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I’ve done this a few years ago and it did work for me for a while but I began to get a really bad cyano outbreak.  I did the lights out and a massive water change and tank cleaning and all seemed well till I started my dosing again and it came back.  People do this with success but every tank is different.  My nitrate levels were in the 20-30 range and I wanted to start adding sps and knew I had to do something so I started reading up on algae reactors.  I made one out of a plastic storage tote, Pvc, plastic knitting screen, and cheap led grow lights from eBay and within weeks my nitrates went to 0.  Corals started looking bad so I added more fish and fed more and they have been steady under 5 for the last year it’s been up and running.FEB49A76-5EE6-40E9-A903-A849334EDF3E.thumb.jpeg.4dcefc54ef92ee82fb3bd1801750966e.jpeg

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Some pictures to give you an idea.  They make compact ones that work really well also but I like to go diy first if I can.  If the vodka dosing doesn’t work out or you decide another route this could be an option for you.

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47 minutes ago, KMHREEFER said:

I’ve done this a few years ago and it did work for me for a while but I began to get a really bad cyano outbreak.  I did the lights out and a massive water change and tank cleaning and all seemed well till I started my dosing again and it came back.  People do this with success but every tank is different.  My nitrate levels were in the 20-30 range and I wanted to start adding sps and knew I had to do something so I started reading up on algae reactors.  I made one out of a plastic storage tote, Pvc, plastic knitting screen, and cheap led grow lights from eBay and within weeks my nitrates went to 0.  Corals started looking bad so I added more fish and fed more and they have been steady under 5 for the last year it’s been up and running.FEB49A76-5EE6-40E9-A903-A849334EDF3E.thumb.jpeg.4dcefc54ef92ee82fb3bd1801750966e.jpeg

A9B6E1FE-A6F9-4F15-AA3A-AA397BB1518D.thumb.jpeg.cafe4c968ca425e98be96df05c8c8680.jpeg

Some pictures to give you an idea.  They make compact ones that work really well also but I like to go diy first if I can.  If the vodka dosing doesn’t work out or you decide another route this could be an option for you.

Nice! Yea of my cyano gets out of control I will probably go this route next!

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Tried it for a while .  Cyno with a capital C.  Towards the end I was mixing vodka and vinegar to try getting away from the cyno.

I think one of my biggest problems was my tank was just loaded with detritus and junk. I started blowing the rocks off every day and the dust just kept coming out of the rocks and from under them. I ran a screen with filter material in the sump and changed it often till the tank was pretty clean. Coralin algae returned and my corals started growing much better. I actually was dosing stump remover again to get my nitrates back up. My Chaeto probably helped some too as it started growing quite well . I increased my flow from my gyre to about 70 % and that has helped keep the tank cleaner. I still blow stuff off now and again.  My new system will have two mp 10’s and two of the new gyres and the flow will be pretty good. I also tried to leave places where flow could get between rocks . Good luck in your endeavor.

jim

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