Diatom Madness - 03/17/2006 Hi Bob, <Josh here.> Thanks for your help with my previous ich/Hospital Tank questions. After 1 week, my fish seem to be doing well in their "Hospital" environment. <Good stuff.> Here're the details of my tank. 120 Gal, FOWLR - and a few soft corals. Turboflotor 1000 1200gph CPR Overflow box 40 gal, refugium with soft ball size Chaetomorpha Mag 18 return pump Orbit 4x96 day/actinic PC lighting Livestock: 8" Volitans Lionfish 9" Snowflake Eel Coral Beauty 2 Yellowtail Damsels 2 Condy Anemones Small colony of Zoos Devils Hand Leather Cauliflower Leather <These last may have trouble with the anemones.> 50 lbs of Live rock Water parameters are good, spg 1.023, Temp 78,  Nitrate 0, Nitrite 0, Ammonia 0, PH 8.1. <I would bring the pH up to at least 8.4 - 8.5> We use distilled water (not enough water pressure to run RODI unit). I do a 5gal water change and siphon the substrate weekly. <I would bump this up to 10 gal.> This has been setup now for 2 months. We upgraded from a 55 gal (which we had running for 8 months). We ran into a diatom problem (as expected) about 1 week after the introduction of fish, and it lasted about 1 week and went away.  No big deal. Tank looked great for about 2-3 weeks. Then we had a major hair algae explosion, that we believed it was caused by unnecessary use of DT's phytoplankton (we used about 1 tablespoon every other day). So we stopped using the DT's, and bought a protein skimmer. This solved our Hair Algae problem but I still need help. Before the Skimmer we were using a "Skilter" in our refugium.  I felt the Skilter was the "weak link" in my filtration, and decided to buy a Turboflotor (after 2 Berlin Turbos cracked on me). The Turboflotor was introduced about 2 weeks ago. It has been producing about 1/3 cup (not a cup of 8oz, but the cup on the skimmer) of very dark coffee/green color skimmate every day....everything sounds great so far. Shortly after using the skimmer, I get a massive Diatom explosion (about 10 days ago), and it doesn't seem to be letting up. <Could be from the water. Distilled often has various things in it from processing.> The only things I've done differently are.... 1) I added a protein skimmer 2) Started thawing frozen food in Kent Zoe. Small pieces of frozen shrimp, Flounder, or Scallops. <You aren't letting any of the thawed juices into the tank are you. This would cause your situation also.> So is it the Kent Zoe that's causing the diatoms? <I don't think so.> Adding excess nutrients into my tank? Should I freshwater dip the food before putting it into the tank? <No.> It can't be the skimmer can it? <Sounds like it's working pretty well.> My tank has been fallow for 1 week now, and will be for the next 5weeks. <What? Why?> So nutrient import shouldn't be an issue correct? <If there's not any life in the tank.> The only thing I'm feeding are my anemones (pea sized nugget every Sunday). Any suggestions as to how I can get the diatoms to go away? <Look to your source water, salt mix primarily. Do you have a phosphate test kit? Worth getting.> They're ugly and they stink. <Just by chance, are you sure this isn't Cyano?> Help Please!!! Wayne <Keep on keeping on. - Josh>

Re: Diatom Madness - 03/19/2006 Thanks for the reply Josh. <You're welcome Wayne.> Following your feedback...I am considering buying a RO/DI Unit. We don't have the greatest water pressure in my home. I saw a Kent Pure-Flo II 100gpd unit that comes with a water pump. It says that it's ideal for homes with low water pressure. Do you have any feedback on this system? <No, haven't used it. Perhaps consult some BB's on this.> Or can you suggest other systems? <Well, not really. Perhaps try here http://www.aquaticeco.com/ . A large selection and helpful staff that can assist you in the decision making process.> I'm not sure how this works. Maybe you can help me understand. <Here's a good, straight forward article from the CA magazine: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/ca/volume_2/cav2i4/RO_systems/reverse_osmosis.htm .> I plan to install the unit under my kitchen sink. <Likely to be a pain...> Assuming this.... 1)  Where does the actual RO/DI water come out? <From the discharge hose of the unit.> Out of the tap? <No.> 2)When they say GPD...do they mean in 24hr period? 100gallons per 24hr period? <When operating under best conditions, yes.> 3)Is there a way to bypass the system easily, so I can only purify water that's going in my tank? <Well, yes. It will only process the water put through it. Not all water coming into your house.> 4)If yes...is it a feature of the system? <No...just the way it works.> Or is this a modification I'll have to install? <No, but you will have to run the "product" line to a storage container.> Is there anything else I should know about RO/DI units before I buy one? <Hmm...just what's in that article I think. May help to stop by a LFS to see one in operation...get the full picture of how it looks/works.> Thanks a ton for your help. <Glad to offer it.> I can't stand the idea of paying $60/month for distilled water that could be causing my diatom problem. <Whew! &720.00 a year. Get ready to find a lot of extra money! Do visit the link I provided. The sales staff are good and they'll narrow down your options based on what you need (not what they want to sell you).> WS <Josh>

Algae Progression    3/2/06 Hi Bob, <Scott F. at your service today!> Just a further question. My tank has been established for 3 weeks now and has completed it's cycle. However I am starting to notice a light brown algae develop on the glass panels, the coral sand and the rocks. I would like to know what options are open to me to rid the tank of the brown algae in order to begin promoting the growth of green algae? I am aware that I could add snails however I have heard their population size can get out of control. What method would you recommend?? By the way the tank is FOWLR. Thanks again, Joe. <Well, Joe, this is a perfectly normal type of thing in a new system. New aquariums have immature nutrient export processes, and nutrients and light fuel algae growth. Eventually, the brown algae will be "replaced" by green algaes, end eventually, corallines. Do check your source water to confirm that you don't have high levels of silicates in your source water, which contribute to diatom growth. There are two things that you can do to get rid of brown algae: 1) Wait it out and perform routine maintenance, or 2) Kick up your nutrient export processes. This can be accomplished by utilizing aggressive protein skimming, use of activated carbon, Poly Filter or other chemical filtration media, regular water changes with high quality source water (RO/DI- particularly with high silicate removal capability), and growing/harvesting "competitive" macroalgae to export nutrients that would otherwise be used by the nuisance algae. Given time and use of these ideas, you'll see the brown stuff gradually fade away. Good luck! Regards, Scott F.> Diatoms   1/21/06 Hi, <Hello Fishmomma>   I have read, read and reread your web site... and well, I am going nuts. I have what seems to be "brown algae".... diatoms?? It's a lovely shade of burgundy/brown, grows in sheets.. really fast.. likes the entire tank, and will not stop growing. I have a 55gal reef tank with a nice amount of live rock and two fish. The diatom sludge has taken over however. I did an almost complete water change after waiting for the sludge to cycle and leave only it didn't leave. Once I cleaned the tank, added new water, and placed only a few hunks of live rock in it was only two days before the stuff returned...  The fish are happy, but I would really like to evolve this tank... help if you can. <Need more info such as length of time tank has been set up, filtering system, nitrate level, stocking level, etc.  James (Salty Dog)>   Thank you <You're welcome>  Fishmomma

New Tank, non-reader   1/18/06 Hello WWM Crew, <Christopher> I have recently (two and a half weeks ago) set up a previously used 75 gal. saltwater fish tank.  I plan on turning it into a reef tank in the future (as soon as I can afford it!).  I will give you the specs just in case it matters.  I have two hang-on filters (One Emperor 400, and another Emperor, a 200 I think), a new Coralife Super Skimmer for a tank up to 65 gal, Coralife Lunar Aqualight, a Rio 1100, and live rock and sand. My main question is this:  I have 3 BL Hermits, and recently noticed that one had come out of it's shell.  I have been watching it and it seems to have little brown eggs on the back side of it's body.  It is also trying to burrow into the sand somewhat.  Any ideas? <Is possibly carrying eggs... but could be another commensal to parasitic hitchhiker... perhaps this animal is looking for a larger shell> On another note, I am having a little bit of a Diatom problem.  It grows, and I routinely stir up the sand, but it just comes back within one or two days.  Any suggestions?   <Mmm, read... on WWM re> Or is this a natural cycle that will work its self out? <Can cycle in/out depending on conditions...> And finally, I have a Rainford's Goby and a Yellow Tailed Blue Damsel, and I am having trouble getting the Goby to eat.  I have tried pellet food, and brine shrimp, and have even tried to place the brine where the Goby grazes.  I don't want it to starve, and I have heard that this can be a problem. <Oh yes... likely most common cause of loss of Amblygobius species... again... read... on WWM. Bob Fenner> Thanks, Chris (ND

Out of ideas... Diatom troubles?  12/15/05 Dear Crew, <Yo!> I sure you probably get tired of hearing from me, but I respect your opinions and have had a few rare problems.  And because of your website and books, my FW baths, Q tanks, and display tanks have been a success, until now. However, I don't think this problem is rare, but I just can't find the solution.  So here is the deal, I have a 72 gal reef with the following: Finger leather coral, Sinularia sp. Colt coral, Alcyonium sp. Star Polyp, Clavularia sp. Striped Mushroom, Actinodiscus sp. Red Mushroom, Actinodiscus sp. 1 Bubble Anemone, E. quadricolor Strawberry Pseudochromis, P. porphyreus White Sleeper Goby, V. sexguttata Lawnmower Blennies, S. fasciatus Yellowtail Blue Damsel, C. parasema Purple Tang, Z. xanthurum Bicolor Angels, C. bicolor 2 Ocellaris Clownfish (TR), A. ocellaris Percula Clownfish, A. percula 2 Cleaner Shrimp, L. amboinensis Emerald Crabs, M. sculptus Varies hermits crabs and turbo snails <A lot of life, food/waste processing> 1"-3" live sand substrate Approx 100lbs of live rock 4 powerheads (2 MaxiJet 900 2 MaxiJet 600) Aqua C Remora Skimmer (produces one cup of the nastiest stuff per week, that's all I can get with the most aggressive skimming possible) Magnum 350 canister filter 350 Biowheel 4 x 96w PC (3-10,000K & 1-Actinic) duration 12.25 hrs Parameters as of last night: Ammonia 0 Nitrite 0 Nitrate 0 Phosphate 0.025mg Copper 0 pH 8.3 Silicate .1mg Iodine .01mg Calcium 475mg <A bit high... what is your alkalinity?> Salinity 1.023 Temp 81F Now that's out of the way here is my problem; brown diatom algae.  When the tank was first set up over 6 months ago it went through the normal new tank syndrome and then cleared itself up.  Now, over night I get these bad blooms that are practically requiring daily cleanings.  I use RO water (premixed weeks in advance with Instant Ocean) and do biweekly 10% water changes, and feeding (Brine, flake, krill, Mysis, & Plankton) is kept to a minimum. Iodine is added daily, and EE's are added weekly.  I think I have read everything possible on your website, <Mmm, I don't see a refugium, DSB, macro-algae culture, mud-use listed...> but I am still at the mercy of the diatom algae.  I even gone as far as using a phosphate sponge, but I would rather attack the source on the problem.  Do you have any ideas as to what I might do? <Yes> I am pretty sure that I have enough water flow in the tank, over 1700 gph (including powerheads, skimmer, and filters) and water husbandry, IMO is fine.  I am getting to a point to where I may have to hand out pink slips to a few tank mates for not doing their part in helping me.  My other tanks with the same husbandry are fine; I can't get anything to grow in them, except for the livestock and coralline.  One idea I have that may be causing the problem is the possibility that the diatom is feeding directly off the mucus of the corals, but I have no idea how to confirm that, and the fact that the diatom is not localized kind of throws that out.  Any ideas? Thanks WWM! Bryan <Consider measuring, bolstering alkaline reserve, allowing your free calcium to drop to below 400 ppm., removing the canister and wheel, getting/using a living sump with a DSB... Bob Fenner>

