Diatom question

[tidus10]

So my tanks cycling and diatoms are kinda growing. But the weird part is, it's mainly only growing in the sump? This started soon after adding chaeto, is this normal? My DT really doesn't have diatoms at all.

~Tidus

 

[Reefing Madness]

Started when you added light to the sump, because you added to cheato, it needed light. Right? Thats the deciding factor.

 

[tidus10]

Lights been on the whole time with or without chaeto


~Tidus

 

[Reefing Madness]

Hmm. Now ya got me. New rock in the sump? Also, I've got narly junk growing in the sump, thats exactly where you want it growing, out of eye shot. But for diatoms to start, ya added something in the sump to have them start up.

 

[tidus10]

They started soon after the chaeto. That's the only addition


~Tidus

 

[Reefing Madness]

Weird. Got me. Sorry, I have no idea there.

 

[marvelousone]

diatom need silicates. so cheato in someone's water that had silicates. If it is diatom it will go away as soon it uses up all the silicates.

 

[Reefing Madness]

Last time I checked, Cheato didn't leach anything. ??

 

[bullet reef]

Last time I checked, Cheato didn't leach anything. ??

He's just saying that if there were high levels of silicates in the tank the chaeto came from and the op didn't rinse it before adding to his tank, it could've put silicates into his water.

 

[tidus10]

It cam from a very old tank at a LFS... I dont know what they have


~Tidus

 

[marvelousone]

That's what i'm saying. Got to rinse it.

 

[tidus10]

I figure if it's going into a new tank, the dirtier the better so it helps cycle the tank.


~Tidus

 

[bullet reef]

I figure if it's going into a new tank, the dirtier the better so it helps cycle the tank.


~Tidus

Yes but you are also risking adding unwanted pests into your system that may come back and bite you in the butt later on.

 

[Sdoutreefer]

Are you sure its diatoms? Could just be die off and other junk. Does your sump have sand in it? Die off and other 'junk' will be easier to notice on plain glass than ontop of your rock or sand. If you have diatoms in your sump, you should also have them in your DT. Throw the chaeto in the Dt and kill the light in your sump for a few days= no mas diatoms in le sump.