cuteios Posted July 25, 2003 Share Posted July 25, 2003 Ok so I thought I was through my diatom bloom...but I just noticed that there seems to have been an increase in diatom cover in my tank since I took the pictures. I was monitoring the drop off...but it seems it has come back. What gives? I don't know where to start looking for the cause of the new bloom. Could someone shed some light on this pesky little condition. Link to comment
Acoustic Posted July 25, 2003 Share Posted July 25, 2003 Having a reeftank causes diatoms to grow. The only way to truly get rid of it is with bleach! Link to comment
cuteios Posted July 25, 2003 Author Share Posted July 25, 2003 maybe I should rephrase my question then...what could be causing it to regrow faster. Link to comment
belallanon Posted July 25, 2003 Share Posted July 25, 2003 Phosphate buildup from overfeeding will do it. Try reducing the amount of food you provide. Just enough so its all gone in maybe a minute or less. You could also try to reduce phosphate by running something like Seachem's PhosGuard or SeaGel. Link to comment
MrConclusion Posted July 25, 2003 Share Posted July 25, 2003 Reducing the phosphates will definitely help. PhosGuard is a great product because it also absorbs silicates, which encourage nuisance organisms, too. I would put approximately 1 heaping tablespoon of PhosGuard in a high flow area, then replace it after 3-5 days with a fresh dose of the same size. Then you can cut back to replacing it every 2-4 months. This works great in my nanos. I use RO/DI water but I don't have a HI-S membrane, so my water comes out of the RO unit with significant silicate content. Also, many fish foods are a steady but slow source of phosphates. Link to comment
cuteios Posted July 26, 2003 Author Share Posted July 26, 2003 Thanks for the info guys. I don't have a fish in there right now, it's technically still cycling. There was a blue damsel in there about 2 or so weeks ago but I found him rug surfing when I came home one night. I use RO water for top off too...I'm not sure if the place I buy it from has a HI-S membrande on there filtration system though. Link to comment
Vincerama Posted July 26, 2003 Share Posted July 26, 2003 Actually, it's more silicates than phosphates that make diatoms grow... V Link to comment
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