Re: Out of ideas... Diatom troubles?  12/16/05 Bob, Thanks for the reply, and the alkalinity 6 meg/L and I am working on lowering the calcium, any recommendations for the calcium? <Slow down on doing whatever it is you are on bolstering this, and increase the processes of increasing alkalinity... these are largely mutually reducing> I do want and plan to add a sump to the tank, but first I have to add more support under the floor for the added weight.  Should a 20gal sump meet the filtration requirements for a 72 gal? <Largely, yes> Again thanks for the help. Bryan <Welcome. Bob Fenner>

Diatoms And More Diatoms - 11/29/05 Hi wetwebmedia crew..., <<Howdy>> I hope you're all doing fine. <<Yes, doing well thank you.>> I wanted to ask a question because my reef system seems to be out of balance lately. Recently the tank came under attack from diatoms which appeared on my Aragonite/Samoa Pink sand bed (3 inches deep). Since I had become rather lazy with my water changes <<Here's a hint...>> (was only doing 5 gallons per week with Tropic Marin salt - system is a 3 year old 157g acrylic with soft/LPS and a couple Acropora), I increased that to 10g per week. I added 1 Maxi-Jet 1200 powerhead (also have 2 other powerheads in the tank - 1200 and a 900, positioned on opposite ends). Main pump is an Iwaki 40 RLXT -1200gph but water flow splits by going to a sterilizer then splits again when enters the tank. As a result the current created is not as strong as it should be, which makes the powerheads necessary. <<Understood>> Also, this is a tall tank (29 inches) that used to house triggers before I switched to a full reef. So far I have added some carbon, increased the water flow, cut back on feeding every other day - except Nori (I only feed Formula 2 flakes, a few shavings of frozen Formula 2, and Mysis, as well as Nori/seaweed.) <<I don't agree with skipping feedings...feed appropriately/don't overfeed...but don't skip feeding.>> <<A little more variety in this diet would be very helpful, too.  Marina>> The brown diatoms only show up on the sand bed or glass, never on the live rock. However, my rock has scattered patches of some black micro algae (brushes off-probably BGA) which is more prevalent on the sides of the tank. Rest of live rock is covered in coralline. I presume the circulation/circulation is not enough, therefore the water does not wash off the live rock on each side. <<Maybe just needs to be redirected.>> I also stir up the sand occasionally since the diatoms make it unsightly (is this a good practice?) <<Mmm...if the tank is experiencing an algae succession you are only extending the process. Sometimes it's best to leave alone and let things progress.>> My question is, do I have enough circulation with the Iwaki 40 RLXT plus the 3 powerheads mentioned above? <<Probably...but also depends on outlet placement/decor placement.>> Would it be safe to treat the tank to get rid of the black BGA or whatever that is? <<I never recommend treating a display tank with antibiotics.>> I am sick of removing live rock pieces and brushing them off to get rid of BGA. <<Then don't...use a bit of airline tubing to siphon it out.>> I would hate to lose my Stomatella snails or cause any problems to the existing fish though. My fish are: 1 Yellow Tang, 1 Scopas Tang, 1 Kole Tang, 1 Fiji Yellow Tang (probably mimic), 1 Mandarin, 1 Sixline Wrasse, 1 Orange Anthias, 1 Fairy Basslet, 1 Clown Fish and various snails. <<While they may be unsightly, it's not likely the diatoms will kill your livestock.>> I use a Coralife PureFlo RO/DI unit for water purification (is this is a good unit, manufacturer claims it removes 92% of Silicates, 95% of Phosphates?). <<Should be fine, these units all function pretty much the same. How old is this unit? You might consider changing out the membrane if it's more than a couple years old.>> Lights are 1 175w XM halide, 3 VHO's (total wattage 650w) and I have an 8 inch fan blowing into the tank to cool it off (well it's not doing a good job, temp is at 82F). <<Not a problem...>> There is also 1 Aquafuge refugium in the stand with Caulerpa. Only serious problem as I stated is the diatoms. <<Is there something that changed/you started doing differently about the same time the diatoms showed up?>> At last, as if the above is not enough of a problem, my screwdriver's tip fell in the tank one day while I was working on the lights. I have been unable to recover it (removed half of live rock one day and looked for it with a magnet, but no luck). I even crushed one of my cleaner shrimp so I'd rather not look for it anymore. Do you think it will potentially leach anything in the water? <<Not likely large enough to do harm.>> Could it be the diatom bloom is related to that? <<I wouldn't think so.>> Any advice/idea would greatly be appreciated. Thanks a bunch, Dimitris. <<Really, it's hard to say Dimitris. If nothing changed prior to the outbreak I would test the effluent from the RO/DI unit...possibly change the membrane/DI cartridge and perform a large water change afterwards...adjust the powerheads to maximize flow throughout the tank...make sure the skimmer is functioning properly (you do have a skimmer?)...and have a read through the algae and silicate FAQs on the WWM website. EricR>>
Re: Diatoms And More Diatoms - 11/30/05 Thanks for replying Eric. <<Very welcome Dimitris>> Yes I do have a Euroreef CS6-1 skimmer. <<Excellent! I love ER skimmers.>> I usually get 1 cup of skimmate per 3-4 days. <<Mmm, I would adjust to collect more/wetter skimmate...will help some with the current issue.>> Also, the RO membrane is 9 months old and the prefilter, carbon, DI stage filters have been replaced the past 3 months. <<Depending on your usage it's likely the DI cartridge needs replacing again. Tis worthwhile to do a check of the effluent...a TDS meter should read no more than '2' with a good/fresh DI cartridge.>> How do I test the effluent? <<Buy/borrow a TDS meter. Test your tap water, then test your RO effluent before the DI cartridge. A good membrane should give you a reduction by a factor of at least ten...in other words...if your tap water reads 100 on the meter, your RO membrane should reduce that to at least 10. Checking the membrane can tell you if the membrane is bad and burning through your DI cartridge. If the RO membrane is good, check the effluent after the RO/DI and see if the reading falls to '2' or less. Though a reading of as much as '10' is acceptable in my opinion, you're defeating the purpose of having the DI at that point.>> I can't remember doing anything differently before or after the diatoms showed up. Since the outbreak last week I've done a 14g water change and planning to continue with small water changes every few days. <<A couple larger water changes might be in order...say 30%...>> Also, not sure if this makes a difference but everyday before leaving for work I place a Nori piece on a clip and leave it there...some still remains in the clip (fish can't reach inside the clip to eat all of it) and therefore some brown algae appears on the glass near the Nori/seaweed. <<Nothing to worry about if you are removing daily.>> Could it be that's something contributing to the diatoms? <<I don't think so, no.>> I have placed a powerhead near the bottom (front side) to keep detritus off, or the sand slightly stirred; seems to have helped a bit, but on the sides you can still see the sand being yellow/brown. In addition, I'm not sure if this is part of the problem, but the tank sits across (10 feet away from a large window, and being in FL, <<Florida>> the sun is always out, causes the room to be quite bright. I know excess light agitates algae. <<More like "stimulates" algae. If all were well/correct in the tank the addition of some sunlight, direct or otherwise, would not be a problem.>> I'm also leaving the fan on 24 hrs/day now, temp is down to 80F from 83F. <<Increase your skimmer output...check that your alk/calcium are up/balanced...and check the effluent from your water filter and do a couple large water changes. Then let all be/monitor for a couple weeks. EricR>> 
Re: Diatoms And More Diatoms II - 12/01/05 Hi Eric, <<Dimitris>> As I wrote before, my skimmer does produce a very nasty smelling/dark brown skimmate, however, I can never get it to produce more than a cup every several days. <<Curious...usually quite easy to adjust these skimmers for most any "amount" of skimmate.>> When I lower the riser pipe the foam does not reach all the way up in order to make it into the collection cup. <<This would stand to reason.>> When it's adjusted all the way up, the foam is wetter but as I said it never collects a cup per day. <<Mmm...with the riser pipe all the way up your skimmer should be overflowing.>> Also, after a couple days, there's gunk starting to accumulate on the inside of the collection cup (before it flows into the collection chamber). <<Indeed...this is indicative of producing a very "dry" skimmate.>> I usually clean the skimmer every week, and clean the pump periodically by letting it work in a bucket with water/vinegar. <<Hmm, very good...was my next question.>> Also, a few weeks ago I discovered that the impeller was scratched - possibly by the little calcareous tube worms that have been growing in my sump <<Or ingestion of a snail...piece of coral gravel...>> (I thought they were harmless), but the skimmer continues to operate and produce skimmate. It just doesn't produce the optimal amount per what you're saying. <<I have a recommendation. Even the best equipment needs a little "tweaking" now and then...Pull the bottom pipe (the one the riser pipe slides in to) and take it to the hardware store and pick up a piece of PVC pipe of the same diameter. Cut this a few inches longer than the original pipe...install...and see if the extra height allows you to adjust to a wetter skimmate. If you can't find the right size pipe, another option would be to purchase the gate-valve kit offered for these skimmers (Marine Depot has them I believe), which will give you a more finite adjustment capability than the riser pipe assembly...or if you're handy...cobble up your own. You could always contact Euro-Reef and explain/see what they can suggest as well.>> I only feed various flakes/formula 2 cubes (mostly 3-4 shavings every other day) and Mysis once or twice a week. Perhaps my skimmer has a defect from the factory (I read in WWM archives, someone else had the same problem getting 1 cup of skimmate per day)?  <<Tis possible...contact the manufacturer and see what they have to say.>> At last, is it possible that the diatom bloom was a result of a decaying animal (fish/coral). <<Mmm, diatoms are usually an indication of high silicate and silicic acid levels...usually introduced in your make up water.>> I used to have a bicolor blenny 3-4 months back and one day it just disappeared (was never found dead either). <<Not uncommon...>> Recently I was told at an LFS that brittle starfish eat small fish by attacking them when they sleep. I do have a 8-10 inch spiny brittle starfish (hitch hiker) that I see at night under a large piece of rock. <<While possible...the brittle star likely "cleaned up" the blenny after it died from some other cause.>> I also saw one Xenia stalk that fell off the glass (Xenia has spread on the back glass) underneath the same rock where the starfish lives. Is there a possibility that the decaying fish/Xenia stalk might be fueling the diatoms? <<I doubt it.>> Incidentally, the diatoms have the same color as my Xenia elongata. <<Mere coincidence.>> I really appreciate your advice. Thanks again. <<Here's a link to some info written by Albert Thiel on what causes diatoms, how they get in to your tank, how to eliminate them. Do go have a read (and get that skimmer working better): http://www.netpets.org/fish/reference/reefref/diatoms.html  EricR>>
Re: Diatoms And More Diatoms III, As The Old Cartridge Turns - 12/02/05 Hi Eric, <<Hey Dimitris>> Just a quick note, I did email Euroreef for any suggestion, <<Great>> but I also took a sample of my RO/DI unit's water (after it's filtered) to my area's LFS and they used a conductivity meter to check it. Showed 79 and the max they said should be 10ppm. <<Ok>> Apparently, they think because city water in this area is bad enough, the sediment/carbon/DI cartridges sometimes don't last more than a couple months. <<A possibility, yes.>> Mine were about 3 months old. I purchased new ones (except the sediment -they were out of it and I also got the KENT DI cartridge instead) and they suggested to add another stage with Granular Activated Carbon after the second one. <<Not a bad idea...I run two solid carbon cartridges (5 and 1 micron respectively) before my RO membrane.>> Sediment/GAC/GAC/DI. <<Mmm...hopefully - Sediment/GAC/GAC/RO/DI>> Thanks, Dimitris <<Very welcome my friend, EricR>>
Re: Diatoms And More Diatoms IV - 12/07/05 Hey Eric, <<Hey Dimitris>> Sorry to bother you again. <<No bother.. really.>> I just wanted to give you a heads up on the diatom problem. <<Ok>> Since the outbreak, I've replaced 50g of water but no luck (tank is 157g). You can still see brown patches throughout the tank.  I've also added Marc Weiss Phosphate and Silicate Magnet 1 week ago (didn't see any decrease except some of the detritus that accumulates in the sump, has turned kind of bluish). Also, my 3 year old Sedra 3500 stopped working so I ordered a new one for my skimmer. <<Sometimes seems to be the way it goes eh?...one problem, then another.. hang in there.>> Currently, I switched to my old Remora w/Maxi Jet 1200. <<Ah, yes...another good skimmer.>> My questions this time are the following: It seems that underneath the brown diatom patches, if you stir up the sand, there's a lot of detritus visible. <<Mmm...are you sure this is diatoms?...I'm starting to suspect Cyanobacteria?...can be "brown" too. Does it "clump" at all?...feel slimy?...float about the tank in small patches when disturbed?>> I have repositioned my powerheads towards the substrate so they can wash any detritus off, however, I'm not sure if this will work or is a good idea? <<Will be fine (as long as you're not creating sandstorm), always a good practice to provide sufficient flow to keep detritus in suspension to be consumed by livestock/removed by filtration.>> Could it be that the detritus is the culprit here? <<Yep>> Is it a good practice to stir up the sand with powerheads to release some of the detritus or will it disturb the denitrifying bacteria? <<Strive to stir the detritus while disturbing the sand bed as little as possible, but do expect "some" rearranging of the sand bed.>> My substrate is 3-4 inches thick.  <<Dimitris, try siphoning the diatoms/Cyanobacteria (along with any detritus...including what is in your sump) rather than manually stirring the sand. You'll likely need to do this a couple times a week for a few weeks...but I think if you try this you'll see some improvement.>> Thanks, Dimitris <<Regards, EricR>>
Re: Diatoms And More Diatoms V - 12/08/05 Hey Eric, <<Dimitris>> Thanks for replying... <<Welcome my friend>> Well, they appear on top of the sand when the lights come on, they are brown/yellowish, some spots have small bubbles and when I stir up the sand in some spots they do break apart and I can see small clumps. So maybe they are Cyano. <<Mmm...maybe>> They are not that thick to be siphoned out, however, I will try to do so. I will probably end up removing lots of sand too though. <<Try using airline tubing to siphon with...will help cut down on removing so much substrate.>> The black spots I mentioned before that I had on my live rock are starting to disappear, but the brown stuff is still the same as last week, even after 50g of water change. <<Takes more than one...>> It seems that on the sides of the tank they look more brown, while under the XM halide (in the middle) they look rather green. Dimitris <<Regards, EricR>>

