Is this algae or diatom?

[Mikey122687]

I took this using my iphone and i don't know how to edit it to remove the blues from the LEDs but the stuff on the ground is brownish and it clumps together. Not sure how to remove it, although recently i've been feeding alot more than normal.

 

[blanden.adam]

Looks like diatoms to me (note, diatoms are a kind of algae ) For removal, you can just siphon it out (perhaps along with the top layer of the sandbed) when you do water changes. If it makes it up onto the rocks, you can blow it off with a turkey baster and siphon it out.

 

[SushiGirl]

Or you can just wait it out. They come and go.

 

[sasharotty]

Or you can just wait it out. They come and go.

x2, just part of the maturing process. Will come and go.

 

[bertoni]

It looks more like cyanobacteria or dinoflagellates to me. Diatoms don't form the slime-like structures, which I think I see. In any case, if the tank is new, I agree that it's likely just part of the maturation process.

 

[Mikey122687]

The tank is about 2 years old. It didn't have any of that until i remove some old rocks for new one. I think i removed about 40-50 lbs and add in 20-30 lbs of new rocks

 

[csauer52]

I agree with Jonathan, those look like dinos. I'm quite familiar with them, battling them myself right now.

 

[SushiGirl]

Doesn't look anything like the dinos we dealt with. If you don't disturb the diatoms, they can clump up like that. I don't see anything in those pics that looks air bubbles or "snotty" like dinos.

 

[Mikey122687]

Yea its not slimy, when i touch it, it feels hard and "clump" together. I can use my hands and make a wave and it will fly away, but after a few hours it starts to grow back.

 

[SushiGirl]

That definitely sounds like diatoms. That's the first algae we get in any tank, it always burns itself out after it uses up the silicates.

 

[tiababygirl2]

its diatoms..Its driving me crazy as well.I'm not sure why {tanks been up over 3yrs} but its been a battle,still not completely gone after 3+weeks of water changes and cleaning sand &rock,I even changed my brand of salt.{read it might help,later found out probably will not help} well good luck.hope you can control it quickly..at least the corals seem very happy during this outbreak.

 

[bertoni]

If it is a diatom bloom, it'll go away on its own quickly unless the topoff water has a lot of silicate. Many snails will eat diatoms, too.

 

[Mikey122687]

If it is a diatom bloom, it'll go away on its own quickly unless the topoff water has a lot of silicate. Many snails will eat diatoms, too.

I have about 25 nasarius snails and they don't seem to be doing the job.

I will check the silicate in my RO/DI when i get home. Is it possible to still get some silicate when your TDS is 00PPM?

 

[bertoni]

Nassarius snails don't eat algae. They eat dead animals and leftover food.

If the TDS of the RO/DI output is zero, I wouldn't worry much about the silicate level in the tank just yet. Silicate is fairly good at getting past RO and DI cartridges, but it's uncommon as a problem in reality.

 

[Mikey122687]

I tested my RO/DI water silicate using the salifert test and its between 0-0.03. My eyes can be off by a bit but i'm pretty sure its in that range.

 

[csauer52]

Also, have you tried testing your RO/DI for P04? I recently did this and was shocked to find out my output from the DI filter was reading 0.18 with a Hanna checker. That's with a TDS reading = 0. Turns out my tap water is 0.70 P04 which explains my algae problem...

I could never understand why I would get blooms after a WC but now I know.

Not saying this is your issue but worth investigating....

 

[bertoni]

Hmm, I'd check the silicate level in the tap water. If you're one of the unlucky ones with a lot of silica coming into the house, you might need a Silica Buster DI cartridge, or something similar.

 

[csauer52]

Thanks Jonathan. What I did was add an extra stage to my unit for GFO. I put it in after ti RO stage and before the DI stage. This got me down to 0.02. I find that to be acceptable. Cadbon dosing and gfo in the DT should take care of the rest although I fully expect it will take some time for the nuisance algae to disappear entirely.

At least I'm learning more about my system. Slowly but surely....n

 

[bertoni]

You're welcome! Good luck!

 

[Aquarist007]

Hmm, I'd check the silicate level in the tap water. If you're one of the unlucky ones with a lot of silica coming into the house, you might need a Silica Buster DI cartridge, or something similar.

I second that. Look for the letters sb at the end of the product numbers for the resin