy cyano! The algae is present in all systems, and dates back to the dawn of planet but you can keep it from taking over your aquarium and causing you heartache.

Ideally, you want to be taking preventative measures to ensure that cyano does not gain any real estate in your reef. Prevention is always easier than treatment, but if you can always treat it too.

To amplify the Coral Snow, you will need a bacterial solution. Most will do, but I like Microbacter7 by Brightwell Aquatics. What we are doing here is mixing the bacteria with the Coral Snow, allowing it to bond and adhere to the surface of sand and rock. Basically, we’re trying to eliminate land for the cyano to stake its claim. While most of the Coral Snow will be removed via filtration, there will be a bit that coats you aquariums surfaces, in this case with bacteria that will out compete algae.

The Mix

Take your measured solution of Coral Snow and add it to a small container.

• A plastic or glass cup will suffice.
• Next, add 10 drops of Microbacter7 per 5ML of Coral Snow.
• Allow 5 minutes for the solution to sit and then dose into your aquarium.

Note that Coral Snow will cloud your aquarium for at least two hours. Filter socks and Protein Skimmer(s) should be left on.

Final Thoughts

Hopefully, you find this Coral Snow solution to be advantageous. I have used it for years with great results. My aquariums are devoid of cyano and nuisance algae. The fish look like their floating in mid air and the true colors of the corals are allowed to shine through.

I dose once a week but there is no issue dosing it daily if you are dealing with a particularly bad breakout of cyano. For best results, siphon out as much cyano as possible before dosing Coral Snow.

Good luck and if you need any additional help please feel free to reach out.

Sonny [email protected]

Thanks so much for this! What YouTube channel?

 

[Jesse571]

Should you remove carbon or any chemical filtration for this process?

Yes I would like to know as well...do we remove carbon or gfoetc...

 

[Susan Edwards]

Here is my results. Nights shots with only office overhead light on so I didn't have to deal with the phone lens filter.
Pretty clear! I'll keep using. I think having the peninsula makes a nicer pic as the black back detracts instead of feeling like you are looking clear thru

P

 

[Susan Edwards]

Yes I would like to know as well...do we remove carbon or gfoetc...

I didn't remove anything or shut down anything

 

[Susan Edwards]

Note on PH: Yes, my ph dropped again. But should be back to normal tomorrow.

 

[RoweReef]

Thank you!

 

[SunnyX]

Excellent thread. My tank is pretty darn clean. Glass takes about 12 days before any noticeable film algae appears but always looking for that little extra cleanliness. Question is I just want to have my math checked. I have some MB7 and plan on using it based on your recommendation but it does not have a dropper cap. Using some numbers I found in the MB7 instructions 4 drops per gallon or 5ml per 25gal equates too 100 drops = 5ml. Based on your recommendation of 10 drops per 5ml of Coral Snow, for 250gal of total water volume I would add 2.5ml of MB7 to 25ml of Coral Snow? Seems like a small amount of MB7 so just need my math double checked.
By the way I too am carbon dosing with a DIY recipe and have really good results.
Thank you.

Hello,

Thank you for reaching out. The dosages are suggested amounts. By all means, feel free to change the snow/bacteria ratio to suit your systems need. I tend to dose on the lower end of what is recommended on the MB7 bottle so that is why I used that amount. Also, there will be quite a few people just starting up with bacteria and I’d like for them to take it slow.

-Sonny

 

[trietnguyen000]

Very interesting info

 

[Susan Edwards]

Did anyone else notice a drop in PH? Mine almost back to 8. Seems to take close to 24 hrs

 

[Lavey29]

Did anyone else notice a drop in PH? Mine almost back to 8. Seems to take close to 24 hrs

Were you dosing at night when PH drops a little anyways?

 

[Susan Edwards]

Were you dosing at night when PH drops a little anyways?

The first time, yes. Yesterday was in the afternoon. Mid afternoon I think

 

[Steve2020]

Hello,

Thank you for reaching out. The dosages are suggested amounts. By all means, feel free to change the snow/bacteria ratio to suit your systems need. I tend to dose on the lower end of what is recommended on the MB7 bottle so that is why I used that amount. Also, there will be quite a few people just starting up with bacteria and I’d like for them to take it slow.

