The Diatoms Persist...Please Advise

[Osage_Winter]

but you don't KNOW that your tap water is the problem. i would absolutely try keeping up with weekly PWC's and testing your water (weekly PWC's should be performed no matter what anyway, IMO) to see if you can't control the nitrates and starve the algae.

I suppose fair and true enough.

have you contacted your water supplier? they might be able to tell you what the silica content in the water is.

No, I haven't -- if these get any worse than they are now, I think I am going to do that.

also, have you tried changing foods? apparently a lot of fish food has added silicates. another thing worth trying.

Another factor that has been considered many times -- indeed, I am still feeding them the Tetra Goldfish Flakes on a general basis, but didn't think that a brand this well established would produce foods this rich in silicates and other contaminants. Perhaps I will try switching over to Hikari flakes if I can find them, but oddly enough, the Aqueon Goldfish Flakes I was feeding previously didn't seem to reduce the growth of the diatoms at all.
Thanks for your continuing assistance.

 

[mommytron]

aqueon and tetra are both pretty similar in quality--meaning so-so. i would definitely try switching to a higher quality flake and see if it doesn't help. also reduced frequency of feedings may help. if you're feeding every day, try feeding every other day. you could even do smaller feedings more frequently if you wanted. just feed tiny bits (enough for everyone to get a bite) at a time, maybe a couple times a day. that way there is a much smaller chance of extra food laying around and providing sustenance for annoying algae.

hikari, NLS, and Omega one are all good brands.

 

[Crepe]

I've finally beaten diatoms! My god. I had brown baby poo on EVERYTHING in my tank. It wasn't the coating kind either it was a fuzzy hair kind. It looked like a horrible poo based spiderman had visi..nevermind. Took me about a month or two. Had to keep vacuuming and vacuuming and brushing it out with a tooth brush. Switched to RO water and also removed the silicon grease (yah I know obvious, but took awhile to realize) from the fittings on my filter.

Few tips: Keep brushing it off and sucking it out. Don't just brush it out and let the particles float around, use a turkey baster or something and suck them the heck out of the tank. They'll just rejoin the water again and provide fuel for future generations of diatoms.

Keep doing water changes, buy RO if you have to. Check those municipal water reports for silicates levels.

Keep water moving over your leaves. Stagnant spots are prime places for diatoms to collect on.

Otos help but they never will solve the problem. I beat my diatoms with only 4 otos in a 20 gallon.

Blackouts and H2O2 can be used but as a last resort. They WILL kill the diatoms but they may come back.

 

[jetajockey]

I noticed diatoms in my 125 thats only been set up for a month or so and I moved my trusty 5 otos into it and within a few days the diatoms are all gone. I know people don't typically advocate buying fish for a particular purpose, but they are great at eating diatoms.

 

[Osage_Winter]

aqueon and tetra are both pretty similar in quality--meaning so-so. i would definitely try switching to a higher quality flake and see if it doesn't help. also reduced frequency of feedings may help. if you're feeding every day, try feeding every other day. you could even do smaller feedings more frequently if you wanted. just feed tiny bits (enough for everyone to get a bite) at a time, maybe a couple times a day. that way there is a much smaller chance of extra food laying around and providing sustenance for annoying algae.

hikari, NLS, and Omega one are all good brands.

I've tried skipping to every other day feedings, but they end up acting like they're starving, and I end up feeling bad...

I'll maybe try Hikari and Omega One...

But Tetra makes some kind of "clean/clear water guarantee" with their flakes so I didn't think their food was too contaminating...

 

[Osage_Winter]

I've finally beaten diatoms! My god. I had brown baby poo on EVERYTHING in my tank. It wasn't the coating kind either it was a fuzzy hair kind. It looked like a horrible poo based spiderman had visi..nevermind. Took me about a month or two. Had to keep vacuuming and vacuuming and brushing it out with a tooth brush. Switched to RO water and also removed the silicon grease (yah I know obvious, but took awhile to realize) from the fittings on my filter.

