Help! Pink spots growing! First time saltwater tank! (1 Viewer)

[Jessikahc]

http://i65.tinypic.com/w1fbbl.jpg

Help! Tank has been set up and running for 3 weeks. Live sand, one and only nitrifying bacteria. No lights running but this weird pink stuff is showing up on my rock. I thought it might be corraline but that seems quick. There are no lights on.. though it is slightly exposed to sunlight during the morning only in the area it seems to grow. Any guidance would be appreciated. Link to pic above!

 

[Scarbl]

Can't get the picture.

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[Diesel]

Reef sponges.
See if you touch if it bites you if not they will beneficial to your reef.
This all is part of your cycling.

 

[PorpoiseHork]

3 weeks is way too soon for it to be coraline. That usually won't develop until the tank is at least 4-6 months old and if everything is in balance and you seeded the tank heavily with it.

I can't see the pic but since it is only happening in an area where it's getting light exposure then that leads me to say it's probably going to be Cyano or another similar type bacterial colony. Not uncommon to see with a new and even established tanks especially with it still cycling If it's Cyano it will ultimately bloom across the entire tank once the main cycle is complete and you hit the diatom/cyano stages. If it is a different type of bacterial colony, you will see them creep up around the tank, but is not anything to be super concerned about. It will get covered by the algae stage, and ultimately get covered by Coraline. Not much you can do about it at this point other than wait it out until wait for the cycle to complete and then address the underlying issues such as nitrates and phosphates.

One thing you can do is put up a cover on the front of the tank to block the sun in the morning to keep the Cyano or what ever it is at a minimum. That's what I have to do with mine since it gets blasted by direct sunlight for about an hour every morning.

 

[Jessikahc]

Thanks for the responses! After Googling some more pics of cyano, I think that's likely what it is. I'm also starting to see some stringy algae with bubbles at the ends. I've tried to Google and figure out what it is, and I'm coming to the conclusion that it's either diatoms or dino. How can you tell the difference? And what should I do about it? Should I run carbon and GFO to reduce nutrients?

 

[PorpoiseHork]

Welcome to stage three\four of the nitrogen cycle. This is the point where you should see nitrites fall to zero or very near that, and nitrates start to climb if they have not already. A big water change is the best overall thing for the tank at this point now.

This guy only made a few videos on cycling a saltwater aquarium an he really breaks down it all works and what to expect. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O5TFmPYx2uo I know you're already three weeks in but it's still very informative. I have been keeping fresh water aquariums for decades but late last year I decided to go to salt. So while the cycle is very similar I felt like a novice in a lot of ways and his vids really explained things so I knew what was really happening and I was able to not stress so much.

Also adding carbon at this point won't really do much for you as it is effective against organic, inorganic compounds, general odors, and discoloration. GFO is great for phosphate removal but unless you are specifically testing for it, I would wait until after you have made a big water change, like 20-40% and then tested everything. Once you see where you are after that then yes run GFO if needed and as long as you have hit the nitrate stage and completed the first water change you can start adding inverts like hermits, and assorted snails that will go after the diatoms and the help with the GHA and cyano.