-Sonny

Did anyone else notice a drop in PH? Mine almost back to 8. Seems to take close to 24 hrs

Did anyone else notice a drop in PH? Mine almost back to 8. Seems to take close to 24 hrs

I dosed for the first time this morning and did not see much if any PH drop. I shut down my return pump for 30min which also shuts down my skimmer and my PH probe will show a slight drop in PH due to no flow across the probe. Once my pump and skimmer turn back on the PH is back to where it was in about 10min. So really did not see a drop.

 

[Steve2020]

Hello,

Thank you for reaching out. The dosages are suggested amounts. By all means, feel free to change the snow/bacteria ratio to suit your systems need. I tend to dose on the lower end of what is recommended on the MB7 bottle so that is why I used that amount. Also, there will be quite a few people just starting up with bacteria and I’d like for them to take it slow.

-Sonny

Sonny,
Thanks for posting your recipe. I made some last night and dosed 25ml plus 25ml MB7 for a total recipe amount of 50ml this morning 2hrs after feeding and I have to say I did notice a difference after a few hours. I have had a little bit of protein foam at the front surface of the tank due to my dual returns are partially above the water surface for better gas exchange and also had a little oily film on the surface due to I do not rinse Mysis when added to the tank and both the film and foam are GONE. Also the water seems to be more clearer even though my tank has always been pretty clear to begin with. I am impressed especially after the first dose. Tank is 84x30x24. Thanks again.

This photo is looking through 7ft of water with all pumps on and the starfish is on a shelf 2ft from the tank.

 

[SunnyX]

Sonny,
Thanks for posting your recipe. I made some last night and dosed 25ml plus 25ml MB7 for a total recipe amount of 50ml this morning 2hrs after feeding and I have to say I did notice a difference after a few hours. I have had a little bit of protein foam at the front surface of the tank due to my dual returns are partially above the water surface for better gas exchange and also had a little oily film on the surface due to I do not rinse Mysis when added to the tank and both the film and foam are GONE. Also the water seems to be more clearer even though my tank has always been pretty clear to begin with. I am impressed especially after the first dose. Tank is 84x30x24. Thanks again.

This photo is looking through 7ft of water with all pumps on and the starfish is on a shelf 2ft from the tank.

Glad it worked out well for you. The clarity you have at 7ft is impressive.
Thank you for mentioning the removal of surface film as it was something that I glossed over. Removing that surface film can have important and positive implications on PAR, O2exchange and PH.

With continued use, things will only get and look better from here.

-Sonny

 

[dvgyfresh]

Just bought some calcium carbonate , I’ll report back ,

 

[CaptPatrick]

All,

I am happy that we have such enthusiasm towards this dosing. Please note that this is only a small piece of the puzzle and won’t cure all your ills or turn your setup into a world class aquarium. There is a lot that goes into an aquarium and this along with proper maintenance and care will go a long way towards success.

As previously stated, I plan on releasing many more articles that you will hopefully find of use. The next article will be on carbon and bacteria dosing, the bedrock and foundation of my systems.

I’ve learned quite a bit over 25 years, some from books and forums but mainly through trial and error. Looking forward to aiding as many as I can.

As a sidenote, with daily use the coral snow will help to kill off vermentid snails by reducing the amount of free floating organics.

-Sonny

Do you have an idea when you’ll be releasing the carbon dosing article? That’s one I don’t want to miss. Thanks for taking the time to share your knowledge.

 

[Steve2020]

Do you have an idea when you’ll be releasing the carbon dosing article? That’s one I don’t want to miss. Thanks for taking the time to share your knowledge.

I too would be looking forward to that article since I do carbon dose using a DIY recipe. I dose not so much to lower nutrients but to maintain nutrients at specific levels and since I've been carbon dosing ( 4 months ), my corals seem to be much happier in growth and color.

 

[wrz0170]

Can anyone recommend an alternative brand of Calcium Carbonate than the one the OP recommended? Thank you!