Few tips: Keep brushing it off and sucking it out. Don't just brush it out and let the particles float around, use a turkey baster or something and suck them the heck out of the tank. They'll just rejoin the water again and provide fuel for future generations of diatoms.

Keep doing water changes, buy RO if you have to. Check those municipal water reports for silicates levels.

Keep water moving over your leaves. Stagnant spots are prime places for diatoms to collect on.

Otos help but they never will solve the problem. I beat my diatoms with only 4 otos in a 20 gallon.

Blackouts and H2O2 can be used but as a last resort. They WILL kill the diatoms but they may come back.

Thank you Crepe!

I see I'm not alone with suffering with these dreaded things; I will try the brushing-them-off method if I can, and then trapping them with the baster, but as far as stagnation areas in my tank, there is plenty of water turbulence and agitation over the plant leaves (fake) in my tank from two powerful filters and a bubble wand. So I haven't been able to beat them with strong current in the water.

I tried buying some jugs of purified water for changes and top offs, but it just got too expensive.

 

[Osage_Winter]

I noticed diatoms in my 125 thats only been set up for a month or so and I moved my trusty 5 otos into it and within a few days the diatoms are all gone. I know people don't typically advocate buying fish for a particular purpose, but they are great at eating diatoms.

Wow...good to know...

I just hope I can definitely mix catfish with goldies...

 

[James_in_MN]

aqueon and tetra are both pretty similar in quality--meaning so-so. i would definitely try switching to a higher quality flake and see if it doesn't help. also reduced frequency of feedings may help. if you're feeding every day, try feeding every other day. you could even do smaller feedings more frequently if you wanted. just feed tiny bits (enough for everyone to get a bite) at a time, maybe a couple times a day. that way there is a much smaller chance of extra food laying around and providing sustenance for annoying algae.

hikari, NLS, and Omega one are all good brands.

Once upon a time, one of the foods I was feeding my fish was Aqueon flakes (until I found out flakes are bad for bettas). I just looked at the ingredients, and I see several sulfates and a phosphate, but no silicates.

That's not to say it's not the greatest flake food to use though.

I've finally beaten diatoms! My god. I had brown baby poo on EVERYTHING in my tank. It wasn't the coating kind either it was a fuzzy hair kind. It looked like a horrible poo based spiderman had visi..nevermind. Took me about a month or two. Had to keep vacuuming and vacuuming and brushing it out with a tooth brush. Switched to RO water and also removed the silicon grease (yah I know obvious, but took awhile to realize) from the fittings on my filter.

Diatoms can be fuzzy and hairy? Are you sure that wasn't black bearded algae in your tank? That stuff (BBA) isn't good to have at all; the only thing that is known to eat it is siamese algae eaters.

I noticed diatoms in my 125 thats only been set up for a month or so and I moved my trusty 5 otos into it and within a few days the diatoms are all gone. I know people don't typically advocate buying fish for a particular purpose, but they are great at eating diatoms.

My ottos did the same thing for my 20g high tank. The three of them made quick work of the diatoms in my tank.

RCS and amano shrimp also seem to gobble diatoms up.

 

[Osage_Winter]

Once upon a time, one of the foods I was feeding my fish was Aqueon flakes (until I found out flakes are bad for bettas). I just looked at the ingredients, and I see several sulfates and a phosphate, but no silicates.

This is good to know -- I believe sulfates and phosphates cause the diatoms as well, and I was using Seachem's PhosGuard for awhile to try and combat this. I wonder if the Tetra food has similar ingredients...

 

[Crepe]

Once upon a time, one of the foods I was feeding my fish was Aqueon flakes (until I found out flakes are bad for bettas). I just looked at the ingredients, and I see several sulfates and a phosphate, but no silicates.

That's not to say it's not the greatest flake food to use though.



Diatoms can be fuzzy and hairy? Are you sure that wasn't black bearded algae in your tank? That stuff (BBA) isn't good to have at all; the only thing that is known to eat it is siamese algae eaters.



My ottos did the same thing for my 20g high tank. The three of them made quick work of the diatoms in my tank.

