diatoms

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fishcrack

Aquarium Advice Regular
Joined
Mar 24, 2008
Messages
89
Location
Illinois
I'm frustrated with the problem of diatoms. I'm pretty sure that's what it is since it's powdery brown in color and blows away with the turkey baster. I've religiously been doing water changes (20% in my 24 gallon nano each week), feeding every 2-3 days. I do have my lights on 9 hours a day because of corals but even before I added the corals, I still had the diatom problem. I've increased my cleaning crew (4 Mexican turbos, 4 nassarius, 10 astria snails, about 15 red and blue hermit crabs, 2 peppermint shrimp). I'm feeding a combination of mysis or pellets (New Life Spectrum - recommended by lfs) and occassionally Rod's Reef for the corals. I don't rinse the frozen. My levels last week were: nitrate 5, ammonia 0, calcium 400, ph 7.4. I can't remember my phosphate level but it was a normal reading. I'm due for a water change Monday. I also have a small spot of hair algae on one rock (strands about the diameter of a dime) that I keep pulling off by hand but regrows. My tank has been up since August. I know that a "new" tank has diatoms but should I still be having this issue. Does this mean my food quality is a problem? Corals and fish are all healthy but the diatoms look ugly! Oh, and I have a nano protein skimmer. I clean it every week but it does seem to put out a lot of micro bubbles. I've tried replacing the bubble pad. Experts??
 
Have you tried checking your test results with another brand of test kit. Sometimes different kits can give different readings.
I had a diatom problem on my cheap petco bought sand that would not go away I added a better Caribsea aragonite sand and some macro algae Haven't had a problem since. Thats all I got good luck
 
Hmmm, if you have hair algae and your nitrates are at 5, I am thinking you have phosphates. I'm not quite sure on the constant diatoms. They usually burn out.
Do you have any foam or filter media?
What water are you using?
 
Diatoms can be frustrating. The way I understand the diatom lifecycle in our tanks is that they "bloom" during a cycle (new tanks for example) and as beneficial bacteria grow, they will go away. Once the amount of other bacteria is greater than those of the diatoms, they will not be able to survive. In my experience, as well as others on this board, they are there one day, gone the next.

Did the diatoms ever go away in the first place?

As much as I dislike reccomending this, try not cleaning the tank as often for a few weeks and see if that helps.

Edit: as FigiWigi said, silica sand MAY contribute to your problem. Diatoms are composed of silica and there has been some evidence that silica sand may contribute to them.
 
could it possibaly be mistaken for cyanobacteria? A pic may help
The phospate test reading may be helpfull as well.
 
I use RO water filtered at home and Red Sea Coral Pro Salt that we mix at home. I'll recheck the phosphates on Monday (tank is at school). I'm fairly certain they were at 0 last week but can't say for certain (failing memory I guess). My son suggested I check the phosphates of both my tank water and the mixed water. Will the presence of diatoms give me a false reading on phosphates? Do diatoms feed off of phosphates in the same way that cyno feeds off of nitrates? I'm almost positive that it is not cyno - I've had that before. This is dusty like in appearance, whereas when I had the cyno I could peel if off my sand. I can't take a good picture - I've asked for a new digital camera for my bday next week so the picture will have to wait - sorry.

I have API test kits. I think they are pretty good?? Sand is argonite and is the same sand we have in our other sw tanks.

Could food quality be feeding the diatoms? I wanted to try macroalgae in my sump but there isn't enough light. Should I add it to my tank? If so, what kind and how do I keep it from overtaking the tank? I know you can trim it but I was concerned with space. I have 25-30 pounds of live rock in there too.

To answer DevilishTurtle - I didn't have this issue with diatoms before. Now that you mention it, it may have started to be a bigger problem when I started doing more consistent water changes. But, I ended up with the cyno because I made the classic beginner mistake of feeding every day. I didn't recognize cyno for what it was and it grew rapidly over a few days while I tried to research what kind of new "algae" I had. Then I got wise and started to read this forum more often. Since then, I have really being trying to be religious about water changes and feeding only 3 times per week. Should I wait on Monday's water change? Or test phosphates and go from there?
 
