Okay...Some Photos, Finally, to Show What's Going on Here...

[Osage_Winter]

Hello All.

Here is a shot of my tank, first and foremost, to see what I'm talking about in terms of gallons and ornaments...

Below those are the stained ship sails I was talking about...

 

[Osage_Winter]

Here are some more shots of everything, including my beloved goldies...

 

[Osage_Winter]

So, are these "Diatomes" or whatever they're called? Or am I looking at something a lot worse?

 

[ChizerBunoi]

Looks like it to me. Can you rub it off? Especially the darker areas?

 

[Osage_Winter]

Looks like it to me. Can you rub it off? Especially the darker areas?

Thanks Chizer...

I didn't stick my hand in there to try it yet; I was trying to avoid that if possible...if this is something that can come off on its own -- no matter how long it takes -- I would rather go down that route...

 

[Osage_Winter]

Anyone else think these are diatomes?

 

[Kurt_Nelson]

Yup.... diatoms.

 

[Osage_Winter]

Thanks Kurt.

Do these go away on their own? Did you see the pics?

 

[Kurt_Nelson]

Yeah... I saw the pics - that's why I responded. They will eventually burn themselves out and disappear. No guarantee how long that'll take though... all depends on the water. Using tap water isn't helping.

 

[Osage_Winter]

Yeah... I saw the pics - that's why I responded. They will eventually burn themselves out and disappear. No guarantee how long that'll take though... all depends on the water. Using tap water isn't helping.

Thanks...

I understand that I'm using tap water, but the tap water is being conditioned and dechlorinated...what other kind of water should I be using? Bottled? Reverse Osmosis-prepared?

 

[dkpate]

Never use bottled water.
He probably said tap water, since tap water has nutrients in it, which causes algae. Diatoms are a form of algae I believe, but are called "new tank syndrome," and should go away by themselves.
If you hate them that much, just take the stuff out and clean it off.

 

[Osage_Winter]

Never use bottled water.

Why?

He probably said tap water, since tap water has nutrients in it, which causes algae.

But how else am I supposed to get water into my tank? I don't have a well...

Diatoms are a form of algae I believe, but are called "new tank syndrome," and should go away by themselves.
If you hate them that much, just take the stuff out and clean it off.

The tank has been running for some time now...would this be a result of such "new tank syndrome"?

 

[dkpate]

I don't know how long new tank syndrome lasts, since my snails ate my diatoms. Someone else will have to answer that.

Bottled water lacks the essential nutrients that fish need to survive.

 

[Osage_Winter]

Okay...

 

[ChizerBunoi]

I hate a boat decoration with similar sails, but the were made of cotton. It took my guppies about 2 weeks to chew them all away. I don't think goldfish will do the same but just expect the sails to eventually disintegrate. That is if they are made of cotton as well.

 

[Vircomore]

The diatoms may actually be consuming the cloth of the sails, until they are gone. Unfortunately, aquarium environments are not conducive to any kind of cloth unless it's specially treated to resist water and biologicals.

Now, if those sails are plastic or poly - then those diatoms should be able to be wiped off, but no guarantee they won't just come back.

Diatoms live off the "hard" in hard water - consuming the trace minerals in tap water.

 

[Osage_Winter]

Oh, well, this isn't good news...it's the concensus now that these sails are being destroyed and will eventually disintegrate?

 

[mikeymike]

Get a phosphate remover media in your tank right away. More so than the Purigen you were planning.

Rowaphos or Seachems Phosguard. Put it in a media bag and your diatoms will start dieing off in a few days and soon your tank will be clear of them.

I suspect all your plants are plastic? looks that way

*rinse the phosphates in the bags first before adding to the tank. A brown/copper color will clear within 30/34secs of rinsing.

 

[Osage_Winter]

Get a phosphate remover media in your tank right away. More so than the Purigen you were planning.

Rowaphos or Seachems Phosguard. Put it in a media bag and your diatoms will start dieing off in a few days and soon your tank will be clear of them.

I suspect all your plants are plastic? looks that way

*rinse the phosphates in the bags first before adding to the tank. A brown/copper color will clear within 30/34secs of rinsing.

Yes, the plants are plastic. I'll look into the phospate remover, but right now, I am trying to figure out how to run the API master test kit to see what's going on with my water...

How are the phospate removers added to the tank? In the filter?

 

[Kurt_Nelson]

Never use bottled water.
He probably said tap water, since tap water has nutrients in it, which causes algae. Diatoms are a form of algae I believe, but are called "new tank syndrome," and should go away by themselves.

Diatoms are fueled by silica. You can treat tap water all you want for chlorine/chloramines/etc, but if you have a high concentration of silica it's still going to be there. Not sure if that's your case, as all tap water varies drastically from place to place, and time to time. Just saying that if you continue to have problems with them and they don't burn themselves out, you should consider your tap water a culprit.

As far as using RO/DI water or bottled water for freshwater, you can buy stuff to put in your pure water to get the electrolyte balance back to where it should be. I'm not a freshie, so I'll let someone else talk about that.

If you hate them that much, just take the stuff out and clean it off.

Have to agree... it's not going to keep looking brand new without some human intervention.