RCS and amano shrimp also seem to gobble diatoms up.

Yep, diatoms can grow colonially. They attach to each other forming fragile threads that choke out plants but if you were to remove them via hand they'd crumble to bits and turn to intangible dust.

Here is an example:
http://i847.photobucket.com/albums/ab37/HolySamosa/DSC_1439.jpg

These are not my diatoms but they grew similar to these. Mine were a tad more wispy.

 

[James_in_MN]

Yep, diatoms can grow colonially. They attach to each other forming fragile threads that choke out plants but if you were to remove them via hand they'd crumble to bits and turn to intangible dust.

Here is an example:
http://i847.photobucket.com/albums/ab37/HolySamosa/DSC_1439.jpg

These are not my diatoms but they grew similar to these. Mine were a tad more wispy.

Wow, those sneaky little SOBs!

<whistles to ottos> <points to scary hairy diatom mass>

Sick it boy!

 

[-JD-]

Just want to reiterate how awesome otos are for diatom control. My newly cycled 36g was COVERED in brown algae, so when I went to the lfs to stock, I picked up 6 to see what they could do. It's been a little more than 24 hours, and they have made a HUGE impact already. So much in fact, that I'm already researching what to feed them after the clean-up is done. They truly are amazing!

 

[Osage_Winter]

Wow.

Wish I could have a bit more faith as all you guys and gals do in certain anti-diatom solutions; my G-d do these things grow and grow quick. My tank is becoming a red/brown mess slowly but surely, and NOTHING I have done thus far has helped (stepping up the WCs, reducing the feeding, changing the light schedule, using Seachem's PhosGuard...).

 

[ejaramillo01]

Wow.

Wish I could have a bit more faith as all you guys and gals do in certain anti-diatom solutions; my G-d do these things grow and grow quick. My tank is becoming a red/brown mess slowly but surely, and NOTHING I have done thus far has helped (stepping up the WCs, reducing the feeding, changing the light schedule, using Seachem's PhosGuard...).

I read that many people suggested the Ottos... Have you tried them?

 

[Coleallensmom]

I read that many people suggested the Ottos... Have you tried them?

Unless he's stepped up his WC schedule drastically from what it was before, I wouldn't recommend adding more fish- especially not sensitive ottos. Plus isn't this a goldfish tank? I'd have to question if the tank would be warm enough for ottos (don't know if he has a heater on his tank?).

 

[fred]

Unless he's stepped up his WC schedule drastically from what it was before, I wouldn't recommend adding more fish- especially not sensitive ottos. Plus isn't this a goldfish tank? I'd have to question if the tank would be warm enough for ottos (don't know if he has a heater on his tank?).

To add to that...IMO...I don't think adding a fish like the otto is the right way to handle this. It's one thing to add some snails or a fish you want to have (like I did with my clown pleco). However, adding a fish like the Otto is not the way to deal with algae. Unless of course you have the stocking space and that's what you want for your tank, but don't do it just to get rid of the algae.

 

[Osage_Winter]

Yes, this is a goldfish tank that's kept at a cool room temperature. I, too, have my doubts about adding a catfish to this tank anyway.

It seems on a daily basis, the diatoms are evolving and growing now -- the tank's ornaments have turned a nasty brown/red from these things and I don't know how to stop them. The PhosGuard didn't work. The distilled water didn't work. Changing food brands didn't work. How can the tank still be cycling one year later?

 

[mommytron]

have you stepped up your water change schedule? are you vacuuming out uneaten food? i doubt your tank is still cycling. however one year is still on the newer side of things. have you contacted your water supplier about the silica content in the water?

 

[ejaramillo01]

have you stepped up your water change schedule? are you vacuuming out uneaten food? i doubt your tank is still cycling. however one year is still on the newer side of things. have you contacted your water supplier about the silica content in the water?

My impression is that the OP have tried everything, but PWC.
I remember another of his treads where he shared his beliefs of not performing PWC to often. Which I disagree but respectfully understand.

 

[Fishies86]

Do you ever change your filter media?