Troubles with Diatoms (I think)

[foxhuntr]

I set up a new 200 gallon cube about 3 months ago...Im still having problems with diatoms or dinos. I think its diatoms because its giving off a lot of bubbles. Its all over my rocks, sandbed and on my overflows....its growing in strands but not a slime like dino is. And it stays brown and doesn't turn red like cyno does. Ive been doing 2 water changes a week and blowing all my rock work off before each water change....I purchased a new ro system with new filters...been cleaning my filter sock every 3 days...I even run PhosGuard. My permeters are in check........calcium 450...magnesium 1400...alk 9...phos 0...nitrates 0...ph 8.0-8.3...salinity 1.027...The whole set up was built with seasoned live rock and live sand. I understand its a young tank, but does anyone have any ideas on how to get rid of this nuisance? Its okay when the lights first come on but by 3 pm its bubbles everywhere in the tank. Its not affecting my chalices...they are eating and growing but the zoas and palys don't open fully. In the morning all the zoas are happy but as the day goes on, they close up and they stay that way the rest of the day....Can anybody help me out ??????

 

[spscrazy]

dinos check out peroxide dosing for control I have not had this but have read posts here about it Troy lee had it pretty bad a few years ago I would pull up a thread for you but I'm not good in that area.
like your rock layout & the copperband

 

[Tahoe61]

It does not look like Dino in the images. Based on the age of the tank with new filtration system my money would be on a mixture of Diatoms and Cyano, but the condition of the zonathids and palys is troublesome and in my experience those were the first livestock affected by Dino. You're description of quick growth and formationof bubbles during the photo-period also sounds like Dino. If it were my tank I would stop with the water changes, manually remove the algae using a turkey baster daily, clean all mechanical filtration afterwards (once things settle out) and do a major and complete black out of 4 days.
Good luck with whatever you choose.

 

[spscrazy]

I didn't know that diatoms could make bubbles so I looked it up. Yep they can. so I wasn't any help sorry. I did notice you use phosguard I don't like GFO because I only have a filter sock to put my media in so I got some phosguard also thinking it would be good in the filter sock & easier to use. My bubble tip anemone reacted to it in about 24 hours, shrinking up. Took phosguard out & over the next few weeks did several water changes & with each water change the nem slowly got back to its original size. I only added about 1 TBS for a 95 g tank. Thinking it was just a coincidence several months later I used it again same thing happened. Maybe your zoas don't like it either. Nothing else in the tank was bothered by the phosguard...ricordas sps hammer frogspawn etc. so that is just a thought I see a hermit in your photo is it a white stripe? I had trouble with that kind eating softies. red stripe trochus snails are good for diatoms.

 

[foxhuntr]

thanks for the help but I started using Phosguard after battling the problem for awhile....so the phosguard is not the problem with the zoas not opening. They wouldn't open before I started using the phosguard. I only have blue leg hermits in the tank and nothing is eating the zoas. As a matter of fact, the zoas and palys are sprouting babies but they wont open. strange huh? My chalces are popping eyes and growing like weeds and are unaffected.

 

[Reefing Madness]

Do you have your MPs on full blast? Maybe your flow is a bit low and causing you this issue.

 

[foxhuntr]

yes my MP40s are full blast.....I have 2 karolia 1150's coming any day for more flow behind the rock work....I thought of that also....

 

[Reefing Madness]

Right on, bet that gets the flow up.

 

[foxhuntr]

yes it will.but I have a feeling it don't fix my problem......but I hope im wrong

 

[Reefing Madness]

I can't imagine it not helping. Because it doesn't look like Dinos, its a weird looking Cyano Diatom concotion, that may go away by water movement. If your able to wipe it away when your doing water changes, then I would tend to believe that you could get rid of it with flow.

 

[foxhuntr]

well it don't wipe away......I use a pump with a hose on it a blow it off....it comes off like a layer of dust...that's the best way to describe it ....It blows off like dust....

 

[Reefing Madness]

Coming off as if in layers makes me think Cyano.

 

[foxhuntr]

no...not even layers.....like dust...like a dirty layer of fine sawdust on the rock

 

[808jaymakoa]

Can you get a picture with less blue light. The blue light makes it hard to see how it looks on the rock. Also you said the rock was transferred over and already mature but I assume sand is new?

 

[foxhuntr]

yes that is correct about the rock being mature and the sand being new.......sorry but this is the best I can do

 

[Reefing Madness]

Man thats just weird. Certainly looking like early signs of Dinos. The way you were describing it, sounded like Cyano. Maybe its mixed together.

 

[foxhuntr]

pics with less blue

 

[foxhuntr]

I know ....no matter what I do it wont go away

 

[Reefing Madness]

3 day lights out. Will tick off your corals, but wont' kill them. You may feed during this time, but don't let any light into the tank.

 

[foxhuntr]

I am always afraid to do that with the lights