Make sure you test your paramaters before the PWC at the end of the week. Do not test the tank water after a PWC it will dillute any Nitrates or Phospates that may have been there. Just a thought in case you are not doing this already. And is your filtered water just RO or is it RO/DI the DI resin will purify whatever the RO resin does not.
 
I have been testing after PWC - apparently another newbie goof. Another thing I've learned from you all. My water is RO/DI filtered. Sorry for the confusion. So, if I've been testing after water changes, all the info I've been getting could be wrong?
 
I have been testing after PWC - apparently another newbie goof. Another thing I've learned from you all. My water is RO/DI filtered. Sorry for the confusion. So, if I've been testing after water changes, all the info I've been getting could be wrong?
I would test your water before and after the PWC and see if there is a difference in the readings. And API are good reliable tests IMO> Is your phospate test API as well?
 
Yep, my phosphate test is also API. I bought all the same brand since they were easy to use and seemed decent. I'll retest everything on Monday and post. I'll wait on the water change to see what you guys have to say after the new readings. Any other advice on diatoms or phosphates would be greatly appreciated. Between my kids (yes sons, I am giving you credit) and the help on the forum, I've learned a lot in the last 8 months. Thanks.
 
Psh i want more credit then Jimbo. I'm just smarter then him.. and better looking to but that has nothing to do with this. haha
 
If your so much smarter then me you must obviously know that you used the wrong to, its too. It's quite obvious who the better looking son is so there really is no need to debate such things. (It's me...)
As for the actual posting business, I am going to try and take a look at her tank this week at some point to make sure there is nothing she is missing, a second opinion always helps. Our LFS also said dry food is packed with phosphates, could this be contributing?
 
Both frozen and flake are known to contain phosphates.
 
Does rinsing or soaking the frozen help control the phosphate issue? I assume you can't rinse the pellets.
 
Pellet food isn't as bad as frozen or flake. Thaw your frozen food and then rinse it in RO/DI water if you can and then feed the tank. I like to add garlic to my frozen food at least 2 times a week.

Even if you are testing 0 for phosphates you could still have them in the tank. Usually if you have algae growing in the tank phosphates wont show up on test results. The algae eats them up and grows from them.
 
I'll try rinsing as you suggest. I haven't been doing the garlic. I buy some today. Brian uses it at home. I'm seriously considering having the boys looking at the possibility of plumbing my 5 gallon tank as a sump and adding macroalgae for better control. I like the idea of a more natural approach. That may be their summer project and payback for the fish/coral "loans."
 
Diatoms feed on silicate and light. There is no real accurate test for silicates, but there aren't too many sources. As mentioned it will burn itself out. That is as long as you aren't adding more silicates (but even then, you can't add enough to fuel an outbreak, you would need a constant source)

Also, a PH of 7.4 seems a bit low. What's your Alk at?
 
Good catch on the PH Wizzard. That is on the low side.

This is a biocube and they have closed tops I wonder if the O2 exchange is causing the lower PH.
 
Current levels as of this afternoon:

calcium - 420
nitrate - 10
phosphate - 0
ph - 8.2

I checked the phosphate on the water that I will use to do a pwc - levels are 0. I assume this means my nitrate/phosphate issues and therefore, diatoms are coming from my food. I am now at day 11 with no water change. Diatoms are a bit better but still definitely an issue. What next guys?

To answer earlier questions, yes I do think the closed lid is contributing to my problem but . . . if I leave it open (remember I have a 24 gallon Nano and it's in my classroom - very dry air) I have major issues with evaporation. I already do top offs pretty regularly (when the heat was on, everyday) with RO/DI water. Do I deal with evaporation to increase oxygen? I do have a Koralia pump in the tank for extra flow. I forgot to mention that. I don't have it directed at the bottom because it blows sand around all over my corals. Its about a 1/3 of the way from the bottom to try and keep dead spots from developing.
 
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