Diatom Delight - 10/28/2005 Hi, <Hello> I've got an algae problem that is slowly taken over the substrate in my tank. <That's always fun.>  It is brown in color and looks like there is thin pieces of hair attached to it. I'm assuming "hair algae" :) <Sounds like a diatom problem.> I've checked my water and all is good. Amm0, Nitr0, Nitri0. I use RO water, do 5 gallon water changes a week(55g tank) My lights have been on up to 12 hours a day..........I'm thinking that is probably my problem. <I doubt it.>  So I'm cutting that way back to 6 hrs. <I wouldn't. Anything else I can do in the meantime? <You haven't mentioned a skimmer. If you don't have one that is likely your problem here. Here are some links to get you started. http://www.wetwebmedia.com/brownalgcontfaqs.htm  http://www.wetwebmedia.com/brownalgcontfaq2.htm  > Thanks <Sure. - Josh> 
Re: Diatom Delight - 10/28/2005 I do have a skimmer (Prizm). <Ah-Hah!>  It works pretty good. <Not from my experience.>  So you think the 12hrs of lights are ok.....? <Yes.>  From all the FAQs on diatoms I've read I've come up with the following conclusions... this is expected of a new tank (mine is 6 months old), monitor feeding amounts, weekly water changes, aggressive skimming... <This is likely your problem.> Do you have anything else to add? <I'd look for a much more capable skimmer.> Thank you again <You're welcome. - Josh> 
Re: Diatom Delight 10/29/05 Thanks for that speedy reply! <I must've sprained something on that last one. It's taken me four hours for this one!> Ok, now I'll put you on the spot and ask which skimmers do you recommend? <I don't really feel on the spot, but you should know we only speak from experience here (we don't endorse products). I was duped into a Prizm once also and decided to research my next choice. I've been quite happy with the AquaC line since then. Check out some forums for others input here. - Josh> 
Re; Diatom Delight - 10/28/2005 Hey, no complaints! <Glad to hear!>  An answer in the same day is good enough for me. <Whew!>  I've pretty much decided on turning in the Prizm for a Aqua C. <You won't regret it. Good luck on turning in the Prism though (you may be able to pay someone to take it).> Thanks again.....I'm sure I'll be back :) <You're welcome...we're not going anywhere. - Josh> 

Algae Troubles, cont'd - 10/21/2005 Hey Crew, <Hello again Clare> In my 75 gallon tank, there has been an outbreak of a rusty colored algae, it is not long, more like a carpet of rust covering my LR, the tanks is about a month and a half old and this is my first problem.<Likely not the last.> In the tank I have 2 ocellaris Clowns, a Twinspot Goby, A Neon Goby, and 3 Green Chromis, they are all doing great and so are my water parameters: pH: 8.3  Nitrate: 10 Nitrite: 0 Ammonia: 0 Calcium: 350 - 400 Salinity: 1.025 Temp: 78- 82 (fluctuates during the day and night) My main question is how do I get rid of this "nuisance" algae? Or is there any creatures that could do the dirty work? <This link will help. http://www.wetwebmedia.com/brownalgcontfaqs.htm > Also I have a question regarding my protein skimmer, it is a Seaworld Systems model, but in the month and a half I have had the tank set up, I have never had to collect and skimmate out of the cup, as stated before, params' are fine, and I have the skimmer adjustment valve set as high as it can go, any comments or suggestions to do with my skimmer? <Not familiar with these, but could be part of the problem.> P.S.  I do 12 - 20 Gallon Water Changes bi monthly. Thanks, Clare  <Welcome. - Josh>

Brown Algae Growth 8/9/05 I have a 54 gallon corner tank (curved glass front). I cycled the tank with 50 lbs of live rock. It is a FOWLR system with 1 cleaner shrimp, 3 small green Chromis, 4 small eel gobies and 1 small maroon clown fish. The tank is 6 weeks old. I do a 3 gallon water change once a week. I use well water and instant ocean salt. My ph is 8.1, 0 ammonia, 0 nitrite, 10 nitrate, 2.0 phosphate <Yikes... too much> and 380 calcium. I just added a Current USA Orbit power compact (65w dual 10000K/ 6500 K full spectrum with a 65w dual actinic fluorescent bulbs) to help coralline algae growth. I have run the lights 12 hrs a day for the past week. In the past 2 days brown algae has covered the glass (minimally) and rock (extensively). <Very typical... given your system newness, make-up...> The rock had very little brown growth this morning and has doubled in less then 24 hrs. This brown growth is now beginning to coat the substrate. The substrate used is crushed Florida coral aragonite which I added 1 week ago. Does brown algae really *grow this fast* or could this be something else. <Does grow this quickly> The rock was clean up until this point in time and only took 2 days to get bad... as far as I can tell.  I feel the tank has a low phosphate level. <Uh, no... please read here: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/po4faqs.htm> What could be causing this? <Your well-water, lack of competitors, predators... circumstances> algae bloom to occur so quickly if not the phosphate? I have a AquaC Urchin in sump Protein skimmer with a 1200 maxi pump that I am placing in the system this evening. <This will definitely help> I also use an AMiracle wet/dry filter with a Rio 1700 in the sump. <I'd be reading re modification of this filter... on WWM... learn to/use the indices...> The tank uses 2 power heads: 1 Maxi 900 power head in the tank as well as a Power Sweep which moves 230 and 160 gallons per hr. respectively. Thanks. Sincerely, Wayne <... and the many articles on algae, control... Bob Fenner>

