Blue green slime survey

[GaryE]

I'm curious about Cyanobacter in tanks. Locally, in Montreal Quebec, we had a lot of local aquarists who felt it was seasonal - appearing in tanks when it also appeared in rivers and lakes. I see it popping up in questions here, and it certainly is the season when it used to be a problem in my old habitat (I moved away). So internationally, do you see it when we saw it?

 

[Naughts]

I had it when I moved a relatively new (2 months) tank. I removed it by syphoning the sand/ scraping the glass/ scrubbing the rocks and wood each week - it was a lot of work. It stopped coming back once the tank established. IIRC it was Spring (April UK) and lasted for about 4 months .

 

[Alice B]

I had it with too much light in my newly established 55, I think I used a sponge prefilter that might have been in a reef tank at one time, the reef would periodically get red cyano due to corals giving off protein, and what I got in the 55 was red cyanobacteria. . It's not a normal thing in my water supply, although if introduced, with my high local pH, it's a nuisance to get rid of. Feeding the plants seems to be working though.

 

[DoubleDutch]

Think there are several species of cyano bacteria. The ones in rivers and lakes are different types than the ones occuring in tanks. Some of the first are highly poisoness vs less poisoness tank variaties.
As mentioned the inbalance in a new tank often cause them to appear and take over.

 

[JuiceBox52]

Too much light caused mine

 

[Bad Raven]

Think there are several species of cyano bacteria. The ones in rivers and lakes are different types than the ones occuring in tanks. Some of the first are highly poisoness vs less poisoness tank variaties.
As mentioned the inbalance in a new tank often cause them to appear and take over.

I used to operate a Windsurfing Club on an gravel quarry seaside located lake. Water was fresh but somewhat brackish. That water had blue-green algae blooms a couple of times in 15 years. Harmful to humans, it meant instant closure for the several weeks it took to go away. Needs an expert, but I'd hope the variety in tanks was not the same due the danger to humans!

Can say that in that lake were huge numbers of fish, especially massive Carp, as an Angling club also was resident there, those fish were never visibly affected. (Probably benefited from being left alone!!!)

It was claimed it was likely brought in on Comorant feathers, not I suspect an indoor tank Aquarist issue ?

Suppose it depends where your water comes from. I have never ever used anything other than tapwater, only treated for chlorine removal, and being sourced from the Thames near the Estuary, our water has likely been through a few other people, animals, etc before we get it!



In the last couple of years I have had more algae issues in two of my three tanks, mostly black slime/hair. Pretty sure the privatised water companies are struggling to cope (without spending profits of course) on water quality. Certainly pipe leaks are vastly more frequent now causing restriction or loss of supply.

 

[StevenF]

Think there are several species of cyano bacteria.

There are hundreds identified but there could easily way more than a thousand. Cyano bacteria is one of the oldest living organisms on earth so there is a lot of genetic diversity. Some are are toxic but most are not. A safe variety is also sold as a dietary supplement.

It was claimed it was likely brought in on Comorant feathers, not I suspect an indoor tank Aquarist issue ?

bacteria and algae is picked up by wind and carriedlong distances. It is literally dust in the air. So you don't need anything to spread it. If the water has enough nutrients for it to grow it will grow as soon as it lands in the water.

nutrient levels in tap water likely change seasonally. so for some people it can be a seasonal issue. However other people may have the issue almost constantly.

I use RO water so nutrient levels in my tank don't change seasonally and I have had it for a considerable period of time. In my tank it appears to be triggered by a a micro nutrient deficiency issue. But when I fix that it clears up.

Currently I have no visible cyan bacteria visable.

 

[DoubleDutch]

There are hundreds identified but there could easily way more than a thousand. Cyano bacteria is one of the oldest living organisms on earth so there is a lot of genetic diversity. Some are are toxic but most are not. A safe variety is also sold as a dietary supplement.


bacteria and algae is picked up by wind and carriedlong distances. It is literally dust in the air. So you don't need anything to spread it. If the water has enough nutrients for it to grow it will grow as soon as it lands in the water.

nutrient levels in tap water likely change seasonally. so for some people it can be a seasonal issue. However other people may have the issue almost constantly.

