Diatoms+Cyano

V

Vgyoung

New member
I am having a Diatom and cyano bloom in my established tank idk what is causing this and am getting worried. MY sand is almost all brown and some cyano is forming... I do a 1g water change everyweek which in 1 month is about 10% of my water(29 gallon biocube) I have only 2 fish(firefish and clownfish) and i do not over feed I was thinking it could be my lights so im getting them changed within the week however idk what the cause is My tank will be a year in January.
Please help!
 
Changing out 1 gallon a week is not getting you anywhere on a 29 gallon tank IMO. You might want to increase this to 3-5 gallons a week and see what happens. Also, what kind of water are you using? (RO/DI) Maybe the filters need replacing. How old are your bulbs exactly? Replacing those might help as well. GL.
 
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I mean like doing 3-5 gallons is replacing nearly all the water in a month which is drastic right? 4 gallons a month is what was recomended to me the bulbs are 4 months old and yes RODI water It is read 0TDS
 
I couldnt stand looking at it i took a turkey baster to that sand and now its white again but it will just come back :L
 
Vgyoung said:
I am having a Diatom and cyano bloom in my established tank idk what is causing this and am getting worried. MY sand is almost all brown and some cyano is forming... I do a 1g water change everyweek which in 1 month is about 10% of my water(29 gallon biocube) I have only 2 fish(firefish and clownfish) and i do not over feed I was thinking it could be my lights so im getting them changed within the week however idk what the cause is My tank will be a year in January.
Please help!
Click to expand...

A couple things seem a little unusual. I usually read about diatom blooms when the setup is new or when the owner adds silicate to encourage sponge and diatom growth. The second unusual thing is that a diatom bloom is happening this late. And finally, diatoms and cyanobacteria blooms at the same time? Tough luck. Are you certain about the identity of these algae? Post a picture.

Nutrients are the prime suspects not lights. How are the nitrate and phosphate levels? Post the numbers to stimulate further input.
 
It is the same... and you can have tons of nutrients but without lights they can not grow which is why lighting was a concern but anyway phosphates are .1-0 (color is so close I cant tell) and nitrate is 0 I was thinking silicates as well but idk what is causing them
 
I added pvc pipe to help the protein skipper stand up could that leach silicates if so how long?(just came to mind xD)
 
Vgyoung said:
my question still stands is the pvc pipe leaching silicates
Click to expand...

I didnt measure the silicates, but 24 hours after I put a pvc burrow for a mantis shrimp in my tank, I got the most rediculous bloom of diatoms and filamentous algae ive ever seen. I doubt it was coincidental, I had very little algae before the pvc went in, tanks been up for 5 months.
 
I'd turkey baste the entire tank, then do a 10% water change, then do three days lights out with any curtains drawn (no need to shroud the tank). Blue lights only on day 4 then reduce lights to 8 hours commencing day 5. That will get you started. Then I'd start doing 10% wc twice a week until until you get a handle on this. That's what I'd do. I don't know about the pvc causing a problem. I ran a QT with alot of pvc pieces in it for three months with no problems.
 
@science same with me 0 anything! tank was looking great decided i wanted skimmer so i added pvc pip under it and bam silicate haven i guess xD
 
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