- Diatom Question - Hi Crew, I have read the information on diatoms on your website and think this is what I have in my tank but was wondering why it only forms on the top of my rocks and not on the underside? <Because it likes the light - is a source of energy.> I also notice it on my sand but not on the sand directly under the rocks only on the sand in the open areas? <Same reason.> Thanks in advance for the help. Richard <Cheers, J -- >

Slimy marine system, in the Ukraine! Urgently! Dear crew, Interzoo, Odessa, Ukraine LFS. online. Brown slime has been developed in one of our reef aquaria. In some places its film even stretches in threads. It covers sand, algae (whose growth is strongly affected) and some soft corals: cabbage & Lobophytum, whereas Alcyonium & Sinularia are too smooth for them. The current has no effects: the cabbage coral, foul with them is placed under a laminar jet. We tried to identify the species. Our assumption are: Prorocentrum maculosum (?), P. lima(?), P. concavum (?). <Mmm, interesting... this genus of dinophyceans is usually found in cooler waters: http://www.utas.edu.au/docs/plant_science/HAB2000/abstracts/docs/Elbraechter_M.html> May DOC & detritus trigger their growth? <Yes> Could you recommend some works (better on-line) about their metabolism? <A simple search with the key terms of the genus, physiology, control...> As to the water parameters, we know that low pH stimulates their grows. Unfortunately appropriate indicators are absent on the local market. Both nitrates & phosphates are zero, temperature is 76o - 8o F, s. g. 1,023 - 1,024. Carbon change has no effects on brown slime development. 10 % change of water brakes it, but after two days the grows renews. The films Randy Farley Holmes recommends to add an iron in reef aquarium. <Worth trying> Could its deficiency and weakening of macroalgae stimulate the bloom? <Yes... at least a contributing factor> Could an iron addition slow brown slime development? <Yes> We had three causes of Alcyonium poisoning. The symptoms are: polyp's retraction & abundant slime secretion. While transferring in the other clean aquaria under strong stream, they became healthy after a week. Could such illness be caused by an "old aquarium effect" or be the poisoning by metabolites of dinoflagellates? <Yes, possibly> Could you advice something against the brown slimes? Thank in advance, Interzoo, Odessa. <There are a few approaches to the control of these biflagellate colonies... Of the few major categories, the one you don't mention is the use of other macrophytes for molecular competition/allelopathy. You might try culturing other groups (Chlorophytes, Rhodophytes) in the same or a separate or tied-in sump. Bob Fenner>

Nuisance algae 11/21/04 Urgently! Dear crew, Interzoo, Odessa, Ukraine LFS. online. Brown slime has been developed in one of our reef aquaria. In some places its film even stretches in threads. <Hmmm... perhaps a dinoflagellate> It covers sand, algae (whose growth is strongly affected) and some soft corals: cabbage & Lobophytum, whereas Alcyonium & Sinularia are too smooth for them. The current has no effects: the cabbage coral, foul with them is placed under a laminar jet. We tried to identify the species. Our assumption are: Prorocentrum maculosum (?), P. lima(?), P. concavum (?). May DOC & detritus trigger their growth? <yes... easily. This is often caused by lack of water flow and excessive nutrients. Improve nutrient export via a proper protein skimmer that yields nearly a full cup of coffee-dark colored skimmate daily. The algae will go away in 3 weeks or less by simply doing this. Improved water flow helps too> Could you recommend some works (better on-line) about their metabolism? <I am only familiar with hobby literature my friend. Most only> As to the water parameters, we know that low pH stimulates their grows. Unfortunately appropriate indicators are absent on the local market. Both nitrates & phosphates are zero, temperature is 76o - 8o F, s. g. 1,023 - 1,024. Carbon change has no effects on brown slime development. 10 % change of water brakes it, but after two days the grows renews. The films Randy Farley Holmes recommends to add an iron in reef aquarium. Could its deficiency and weakening of macroalgae stimulate the bloom? <perhaps, but this most likely is simple a nutrient export deficiency> Could an iron addition to low brown slime development? We had three causes of Alcyonium poisoning. The symptoms are: polyp's retraction & abundant slime secretion. While transferring in the other clean aquaria under strong stream, they became healthy after a week. Could such illness be caused by an "old aquarium effect" or be the poisoning by metabolites of dinoflagellates? <the latter perhaps due to their sometimes noxious nature> Could you advice something against the brown slimes? Thank in advance, Interzoo, Odessa. <best of luck, Anthony>

Brown algae keeps coming back Hello Again! Thank you as always for helping.  I use B-Ionic every day in my 100 gal. reef tank.  I add 25 ml each day.  My ph has been staying at 8.4 - 8.6. My Alk is about 8.4 dKH and the calcium is around 450.  Do these levels seem appropriate? << Sounds great. >> I have tried to raise the Alk using a buffer but it does not seem to have an effect.  Should I increase the amount of the buffer or is there no need? << You can, but I don't think I would worry about it. >> Also, I was curious why I still get brown algae.  I use a bag of phosphate remover in the sum.  I removed the bioballs and replaced them with live rock that I keep lighted 12 hours per day.  I have two powerheads in the tank giving good circulation.  I still get brown algae every 2-4 days.  My thought is that I over feed although I try not to let any food hit bottom and feed corals (10 softies)  two capfuls once per week.  Is two capfuls two much and could this be the cause of algae growth. << Well two capfuls of live phytoplankton wouldn't be enough food.  But two capfuls if Cyclop-eeze would be a ton of food.  I think I would just increase your clean up crew and get a bunch of reef janitors. >>  Would adding live sand to the refugium help? << Probably not.  If this is an established tank then you already have a refugium of live sand.  Finding something to consume either the algae or the nutrients (adding Caulerpa to the refugium) is a good way to go. >> Thank so much! Larry Regan <<  Blundell  >>

Sand turning colors hi, <Hi Heather, MacL here with you tonight> I have a 29 gallon reef aquarium that has been up for about 10 months. Everything is going great the fish are happy and thriving. <Wonderful!> The problem is that my sand bed is turning colors. First it was brown from the diatom algae. Now the sand is turning a reddish purple and it's in clumps, especially in the back of the tank. I've brought 3 sand sifting starfish. The LFS said that would help, but it hasn't really done anything. <They generally stay low in the sand, you might do better with brittle stars that stay on the top.> My water levels are fine. <Please define fine? totally 0 on everything? What about calcium, phosphates, silicates?>  I brought some phosphate and silicate remover stuff to put in the filter and it's slowed things down a little. <I heartily recommend that if you buy something to take something out of your tank you TEST and see how much is in your tank.> I've read some stuff about sand bed fauna and I don't believe that I have this. How do I go about getting it in my sand. <You can buy pods, stars and other types of fauna from many different places but your sand sifting stars are going to eat them.>I thought a lot of those bugs were bad for your aquarium. <Actually most bugs are good.> I don't over feed, my levels are fine. <Please define fine? if its more than zero then there is something we have to work on> I have a protein skimmer and I do water changes about every 2 weeks - 25% maybe more. I have 1 maxi jet 600 power head that pushes the water around pretty well. The sand is live Fiji pink with aragonite. It's not a real fine grade, but not to course. I don't know what to do? Any help would be really appreciated. <Heather it really would help me to know the actual and not just fine. I think maybe you are dealing with Cyanobacteria at this point but can't tell for sure. A picture would be very handy. MacL>

Dinoflagellates--Part of the Cycle (10/6/04) Hi, about 2 weeks ago I set up a 45 gallon salt water aquarium with live rock. I've been letting it cycle but recently I noticed a rust colored dust covering the live rock, gravel, and getting on the glass. It seems to be getting worse, covering more of the rock and gravel. I was wondering what this was, if I need to be worried about it (will it kill my live rock), and what I can do to get rid of it. Any help you can give me would be great. Thanks! Lisa <Sounds like you are experiencing a bloom of diatoms, which most new tanks do. It will usually go away after a couple of weeks with patience and proper care. Do read up on these on the site to learn more. Hope this helps, Steve Allen.>

Diatoms in a Seahorse Tank (8/17/04) Hi my name is  Scott from New Zealand. <Hi Scott from New Zealand. Leslie here from sunny Southern CA in the USA standing in for Bob tonight> I have a salt water aquarium with two sea horses in it. <Ah one of my all time favorite sea creatures other than Puffers :)! The tank is 120L and I have a problem with the water getting a rusty look on all the ornaments and glass I  would like to know weather its something I'm doing or not doing? Sounds like a diatom bloom. There are several contributing factors..... Please read through the following links on Diatoms and let me know if you have further questions....these should help quite a bit.... http://www.wetwebmedia.com/algaeconMar.htm http://www.wetwebmedia.com/avoidingalgaeproblesm.htm http://www.wetwebmedia.com/diatomfaqs.htm > The tank has a corner charcoal filter and another filter that moves the water around the tank. I feed the horses mainly frozen brine shrimp and a few blood worms. If you have any suggestions I would be very grateful. <I know you did not ask about filtration or nutrition but since you mentioned what you are using I do have a few suggestions related to those topics..... Protein Skimming is highly recommended for a seahorse tank and will help quite a bit with your nuisance algae problems. Brine Shrimp is acceptable for an occasional feeding, perhaps once a week but nutritionally very inadequate. Your seahorses will not do well long term on a staple diet of brine shrimp. I am assuming your seahorses are wild caught. You have conquered one of the biggest challenges wild seahorse keepers face.......getting them to accept frozen foods. Your best bet for long term health and wellbeing would be to feed frozen mysis with varying enrichment products. Seahorses require marine protein so if  you want to give them live treats, instead of blood worms  I would suggest live gut loaded ghost shrimp or any other small marine shrimp you have access to in your part of the world. www.syngnathid.org is an excellent resource for information on seahorses and other tube mouthed fish. Best of luck with those amazing creatures! Leslie>

