# Diatoms, my nemesis



## puopg (Sep 16, 2012)

What's up TPT, 
Over the past months, I have read about people's woes with BGA, BBA, Thread and hair algaes. I want to shed light on my worst enemy in this hobby. DIATOMS. I don't get it but it seems I manage to reinitialize them in my tank. First time I got my 2.5 month long bloom I knew it was my fault. I had essentially stirred the substrate. So yea i deserved that. Just a few days ago I noticed a bit of browning around some leaves. 

Now, my Hydrocytle Tripartia is always my first sign of attack since the brown appears very easily against the light green leaves. Its been 2 months of good growth in the tank and now wth, diatoms just decided DGAF, im moving in. The only possible thing I can say I did was yes I trimmed the Hydrocytle last week and pulled up a bit a substrate but not enough to have aquasoil dropping off. If anything the water had some particles floating in it.

So my question is, who also hates diatoms, does biological filtration play into them coming back, how do people quickly get rid of it, and how easy are they to re induce? 

P.S. Spread is relatively slow right now, but if I see it spread to a clean leaf I have identified as my current base case, im going to 48 hr blackout. Last time, that's what did it for me.


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## Sajacobs (Aug 24, 2012)

I'm with you. It's been in my tank for 9 months. I bought a pleco to clean most of it, which has helped to control the ugly brown. I've looked for a cause and I'm stumped. It's certainly not new tank syndrome. Like you, green plants are "dipped" in brown. 

Can any one offer up a solution to this?


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## Zlookup (Mar 3, 2013)

I had amazing success using the one two punch thread's method. I wasn't really targeting them or anything but the H2o2 and excel eliminated it after a few days. Using a turkey baster to blow it off surfaces during and after treatment once or twice a day was all it took. Probably don't need to use the turkey baster but I think it helped speed up the removal.


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## Sajacobs (Aug 24, 2012)

Thanks. I'll look up the 1 2 punch thread.


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## puopg (Sep 16, 2012)

Let me know if it works for you!


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## Green_Flash (Apr 15, 2012)

Sajacobs said:


> I'm with you. It's been in my tank for 9 months. I bought a pleco to clean most of it, which has helped to control the ugly brown. I've looked for a cause and I'm stumped. It's certainly not new tank syndrome. Like you, green plants are "dipped" in brown.
> 
> Can any one offer up a solution to this?



Try phos guard or phos zorb in your filter, as it might be excess phosphate and silicates in your tap water. If you can find a tap water analysis for your area that would also be good.


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## Mizuhuman (Mar 16, 2013)

same here, diatoms are my nemesis. some people said they are typical of new tanks but my tanks have been running for a year and their still not gone. I plan to fight diatoms with increased water movement, adding more plants like water sprites, water lettuce, etc to use up the excess nutrients, and adding co2 and increasing my lights. I'll give you guys an update, if I'm successful :icon_smil


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## mpkee007 (Jan 23, 2013)

ottos and amano shrimp destroyed my diatoms. was gone in 2 days.


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## water hyacinth (Mar 3, 2013)

Shrimp (especially amano) and malaysian trumpet snails decimated my diatoms and didn't do anything to the plants.


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## Rbp917 (Dec 9, 2012)

Otos eat diatoms at an amazing rate.


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## mnemenoi (May 28, 2012)

+1 Green Flash 

Diatoms are far more problematic in hard water situations where there is an abundance of silicates and minerals that are in your tap water. In my hard water tanks I have given up battling it and just rely on solid Excel dosing and light management. Even with those, diatoms can grom and thrive with even ambiant light from the room, so that is something else to consider. Usually other algaes outcompete it for nutrient sources. What are your parameters, it might help in determining a possible source/culprit


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## thebuddha (Jul 16, 2012)

so when dealing with diatoms is it better to raise the light on your tank a few inches?


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## Sajacobs (Aug 24, 2012)

mnemenoi said:


> +1 Green Flash
> 
> Diatoms are far more problematic in hard water situations where there is an abundance of silicates and minerals that are in your tap water. In my hard water tanks I have given up battling it and just rely on solid Excel dosing and light management. Even with those, diatoms can grom and thrive with even ambiant light from the room, so that is something else to consider. Usually other algaes outcompete it for nutrient sources. What are your parameters, it might help in determining a possible source/culprit



Thanks for mentioning the hard water part. I have very hard water.....I bet that's the problem....combined with direct sunlight. I've been dosing with excel with little change. Do you double the dose?


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## samee (Oct 14, 2011)

Im not recommending it, but does API Algaefix work on diatoms?

