Why is this happening?

[lalaallieu]

Hey,

I got my 60g tank refilled tonight after draining the saltwater I mixed with tap. I replaced with RODI water. I think this is Diatoms but the lfs said my rock has been cured for years so I'm not sure why I have Diatoms.

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[Daddi0]

Dont worry, with a brand new tank you are gonna go through all types of stuff until it cycles and get settled in.
Cheers! Mark

 

[lalaallieu]

Will I have a cycle with live rock that's supposedly been cured for years?

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[jlmawp]

Looking at that rock, I have a hard time believing it has been cured for years. That said, I’m sure it’s live rock, but there are plenty of factors that would lead to a mini cycle. Die-off from the rock, die-off in the substrate, along with the fact that you may still have a lot of nutrients floating around from the old water. If the diatoms appeared relatively quickly, I’d imagine they’d disappear relatively quickly too. Get a good little cleanup crew in there and let things take their course.

Don’t be surprised if you see green algae next.

 

[sirclintler]

That rock looks white, if so it's not anything other than dry rock

 

[lalaallieu]

Green Algae? What causes that? Is it preventable?

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[sirclintler]

I shouldn't have said that, I suppose freshly cycled rock could have a lighter color. As posted above this is the beginning of the ugly phase. But it is also when all the neat things begin to manifest

 

[sirclintler]

Po4 generally, I would let it run its course until u can add a clean up crew

 

[lalaallieu]

I'm going to buy a cleanup crew this weekend. 60g, how much and of what would you purchase? Can I add fish/corals during this time?

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[jlmawp]

I'm going to buy a cleanup crew this weekend. 60g, how much and of what would you purchase? Can I add fish/corals during this time?

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To answer your question above: not really. Algae is part of having a new tank. Don’t worry about it. Just make sure you do regular water changes, siphoning the sand when removing water, and any algae or other “uglies” will go away soon enough. It’s all part of the process that all of us have gone through. Let things happen naturally or you’ll tend to make things worse trying to prevent the inevitable spat of algae in the beginning.

For cleanup crew in a 60g, is get maybe 7-10 snails...turbo or astrea. You can get 5-7 or so hermits if you like as well, if that’s your thing. Personally, I like the addition of a cleaner shrimp or two also, but they don’t help much with algae. They’re just fun to watch. Don’t get too much more than this stuff, or eventually some of them will starve from lack of food as your tank matures and has less algae available.

As for fish, just to be safe, I would wait another couple weeks. You have diatoms, which is indicative of the end of a cycle, but the rock maturity is questionable. Doesn’t hurt to wait a bit.

 

[JUNBUG361]

I think you should read the sticky thread

 

[mcgyvr]

I think you should read the sticky thread

yes... lots of absolutely basic learning to do for you lalaallieu..
Learning how to properly cycle a tank (if needed)
Learning about the "ugly stages" and how they are normal and should be expected..
Testing your water,etc..
And LOTS more..

I'm too lazy today to write more and rarely do I send people to the stickies but you absolutely need to spend some time reading this and learning about this hobby before you continue any further..
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1031074

Don't go blindly into this or any other hobby.. Learn THEN do..