Quest to make Dino's extinct!!! Hello to all the "crew"! <Rob I just this minute got through answering this for you.  I'm sorry you had to send it again. We've been rather busy and please accept my apologies. MacL> Who ever gets this query, I hope you're sitting in a comfortable chair because this is gonna be a long one! First off, this website is incredible!!! The amount of information available could never fit into one book, and I thank ALL of you involved for your input!!! I've only had access to the internet for about a one and a half year's now and came across this site about 8 month's ago, and have been able to at least match my amount of knowledge and experience of 18 years with marine aquariums in this time frame from reading over this site. Again thank you, and my fish and corals thank you!!!! Now on to my situation - I have (for 4 years now) a 40 gal.( 36"L x 16"W x 17"H ) AGA. reef-like tank. Lighting: Four 24" VHO  (Two 75 watt actinic white  Two 75 watt super actinic) URI bulbs. 300 watts total. Approximately 1'' from water surface.                                      Duration is 11 hours a day. Is this set up sufficient for most LPS and soft coral species? Water flow: Two Maxi jet 500's at each back corners with one  90 degree fitting each, aimed towards the reef structure. One Maxi jet 1000 attached to a spray bar (submerged) also aimed towards the back side of reef structure. Also the return flow from sump- a MAG 5 at 3' to 4' of head, and plumbed through the return set up from an old Magnum canister filter ( three 90's total ).  With various 90 degree fittings being used I still think I'm close to 10x per hr. flow rate if not more, do you agree? Filtration: Water enters surface siphon/overflow, down directly into a venturi type protein skimmer, then spills out over filter floss (changed daily) that lays in a drip tray of an empty bio-tower of a wet/dry sump. Protein skimmer and sump were locally made. sump also houses an 8 watt UV sterilizer and passive use of activated carbon. I use about 2 table spoons of Sea Chem activated carbon - just started using it recently, is this amount enough and how often should I change it? The protein skimmer produces a greenish to tan colored skimmate that's somewhat dense (not transparent) maybe a 1/4 cup every other day. I try to keep it running at it's peak performance. I do intend to upgrade to better made/designed skimmer. I have my eye on the EV-120 skimmer made by AquaC. But until then this skimmer is better than no skimmer! What's in the tank: Roughly 20-25# of live rock, from different origins ( supposedly Marshall Islands, Fiji, don't know for sure - unfortunately I didn't go to those places personally to get it).  Had this rock for so long I cant remember how much exactly, originally in a 30 gal. tank that had been moved 3 times prior to upgrading to the current 40 gal. (new house = new tank ! ). The loosely stacked reef structure created with this rock takes up to about a 1\3 of tank area. I really don't agree with the "x amount of lbs. per the x amount of gal." rule of thumb any way's.                                                                                                                                                       A  1"- 1.5" bed of  "Carib Sea Special Grade Reef Sand" and a few pound's of Fiji live sand mixed in, also with 5 pound's of GARF'S "Grunge" along the back 1/4 area of tank substrate. The "Grunge has been in there for about 4 months now.( I bet this sand bed depth could very well be the main reason for my situation !!!! ) A three inch patch of "green star polyps", a small cluster of Caulastrea, a tiny patch of zoanthids, and three mushroom polyps are all I have for coral. Two 1" Green Chromis, a 2" Ocellaris Clownfish and a 2" Banggai Cardinalfish are the only fish. Ten Red legged Hermit Crabs, 20 or so assorted snails (Astraea, Cerith, and Nerites). Sand bed and small sized rubble is teaming with various bristle and spaghetti worms along with numerous small brittle stars. I don't see any Amphipods or Mysids though, ( thanks to the fish I would imagine ). The Situation: For at least 6 YEARS , yes that's right - 6 years I've been battling Dinoflagellate blooms !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It would go away for a while, but then come back - ugh!!!!!! I could never really  pinpoint what I did to make it go away, but that didn't matter it would always reappear. I did all the research I could, asking at all the LFS, I even joined the local marine club but still no answers. I  do own quite an assortment of books from various well known authors except for your books Bob and Anthony - sorry - ( their on my X-Mas list !! - along with a new protein skimmer - doh ! - sorry again !! - being a father of two kid's puts a price cap on my wish list ). I do have both volumes of The Reef Aquarium by Delbeek And Sprung along with Sprung's' Reef Notes volumes 1 through 3, and these are the only books I have found any information and recommendations dealing with Dinoflagellates, prior to having internet access. Now even with internet access there still isn't much information about it. Before I finally broke down and bought a digital PH meter, I would try to raise my PH above 8.4 with Kalkwasser per Sprung and Delbeek's' suggestion in their book's but it would end up with me over dosing my tank, clouding my water, clumping the sand - all that stuff because I didn't have an accurate way to monitor the PH level. Now with the PH meter there's no more guessing, and boy was I shocked at actually how low the PH levels were when I first got this Milwaukee hand held pen type meter eight month's ago! Ironically I came across your website, and was shamefaced at how bad my husbandry techniques really were. At first I could not raise the PH, and I learned part of the problem was that I used to top off the tank with unbuffered RO/DI water. I had no idea nor had I ever heard of buffering RO/DI water much less even worrying about what the PH was of this water! Geeezzz!!!! Then I still couldn't raise the PH, so I conducted the aeration test that I read about in your faq's column's. I did this test twice to convince myself that I indeed have a problem with accumulated CO2 in my well insulated, South Westerly located, air conditioned home. - Yeah :( !!! Sooo  luckily ( if you can call it that ) my aquarium is next to an exterior wall, so I drilled a through hole big enough for air line tubing and hooked up my protein skimmer to receive fresh outside air. Boy was that fun convincing my wife!!! But it does seem to help. It brought the PH level of  7.9 up to 8.3 ( mid-day reading). Would I still be able to do this with the Aqua C - EV series protein skimmers' type of air inlet configuration ? Now by replacing all evaporated water with a controlled drip dosing method of 1 drop per second of Kalkwasser ( 1 gallon -prepared 1 day before use ) during the day, I'm able to maintain the PH level at 8.2 in the morning ( before lights on ) to 8.6 peak time (just before lights go off ). I'm still a little lax on my water change regimen, but I manage to change 20% nearly once a month, and I do a much better job at preparing it thanks again to your site. I get my RO/DI water from a very reputable fish store ( Aqua Touch, PHX. AZ. ) so I don't think this has any thing to do with my situation. - No sign of it in their tank's!! I have no other algae problems at all. I really don't even need to clean the glass, as long as you don't look too close at it, the snail's do a pretty good job !! Coralline algae is beginning to make a come back, on the glass as well as on the rock's !! Water Parameter's: All test's are performed with Salifert test kits. Ammonia; 0  Nitrite; 0  Nitrate; 0 ( wondering if the Dino's maybe soaking some of this up? )  Alkalinity; 10 DKH.  Calcium; 390  PH; 8.2 - 8.6  Temperature; 82 - 84 degrees ( almost the best I can do with Summer time temp's without an outrageous electricity bill !!! ). As stated above, now that I have been able to maintain a higher PH level, the Dino bloom's are not as severe as they used to be, but they still will not vanish for good !! Occasionally they'll show up in the tank, mostly on the intake grid's of the power heads with a few strands here or there. Although, the filter floss becomes clogged with them daily, and this is were I have been able to contain them. I've tried running the system without mechanical filtration, but the tank look's much better when I do. Maybe I've already answered my own question by second guessing the depth of my sand bed eh ? And if this is the root of the problem, would adding more sand like Aragamax or Aragamax Select slowly to increase the depth to a minimum of 3" be helpful? Do you think it would be ok to add this sand directly on top of the existing sand bed? If so would it be wise to lightly siphon/clean the top 1/2" of existing sand bed prior to adding the first thin layer of new sand? Sorry about this being so lengthy, but I wanted to make sure that I provided you with as much information as I could about my situation so that you can possibly help me without too much guess work. If you do have any suggestion's to my question's above, I would greatly appreciate if you could briefly explain your answer's rather than just "yes" or  "no". I want to learn as much as I can from my mistakes even though I think I'm doing the best that I can. There are a lot of different opinions out there, and it's sometimes pretty tough not to mention costly as to what to believe, pursue, and understand and what not to !!! Maybe this website is still too new for me, but it's like opening a new book every time I visit it !!     I'm learning so much about the latest trend's from this website. It almost seems addictive !! - ( Hello my name is Rob and I'm a Reef-aholic! )              Again, Thank you - Rob
Re: Quest to make Dino's extinct!!! Mac, <Hi Rob, so sorry for the delay I was at a frag swap in Michigan this weekend.> you can't imagine what a relief it is for me to finally be able to converse with someone that has constructive suggestion's, other than "tear it down and start over". <You'd be amazed how many people have gone through it just like you. > I just can't see myself throwing away perfectly good rock, and substrate that is teaming with life. <Definitely do not do that. Worst comes to worse you just cook your rock, something a lot of people who are having problems with their rocks are doing.> Whose to say that if I did do this, that it wouldn't happen again. <It very well might. You have to find the solution to the problem then fix it.> It doesn't sound like a cure to me! Thanks for your help!! Ok, now we're reaching the realm of the unknown for me. When you suggest adding sea grasses, do you mean macro-algae's in general or a specific type of sea grass? <There are the macro's like Caulerpas or there are grasses like maiden hairs, etc. Sargassum grasses etc.> What do you have in your refugium? <My refugium has four types of Caulerpas, then it has some of the tang heavens, and a tiny piece of red bubble I'm trying to cultivate. I am looking for some Sargassum to put in there but you can sort of divide the types and get the different benefits they all provide.> I'm trying to catch up to speed here by reading through all the related FAQs. So far I'm almost through with reading the refugium FAQs, and will continue on to the macro-algae FAQs. <You are definitely on the right track! Remember that live rock alone will also pull out nitrates which is going to reduce things in your tank, and possibly there is the option of recalibration of your skimmer.> One more thing, when you suggest to use some small pieces of live rock and/or a few pieces of crushed coral in the refugium, <You can use those in little piles to encourage pods to have a place to hide and multiply.> do you mean instead of the sand bed or the EHFI Mech<Keep the sand and be cautions about the EHFI, nothing wrong with it but Its not a "real thing" and if its manmade I approach with caution.> ? Again Mac,  thanks for your help and words of encouragement !!  <We will keep at it Rob until we figure it out>   Rob
Dinoflagellates follow-up 17 Aug 2004 Thank you for your suggestion's Mac ! <Hi Rob, Its hard when we can't be at your tank you know!> I don't think I have a problem with over feeding. There are times when I > don't feed the fish daily. And when I do, I'm very diligent about how much I feed. <Very smart to keep an eye on it. As I was reading it I was thinking, when you have fish that eat hearty you have fish that ummm for lack of a better word, Poop hearty and that might be something to watch for as well.  I KNOW that's the case with my vlamingi tangs.> But I'll keep that in the back of my head. <Definitely wise to watch for all things that might cause the problem.> > I plan to replace my sump with a 20 gal. tank, that will have a section (as much space as I can get away with) for a refugium. <I can only give my experiences with a refugium which have been very positive.> I'm waiting until I get the new skimmer so I can build the partition's with better accuracy. <Very smart so you can judge your accurate size. Also your "better" skimmer will probably make a big difference as well. I thought I would start with a 3"+  fine sand bed, a few pieces of live rock, and a starter culture of pod's and mysids. <For your refugium? This sounds lovely although I would urge you too look at some of the grasses as well.> I really don't want to add lights to this, so I was going to use this plastic scrubby looking stuff  (came with an old Eheim canister filter of mine -EHFI Mech? to encourage more "pod" production. <I think if you used some small pieces of live rock and/or a few pieces of crushed coral it might serve you just as well.> Overall goal is to increase areas of denitrification, and produce natural forms of food for fish and corals. <Very wise and part of why I would recommend only using bits of live rock up there.  Without the lights, you are very correct no grasses, but do you have room for grasses in your tank?> Maybe this will help !!??!!??!! <Rob I think you are definitely on the right track with this.  Along with your Kalkwasser experiences. You might also think about adding a bit more live rock into the tank JUST for live rocks ability to handle nitrates. Rob I just know you are going to succeed in this, Please let me know how this goes. MacL> > Again, thanks     Rob
Dino extinction follow-up 30 Aug 2004 Ok Mac, here we go again, into the realm of the "unknown". <Hi Rob, welcome to my world, ha ha ha. Seriously lets work through this together.> But shouldn't I be concerned with allelopathy amongst different types of macro's and sea grasses? <I believe you might be the first person to bring that up Rob! But let me sort of sound you out with this. In the wild multiple grasses grow together, they usually end up side by side and yes they do provide competition. I personally have multiple Caulerpa together and then I have different types of Sargassum and grasses in another section of my refugium. The Caulerpa do quickie out grow the other grasses and must be kept pruned back. Its my personal experience here that the Caulerpa filter the wastes faster and therefore must be pruned and given away or tossed and yes the grasses seem to filter in a "better" more substantive way.> Or is this already "old school" or just a matter of opinion/experience? <NOOOO I believe in old school, and I welcome thorough discussions on this.  All we personally can do is guide or suggest based on what has happened to us.> I'm not trying to sound contradicting - just going by what I've read from this site. <Nooo you aren't being contradictory whatsoever. That's the thing about this site, we all speak from experiences. My experiences will be different I am sure than most other peoples here. I can only tell you what I've learned myself or researched myself.> I'm sorry I have to ask this again, but you're bound to miss a couple of my ongoing and seemingly endless questions. <Pops very sorry I try to go line by line but sometimes I zoom through.> Is the bulb replacement criteria for a lit refugium the same as for the main reef tank setup? <I have to say that I do not believe it is as critical unless you decide to keep some corals in your refugium. If you do keep some corals or frags there then the lighting is more critical. But the spectrum of lighting for a refugium and growth of plants varies. In fact the types of bulbs you use might vary. Mine are growing like you wouldn't believe on year old smart lights. 50/50> Also from the last reply, I occasionally use "Reef Advantage Calcium" from  Seachem, and "Marine KH Buffer" from Warner Marine Research to maintain the calcium and alkalinity levels when needed. <I've not used them personally but as far as I know they have good reputations.> Both of these products claim to have Magnesium in them. I don't have a Magnesium test kit to tell you my current level (a little too spendy for me right now) but I do use these products per their directions ( I don't over dose) so I would think that it's not too depleted. <It may not be Rob, I just know that tanks tend to get a tad out of ionic balance. Something I've been struggling to learn about a whole lot lately. It seems as pollutants grow in the tank and organics grow in a tank something has to give. Sometimes the tank goes out of ionic balance. To maybe give you a better idea let me quote from Martin Moe JR. Alkalinity, total hardness, carbonate hardness, ph, carbon dioxide, the carbonate-bicarbonate system, and calcium carbonate are all terms used to describe some component or process that is part of the complex buffering system presented in saltwater. Seawater contains many mineral salts. These salts are present as ions of the elements that compose the salt. Seawater also contains contains carbon dioxide gas. When dissolved in water carbon dioxide reacts with the hydrogen of water to form a weak acid, carbonic acid. If excess carbon dioxide is in the water, carbonic acid levels increase beyond the point where it can be quickly utilized in the carbonate-bicarbonate system and ph levels drop.. . . He goes on to say Under normal physical and biological conditions, the carbonate-bicarbonate ions act as a "bank" that automatically takes up excess carbonic or other acids, or forms more carbonic acid if carbon dioxide is last. In a marine system, organic acids from decompositions of organic matter and animal metabolism are constantly being added to the water. These acids constantly withdraw carbonate and bicarbonate from the buffer "bank". So when we over feed or when we have situations where we withdraw to much from the "bank" the tank goes out of ionic balance. Does that help any?> I also have one other situation that you might be able to help me with. As I initially described, I use an 8 watt UV sterilizer. <Yes I remember> This has been part of my system for over a year now (bulb replaced accordingly). <Very smart.> The sterilizer was added to clear up the water from a "bacterial bloom" per the suggestion's from the LFS. To this day, when ever I take it out to routinely clean the quartz lenses and pump, and then purposely leave it out, (one less thing to worry about) within 3 day's the tank begins to get cloudy. <It could be a bacterial bloom or it could be an algae bloom. It really depends on the speed that the water goes through the U.V filter. If its pretty fast more than likely its algae.> It almost looks like smoke plumes. If this is a "bacterial bloom" what could be the cause of it? <I'd call it an algae bloom and yes I'd say its high nutrients. It will take your tank a while to get back into ionic balance but you are definitely on the right track.> High nutrients still? Until next time- many thanks,  <Rob keep up with the questions, you are really pushing me lol. Seriously I hope I'm helping you to understand the reasons why things are happening. Water changes are going to do some serious help as well MacL>  Rob
Dino extinction Sorry if you get this twice Mac, <Hey Rob I was at MACNA so I didn't see it at all, I've been spending all my time since catching up.> but it's  been over a week and I'm not sure if you have some kind of time limit auto delete setting on your inbox. <I don't think they do but I am definitely behind and trying to scramble with many apologies to folks> I seen from the daily Q/A's that you went to MACNA XVI, lucky you! Did you happen to catch Rob Toonen speak about sand beds and plenums - practical test results? <I didn't make it into a singe session which was quite a bummer but I did spend some time talking individual to quite a few speakers.  I was there doing fragging exhibitions to save the reefs for www.fragexchange.com.  TONS of fun and lots of amazing people.> Below is what I originally sent you. Thanks- Thanks Mac, for the explanations concerning ionic balance. I've also been reading the works from Randy Holmes-Farley in the Advanced Aquarist's Online Magazine at reefs.org. Honestly, I do understand! <Isn't Randy just amazing. I've really enjoyed reading all he's written and such a nice man.> And it did help. In fact, have a date with my water change bucket's this weekend, Mr. Subliminal Man! <UMMM Rob would it upset you if I was female?> Can you believe this, another question popped into my head while reading your last reply (grin). From you're own experience, how far do you let your macro's and sea grasses grow out before you start to prune them? <Actually I realize that I let them go way to long and get way to large. The idea is to take about half out each time, giving them room to grow and collect nutrients but export most as well.> that nutrient levels would constitute the amount of time and rate, but I would hate to catch myself thinking that more is better, and then all of a sudden things begin to go wrong! <The idea is to export it but its really all about balance Rob and you are doing soooo marvelously with the entire concept.  Honestly I read and reread Moe and all of this stuff just to get a good understanding, its not easy.> Also, please Mac, there's no need for you to apologize to me for missing a question. I see your name all over the various FAQ's, so I'm well aware of the amount of question's you must go through. <I'm honored and surprised thank you for telling me that. I'm really having such a good time here doing this.> Anyways, if I can't find it somewhere, I'll just ask again! <Please don't hesitate to ask me anything I can help you with, I'll be glad to try to help you figure it out. So with that, I think you might have covered what I need to know for now. I'll just keep saving my pennies, and keeping up to snuff with my husbandry skills and try to stay out of your "inbox" for a while!! <Rob its been an amazing pleasure to work with you on this so don't stay a stranger.  MacL> Many, many thanks, Mac!!     Rob