Ive always had diatoms, I hate it. The only time I didnt have diatoms was when my tank was 100% stuffed with plants which were growing like crazy. Plants were so busy trying to out compete each other that there really was no room for algae.


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## Gold Finger (Oct 13, 2011)

Sajacobs said:


> Thanks for mentioning the hard water part. I have very hard water.....I bet that's the problem....combined with direct sunlight. I've been dosing with excel with little change. Do you double the dose?


+1 Mnemenoi, but, hey! don't kill off the diatomes. They say the devil you know is better than the one you don't know. You are going to have one form of algae or another to some degree and that degree is determined by high levels of plants and non limiting nutrients balance with correct flow ligh and CO2... you know, the basic stuff. If you kill the diatoms by any means other than a better balance of the above mentioned you are goin to end up with an algae which does not wipe right off of your plants and may really mess them up. That being said. Glut (excel) will kill any and all algae if you really want to add it for the rest of your life and diatoms win out when silicates are abundent. If it were phosphates but not silicates you would have a different algae. Honestly, you can poison them or try to reduce silicates or phosphates but why not be patient and try to better balance your lights, ferts, CO2, etc.? They will slowly recede to near extinction all the while serving as a guide to how well balanced your tank is. Meanwhile, be glad you have the easiest algae of all to remove.


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## mistahoo (Apr 25, 2012)

I honestly don't know how my 5g hasn't has algae since the cycling phase (diatoms). It's well planted and photoperiod is 18hrs+ (finnex ray 2). No CO2. Flourish and Excel was being dosed up until about 3 months ago. Tank has been up since Sept 2012. I've been overdosing some other microferts the past few weeks. I'm using plain ol Houston tap water (7.6-8.0ph) for top offs. I don't normally do water changes on it. I think I've only done maybe 3-4 during the lifespan of the tank. Filter is a ZooMed 501 stuffed full of matrix, purigen, and a sponge on the impeller side. Never cleaned the filter and I'm scared to change anything I'm doing to the tank. Stock is 8 green striped pencilfish, 2 banded pygmy sunfish, 1 dwarf puffer, 2 o-cats, 2 amano shrimp, 1 Cory hasbrosus, and a ton of blue velvet shrimp. Microworms, blackworms, and some pellet foods are fed every now and then (about once every two weeks?). 

I must be doing something right! 

Sent from my spaceship using Tapatalk 2.


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## puopg (Sep 16, 2012)

mistahoo said:


> I honestly don't know how my 5g hasn't has algae since the cycling phase (diatoms). It's well planted and photoperiod is 18hrs+ (finnex ray 2). No CO2. Flourish and Excel was being dosed up until about 3 months ago. Tank has been up since Sept 2012. I've been overdosing some other microferts the past few weeks. I'm using plain ol Houston tap water (7.6-8.0ph) for top offs. I don't normally do water changes on it. I think I've only done maybe 3-4 during the lifespan of the tank. Filter is a ZooMed 501 stuffed full of matrix, purigen, and a sponge on the impeller side. Never cleaned the filter and I'm scared to change anything I'm doing to the tank. Stock is 8 green striped pencilfish, 2 banded pygmy sunfish, 1 dwarf puffer, 2 o-cats, 2 amano shrimp, 1 Cory hasbrosus, and a ton of blue velvet shrimp. Microworms, blackworms, and some pellet foods are fed every now and then (about once every two weeks?).
> 
> I must be doing something right!
> 
> Sent from my spaceship using Tapatalk 2.


Seems your plant biomass is very high and also, you have a lot of shade so PAR at substrate is probably much less. Excel is probably also supplying the Carbon demand for the plants as well as being an herbicide. 18+hrs though? Thats a ton, and tells me you sleep for like 6 hours a night.


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## mistahoo (Apr 25, 2012)

puopg said:


> Seems your plant biomass is very high and also, you have a lot of shade so PAR at substrate is probably much less. Excel is probably also supplying the Carbon demand for the plants as well as being an herbicide. 18+hrs though? Thats a ton, and tells me you sleep for like 6 hours a night.


I haven't dosed excel in a long while. I have the light on a timer. I do sleep about 6 hours on most mornings since I usually work nights.

Sent from my spaceship using Tapatalk 2.


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## mnemenoi (May 28, 2012)

Lol, Mistahoo! Houston Tap for the win! It seems once a tank finally settles in it does great from there on out. Just those first few months of being driven insane. I think we should test that theory and just ignore it for a few months, then start actually working with it. Need to set up a few in the garage and forget they are running...


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