I use RO water so nutrient levels in my tank don't change seasonally and I have had it for a considerable period of time. In my tank it appears to be triggered by a a micro nutrient deficiency issue. But when I fix that it clears up.

Currently I have no visible cyan bacteria visable.

Agree for the fullest. Especially mentioning the deficiency instead of the pollution as a cause.

 

[Uberhoust]

Not too many votes. I assume you are talking about the aquariums not the natural bodies of water. I have seen it at any time of the year. In my case I have one tank that has just been a bear with the issue. The tank next to it doesn't have any, I feed and clean the tanks similarly, and the one that gets the cyanobacteria has much lower stocking, and I can pretty well say the fish are not overfeed. The only real difference is the substrate, the tank that has natural substrate (sterilized before use) has frequent issues with cyanobacteria. I sometimes suspect that cyanobacteria have a set of nutrients that if available almost guarantee its growth, or maybe the opposite. The natural sand has more different kinds of rock in it than the play sand in the other tank.

The tank with the problem has improved a bit recently when I went from spray bars to single outlet increasing the current a bit.

 

[lnsaneM]

I do notice it with water changes but only in the spring when it gets more, I pretty much fixed the problem with the addition of nerite snails. Come to think of it, I never gave a second thought to the environment around me. Where I live, I get a lot of rain in the spring and summer time. I will make a mental notice of the places I go and see how that turns out

 

[jaylach]

I get some Cyanobacteria but only on the cover for my tank light. The surface of the water is very close to the lights and always wet so is an ideal environment for the crud. I have yet to see any in my water column so don't worry about the stuff. If I start to see strands going into the water I just wipe the light cover with a paper towel.

If I am wrong and Cyanobacteria actually forms in my water column my Panda Garras take care of it as they do with actual algae. Shoot, supposedly, the beasties will even eat Black Beard Algae and like bio film.

I voted for all options as I see it on my lights all the time as it is caused by the close proximity of my lights to the water surface.

 

[Lamie]

I have cyanobacteria in my tank. I'm not sure how to get rid of it because if I reduce the light by how much and how will I know it is working. Just a thought but I'm quite frustrated.

 

[TNG]

I only have problem when setting up new tanks, no matter what season it is. My water supply is from a reservoir which is not known to be affected by cyanobacteria, except, perhaps when we have a drought when the water level is extremely low. We haven’t had a drought for well over a decade now.

I’m setting up a new 55G tank today and expect to see excessive algae around 4 weeks from now. I'll simply increase water flow, although I suspect it may go away by itself after the tank mature.

 

[Alice B]

I got red of my red cyanobacteria by reducing the light and feeding the plants.

 

[FranciscoB]

Interesting topic, and frustrating issue in aquaria. I currently have 8 running tanks, and have issues with cyano in only one, despite the substrata, maintenance routines etc. being similar in all tanks.
I did have issues with cyano in the initial period of 3 tanks (first months after setup), but never in the other 5 tanks. After a while, it disappeared (not with much effort), only to remain present although not too much, in a single tank, which has now been setup for 2 years. I have not detected seasonality in my aquaria.

Other notes- A number of cyanobacteria are very beneficial. Spirulina belong in this group, and as we know it is widely used in aquarium as well as in human and animal feeds.
In natural habitats cyanos disperse by various means, most importantly as tiny particles via wind (see StefenF excellent post above), thus colonizing widely separated bodies of water and other wet surfaces. It is unlikely that municipally treated water is a significant agent in transmission. On the other hand, it is commonly observed growing in wet areas on roofs (tiles and shingles) and other surfaces, likely brought by wind. They are also able to survive (in dry form) for veeeery long periods of time, only to 'awaken' when favorable conditions return.