Problems with dinoflagellates. Hello to all the "crew"! << Blundell here. >> Who ever gets this query, I hope you're sitting in a comfortable chair because this is gonna be a long one! << Putting my feet up on the desk.... go for it. >> First off, this website is incredible!!! << Thanks, I'll take credit because I'm here right now (even though I have nothing to do with how cool this site is). >> The amount of information available could never fit into one book, and I thank ALL of you involved for your input!!! I've only had access to the internet for about a one and a half year's now and came across this site about 8 month's ago, and have been able to at least match my amount of knowledge and experience of 18 years with marine aquariums in this time frame from reading over this site. Again thank you, and my fish and corals thank you!!!! << You, and they, are welcome. >> Now on to my situation - I have (for 4 years now) a 40 gal.( 36"L x 16"W x 17"H ) AGA. reef-like tank. Lighting: Four 24" VHO  (Two 75 watt actinic white  Two 75 watt super actinic) URI bulbs. 300 watts total. Approximately 1'' from water surface.                                      Duration is 11 hours a day. Is this set up sufficient for most LPS and soft coral species?  << Yep, for most.  I would stay away from the very high light corals, but otherwise you are fine. >> Water flow: Two Maxi jet 500's at each back corners with one  90 degree fitting each, aimed towards the reef structure. One Maxi jet 1000 attached to a spray bar (submerged) also aimed towards the back side of reef structure. Also the return flow from sump- a MAG 5 at 3' to 4' of head, and plumbed through the return set up from an old Magnum canister filter ( three 90's total ).  With various 90 degree fittings being used I still think I'm close to 10x per hr. flow rate if not more, do you agree? << Sounds right. >> Filtration: Water enters surface siphon/overflow, down directly into a venturi type protein skimmer, then spills out over filter floss (changed daily) that lays in a drip tray of an empty bio-tower of a wet/dry sump. Protein skimmer and sump were locally made. sump also houses an 8 watt UV sterilizer and passive use of activated carbon. I use about 2 table spoons of Sea Chem activated carbon - just started using it recently, is this amount enough and how often should I change it? << It all depends on how much you skim, and how much you feed.  I just like to throw a bunch in a bag, and change it like 3 months later. >> The protein skimmer produces a greenish to tan colored skimmate that's somewhat dense (not transparent) maybe a 1/4 cup every other day. I try to keep it running at it's peak performance. I do intend to upgrade to better made/designed skimmer. I have my eye on the EV-120 skimmer made by AquaC. But until then this skimmer is better than no skimmer! What's in the tank: Roughly 20-25# of live rock, from different origins ( supposedly Marshall Islands, Fiji, don't know for sure - unfortunately I didn't go to those places personally to get it).  Had this rock for so long I cant remember how much exactly, originally in a 30 gal. tank that had been moved 3 times prior to upgrading to the current 40 gal. (new house = new tank ! ). The loosely stacked reef structure created with this rock takes up to about a 1\3 of tank area. I really don't agree with the "x amount of lbs. per the x amount of gal." rule of thumb any way's.                                                             A  1"- 1.5" bed of  "Carib Sea Special Grade Reef Sand" and a few pound's of Fiji live sand mixed in, also with 5 pound's of GARF'S "Grunge" along the back 1/4 area of tank substrate. The "Grunge has been in there for about 4 months now.( I bet this sand bed depth could very well be the main reason for my situation !!!! ) A three inch patch of "green star polyps", a small cluster of Caulastrea, a tiny patch of zoanthids, and three mushroom polyps are all I have for coral. Two 1" Green Chromis, a 2" Ocellaris Clownfish and a 2" Banggai Cardinalfish are the only fish. Ten Red legged Hermit Crabs, 20 or so assorted snails (Astraea, Cerith, and Nerites). Sand bed and small sized rubble is teaming with various bristle and spaghetti worms along with numerous small brittle stars. I don't see any Amphipods or Mysids though, ( thanks to the fish I would imagine ). The Situation: For at least 6 YEARS , yes that's right - 6 years I've been battling Dinoflagellate blooms !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It would go away for a while, but then come back - ugh!!!!!! I could never really  pinpoint what I did to make it go away, but that didn't matter it would always reappear. << AS sad as this is, I've had to, and would consider here, tearing it down and starting over.  I can't imagine 6 years of problems. >> I did all the research I could, asking at all the LFS, I even joined the local marine club but still no answers. I  do own quite an assortment of books from various well known authors except for your books Bob and Anthony - sorry - ( their on my X-Mas list !! - along with a new protein skimmer - doh ! - sorry again !! - being a father of two kid's puts a price cap on my wish list ). I do have both volumes of The Reef Aquarium by Delbeek And Sprung along with Sprung's' Reef Notes volumes 1 through 3, and these are the only books I have found any information and recommendations dealing with Dinoflagellates, prior to having internet access. Now even with internet access there still isn't much information about it. << Well here is my input.  Big water change, stop feeding the tank. >> Before I finally broke down and bought a digital PH meter, I would try to raise my PH above 8.4 with Kalkwasser per Sprung and Delbeek's' suggestion in their book's but it would end up with me over dosing my tank, clouding my water, clumping the sand - all that stuff because I didn't have an accurate way to monitor the PH level. << I wouldn't worry about pH or add anything for it.  After doing a water change your pH will be perfect at 8.2. >> Now with the PH meter there's no more guessing, and boy was I shocked at actually how low the PH levels were when I first got this Milwaukee hand held pen type meter eight month's ago! Ironically I came across your website, and was shamefaced at how bad my husbandry techniques really were. At first I could not raise the PH, and I learned part of the problem was that I used to top off the tank with unbuffered RO/DI water. I had no idea nor had I ever heard of buffering RO/DI water much less even worrying about what the PH was of this water! Geeezzz!!!! << I highly recommend local aquarium societies.  It is amazing how much help and experience can be found there. >> Then I still couldn't raise the PH, so I conducted the aeration test that I read about in your faq's column's. I did this test twice to convince myself that I indeed have a problem with accumulated CO2 in my well insulated, South Westerly located, air conditioned home. - Yeah :( !!! Sooo  luckily ( if you can call it that ) my aquarium is next to an exterior wall, so I drilled a through hole big enough for air line tubing and hooked up my protein skimmer to receive fresh outside air. Boy was that fun convincing my wife!!! But it does seem to help. It brought the PH level of  7.9 up to 8.3 ( mid-day reading). Would I still be able to do this with the Aqua C - EV series protein skimmers' type of air inlet configuration ?  << I'm not sure, but increasing skimming is always good. >> Now by replacing all evaporated water with a controlled drip dosing method of 1 drop per second of Kalkwasser ( 1 gallon -prepared 1 day before use ) during the day, I'm able to maintain the PH level at 8.2 in the morning ( before lights on ) to 8.6 peak time (just before lights go off ). I'm still a little lax on my water change regimen, but I manage to change 20% nearly once a month, and I do a much better job at preparing it thanks again to your site. I get my RO/DI water from a very reputable fish store ( Aqua Touch, PHX. AZ. ) so I don't think this has any thing to do with my situation. - No sign of it in their tank's!! I have no other algae problems at all. I really don't even need to clean the glass, as long as you don't look too close at it, the snail's do a pretty good job !! Coralline algae is beginning to make a come back, on the glass as well as on the rock's !! << All sounds good. >> Water Parameter's: All test's are performed with Salifert test kits. Ammonia; 0  Nitrite; 0  Nitrate; 0 ( wondering if the Dino's maybe soaking some of this up? )  Alkalinity; 10 DKH.  Calcium; 390  PH; 8.2 - 8.6  Temperature; 82 - 84 degrees ( almost the best I can do with Summer time temp's without an outrageous electricity bill !!! ). As stated above, now that I have been able to maintain a higher PH level, the Dino bloom's are not as severe as they used to be, but they still will not vanish for good !! Occasionally they'll show up in the tank, mostly on the intake grid's of the power heads with a few strands here or there. Although, the filter floss becomes clogged with them daily, and this is were I have been able to contain them. I've tried running the system without mechanical filtration, but the tank look's much better when I do. Maybe I've already answered my own question by second guessing the depth of my sand bed eh ? << I like a deep sand bad at about 4 inches, but that is variable by opinion. >> And if this is the root of the problem, would adding more sand like Aragamax or Aragamax Select slowly to increase the depth to a minimum of 3" be helpful? << Yep, but I would just add crushed coral sand. >> Do you think it would be ok to add this sand directly on top of the existing sand bed?  << Yep, slowly, and prewashed. >> If so would it be wise to lightly siphon/clean the top 1/2" of existing sand bed prior to adding the first thin layer of new sand? << Nope, I don't like siphoning my sand bed. >> Sorry about this being so lengthy, but I wanted to make sure that I provided you with as much information as I could about my situation so that you can possibly help me without too much guess work. If you do have any suggestion's to my question's above, I would greatly appreciate if you could briefly explain your answer's rather than just "yes" or  "no". I want to learn as much as I can from my mistakes even though I think I'm doing the best that I can. There are a lot of different opinions out there, and it's sometimes pretty tough not to mention costly as to what to believe, pursue, and understand and what not to !!! Maybe this website is still too new for me, but it's like opening a new book every time I visit it !!     I'm learning so much about the latest trend's from this website. It almost seems addictive !! - ( Hello my name is Rob and I'm a Reef-aholic! )              << Feel free to email me back, and ask more specific questions that I need to explain or elaborate on. >> Again, Thank you - Rob <<  Blundell  >>

Fish dying follow-up 14 Aug 2004 Hi (not sure who I'm replying to)<MacL here with you again tonight> - Wanted to get back to you with a few more details. <Thanks so much that really helps us to answer questions!> On rinsing the rocks, I use the sprayer at the sink (tap water) then dip the rocks in water that has been dechlorinated (using a 5 gallon bucket used only for aquarium things). <Sounds great> In answer to your question about the possibility of something being on my hands: I rinsed my hands and arms really well (always do, like I'm going to do surgery). There was not the possibility of lotions, perfumes, or any chemicals as I hadn't used anything like that. <I have done it before to tell you how sad. I've had perfume on my hands that I just sprayed and then seen something in the tank and had to replace the majority of the water like a dummy.> We use tap water to do the water changes and treat it to dechlorinate it. <So you only have chlorine in your water and not chloramines? Makes a huge difference.> We had the tap water tested to check for copper before we started the aquarium, and there was none. <Did you have a complete test run of the water? What about bacteria?> The parameters of the tank tests are as follows: temp - 78 degrees Ph - 8.0 salinity - 1.020 (this is a bit lower than usual, I believe the pet store tested it as 1.023), but we have since done a major (10+ gallons) water change in trying to remove all the fish and get out some of the algae. Nitrite - 0 Ammonia - 0 <What about Nitrates? Do you have a test kit for that? Do you have any? I have to say that with the algae I think your tank is full of nitrates and possibly phosphates from the water.> The substrate is crushed coral (about 80 pounds) and live sand (about 50 pounds). When we add water the sand is not stirred up a great deal, we try not to, but with the algae bloom the water becomes full of the "stringy" pieces of algae as well as the "dust" or spores from the diatoms, as that stuff is everywhere. <Get a turkey baster and suck this nasty stuff out. Great for blowing it off things as well. Usually caused by phosphates in the tap water> If there is a poison being stored in the algae, wouldn't the invertebrates be affected, as they are eating voraciously? <Depends on the type of poison but once again it might not be a poison. The symptoms are just very similar to a poisoning.> We can see the clean trails they leave across the rocks and glass; they are doing swimmingly! The second group of fish died on Thursday and we did the 10+ gallon water change then. The water parameters are the same today as the testing we did Thursday (those are the numbers listed previously), but the algae, especially the brown, is dusting over the bottom. Should we continue water changes?<I think you need to do bigger water changes less frequently. Perhaps 25% or more at a time.>  Also, we have two filters - an Emperor hang-on the-back for a 100 gallon tank (we have a 75 gallon tank) and a Whisper Power Filter for a 75 gallon tank - should we change any filters on those? <How much current is at the top of your tank? Are you getting a lot of movement? With all the algae I'm concerned here about oxygen saturation.>  I believe the Emperor is the only one that has charcoal filtration. <I would suggest activated carbon instead of charcoal and replace it every couple of months.> (We have a Fluval 404, but are waiting for a replacement part to get it up and working as I think it was much more efficient than the Whisper.) We really appreciate your time as we really have enjoyed the tank and don't want to give it up. Although I am thinking of brushing up on my fish CPR <Aw Julie, I know this just sucks.  Okay so here's what I would do if this tank was mine. First, I would get a turkey baster and a toothbrush and I would pull all the rocks into that five gallon bucket with some water and get all the algae off of them.  Then I would take all the algae left in the tank and scrub it off and/or scrape it off until it was pretty much clean. After that I would clean out all the canisters and make sure you had carbon and not charcoal. Then I would check my sand and make sure that the sand isn't packed down tight. If it is that's something we need to address. Then I would do a 25% water change. After I had done all of this I would let the tank sit for a week then add one fish. See how things go. Julie you might want to consider using R/O water for a bit to see if that helps with the brown algae, or possibly add something to remove the phosphates in your fresh water. Please let us know how things go, MacL, my thoughts and prayers are with you.>  ...Julie

Brown algae & lighting Hi, <Hi James, MacL here with you this fine evening.>  I have a question on algae, please.  I have a 75 gallon F/O NLR tank with 5 inhabitants. I have had brown algae since shortly after I set my tank up (last March). <Sounds very much like you have Diatoms James.> It is not as bad as it used to be, but still there. <Usually shows high nutrient content in the tank, have you got readings on your nitrates and phosphates?> I thought this only occurred when the tank was fairly new. Anyway, I use DI water and a silicate remover as an extra precaution. <You might also need to consider adding an RO unit. You don't mention whether you have a skimmer on the tank but you need to find some method for nutrient exportation, whether that be live rock, a skimmer or various other things.> I also use the poly filter. <Absolutely love those things.  I find they are incredible at keeping a clear tank.>  I do 10% water changes every week and I vacuum the substrate (crushed coral 1/2 inch thick) every month. I understand about the nutrients that contribute to algae; but wanted to know how lighting affected it. <Its about the spectrum of the lights James.> I have a Coralife trichromatic 6500K bulb as well as a actinic 03 blue bulb (this was recommended on your site to help bring out the fish colors). <Honestly I think you need more light and possibly to replace your bulbs James. You have a fairly deep tank.>  I usually turn on the lights when I get home from work at about 6:30 P.M. and turn them off at about 11:00 P.M. <That's not nearly enough lighting to convert the diatoms. You should have your lights on at least 8 hours and up to 10 or 12.>  I have heard that increasing my lighting duration will help get rid of brown algae, but a while back when I went on vacation I set my timer to let the lights stay on for 8 hours and when I got back the algae had multiplied about 4 times over. <I really believe you need some stronger lighting. And to be honesty you are going to have to do something about your nutrient export. Also James it would have multiplied because the tank has to build up the bacteria to handle the brown algae.>  Sorry I am rambling, but I am frustrated and don't know what to do.  thanks, James <Hope this helps some James, MacL>  James Hall

Diatom Problem I've had my tank set up for about 4 months and now there is brown algae growing all over everything. I've done some research and the real name is diatoms, I think. How do I get rid of this stuff? <First let me suggest that you take a look at the faq's on WetWebMedia. http://www.wetwebmedia.com/diatomfaqs.htm>  I change the water about twice a month, and my levels are all great. <It could be silicates or phosphates causing the growth. I know mine occurs when I add water to my tank because I don't use an RO/DI unit.>  But every day I have to clean the glass. My sand is even covered with this brown filmy stuff. What can I do to get it to go away? <I use a turkey baster to get it off the corals and the sand. But the best thing I have done to get rid of it is to drip Kalkwasser in my tank. There are many other solutions including using RO water, MacL>

The Brown Algae Blues! (Beating Nuisance Algae) Hello boys & girls, <Scott F. here today!> I have a ongoing problem with a brown algae on the bottom of my 500lt minireef tank. I mix the crushed coral base daily, but one hour later its back. The water is good so I don't know how to over come this problem. Can you give me some hard core fed back to rid this algae. Ta Chris <Well, Chris, I think that you need to start with an accurate appraisal of your water quality: Brown Algae (diatoms, usually) arise from excesses of silicate in your water. If you're talking about more "slimy" brown algae, you're generally dealing with other nutrients, such as phosphate. Detailed water tests can usually tell the story. If you are getting good protein skimming, are conscientious about regular water changes, stocking, etc.-then you may need to also investigate your source water. RO/DI will be your best source of water to start with. If you're using high quality source water, that's half the battle right there! Use of effective chemical filtration media, such as activated carbon and/or Poly Filter, or even some specialized phosphate removing media like Rowaphos or PhosBan, can help. However, you need to find out the root causes (almost always the aforementioned excess nutrients) and eliminate them! Check out our detailed FAQs on Algae Control and Nutrient Export here on the WWM site for way more detail than I can go into here...With continued effort and diligence, you'll lick this problem! Good luck! Regards, Scott F.>
Beating The Algae Blues (Pt. 3) Hello WWM Crew, Thank you MacL & ScottF for your knowledge so far, your info has been nothing but Hard-Core. <We do our best! Scott F. on the follow up tonight!> I have been looking for 3 different types of media to use in my three basket canister filter to help with Nutrient export & Algae control. The first is Activated carbon, second Seachem Hypersorb, both will need to be placed into a bag . What can I use for my third basket, maybe some of that green mesh I use in the wet and dry filter, what do you think of the this. <My thought is that if you intend to use mechanical filtration media, you need to clean it or replace it very often, or it will become a trap for  food and other detritus, which can decompose and lower water quality. Also, if you're going to use the mechanical filtration media in your system, use it in a place that you can access quite frequently without much effort (like a sump chamber), because human nature being what it is- you're more likely to clean something that you can access regularly. I'd just go with more carbon.> Does the crashed coral bed have much to do with this problem if it is not as thick as I would like it to be at this point due to funds, it could do with at $100 more of crushed coral  to make it 2-3 inches thick . <Well the rule of thumb that I've embraced for some time on substrates is 1/2" or less, or 3" or more. I prefer finer substrates for their denitrification benefits and tendency not to trap detritus as readily as coarse substrates> I am doing every thing that has been suggested on your site , weekly 5% water changes with RO water , along with a weekly vacuum, as my banded boxing shrimp is so messy she loves to nip away at the premium live rock which stands out on crushed coral , but she's worth the extra work . <Cool animals> I have just purchased two new residents: 1x female Tomato Clown & 1x male Tomato Clown and a host Anemone that the female was guarding for life and death at the shop. I must say that this purchase has been the most fulfilling I have ever had with marine animals, everyone should have these in there set up if possible , it's like Ying &Yang if you know what I mean. <While I agree that they are fascinating animals, and the symbiotic relationship between the two is awesome, anemones are NOT for everyone. They do require very careful attention to their needs to assure long-term survival. Historically, the survival rate of most anemones in captivity is simply dismal. Not trying to put a damper on your enthusiasm, but I'd be doing other hobbyists a disservice if I didn't get up on the soapbox on this topic for a bit> The female has started to accept the male, so fingers and toes are all crossed that they have babies, this would be the ultimate. <This is a fascinating and rewarding event...I wish you the best of luck!> Sorry- back to the problem at hand- I got a bit carried away. <Not a problem> I use these additives in my tank...SEACHEM-Strontium, Iodide, Vitamin & Amino acid supplement, Calcium- AQUASONIC-Invertebrate food supplement - Carbonate hardness generator & PH BUFFER 8.3 when needed, can any of these be contributing to the brown algae blues. <I'd rethink the Iodide, strontium, Vitamin & Amino Acid supplement, and invertebrate food supplement. The vitamins and minerals can be supplied to your animals through the frequent water changes with a quality salt mix. Unless testing dictates a specific need for supplementation, I simply wouldn't use them. They are definitely a source of potential algae fuel! I would not be at all surprised if your algae problem begins to dissipate upon discontinuing the use of them.> My water parameters are -TEMP 26- SALINITY 34- PH 8:2- ALK 240ppm- AMMO 0- TRIT 0- TRAT 10MG/L- CALCIUM 400- PHOS 0.1PPM....... My tank set up is.... TANK SET-UP a.. 500lt Tank - 4 holes drilled into back at water level line - runs down to W/D shower head   b.. 1x 2 Sponge power head filter in tank for pushing water   c.. 1x Foam fractionation skimmer   d.. 1x Canister filter - Via Aqua 750 Professional - 3 baskets: Running off W/D sump                                                               .. 1x Wet & Dry filter 75cm x 45cm x 45cm Green filter material - white filter material - ? full of Bio-balls 14cm water level in sump <I'd consider yanking the plastic media and letting the rock and sand do the biological filtration work in your tank...That may also reduce your nitrate level>   f.. 1x Jun pump 12,000 L/ph   g.. 2x Heaters   h.. Tank substrate - crushed white coral   I.. 2x 4ft Fluoros - 1x Super Day - 1x Actinic Blue <Do consider upgrading to metal halides for the long-term benefit of your anemone!> LIVE STOCK   a.. 1x Mandarin Dragonet   b.. 2x Tomato Clown Fish (1 male, 1 female)   c.. 1x Banded Boxing Shrimp (female)   d.. 1x Abalone   e.. 1x Host Anemone   f.. 20x Actinodiscus/Discosoma   g.. 3x Ricordea   h.. 5x Warty Corallimorphs   I.. 3x Folded Elephant Ears   j.. 12x Colonial Anemone   k.. 30x Yellow/Green Encrusting Sea Anemones   l.. 1x Violet Sea Urchin   m.. 3x Sea Squirts   n.. 4x Xenia - Encrusting Corals   o.. 1x Goniopora - Lobata   p.. 1x Goniopora - Planulata   q.. 1x Large Plate Coral   r.. 1x Small Plate Coral   s.. 20x Finger - Torch Corals   t.. 3x Star - Pineapple Corals   u.. 5x Common Sponges   v.. 8x Tree Soft Corals   w.. 3x Branching Hydroids   x.. 3x Mushroom corals   y.. 1x Elegance Coral   z.. 1x Free Living Bristleworm   aa.. A meadow of Xenia type blue single flowers   ab.. 10kg Premium Live rock covered in Coralline Algae THANK YOU SO MUCH CHRIS <Well, Chris- you have quite a mix of life in there! I'll bet that the excessive use of supplements is responsible for about 80-90 percent of this algae problem. Take some of the suggestions that Mac and I have made to heart, and I think that your algae problems may be a thing of the past. Good luck! Regards, Scott F>

-Ut oh- IM having a bad time with Brown diatom all over my sand and I'm hoping you can help me out. It took 2 weeks but finally my tests are back and I'm using well water. please tell me if you see anything wrong and can explain if my silica readings are high thank you for all your help.  PH 6.5  PHOSPHATE <0.01 PPM  NITRATE 2.9 PPM  ALK 66.3 PPM  IRON <0.01 PPM  COPPER 0.66 PPM t his is the part I don't understand. silica liquid =15 detection limit mg/l 1.0? is 15 bad? and then silicon liquid =5.6 detection limit mg/l 0.10 <Whoa, is this freshwater or saltwater we're talking about here? I see an extremely low pH, and a copper level that would wipe out most fish. Get back to me with that info... -Kevin> 

 -Diatoms- Lol OK sorry I was trying to take a shortcut, <I'll say!> I have a 180 gal tank with a 70 gal sump. In the sump I have a Euro reef CS8-2skimmer and a aqua c EV180. <Ooo, dualies, I like, I like...>I  have 160lbs of Fiji rock and 2 inches of live sand. Today is my tanks BIRTHDAY its 15 months old and as I said in my last email I have Brown diatom all over my sand. <Happy birthday! And what better of a present than an algae problem?> Lighting is 3 MH 175 2 white 96 w and 2 96 w blue power compacts all on timers. 12  hours a day Also a 30 gal ruff with tons of pods and Caulerpa. <Ouch, "Caulerpa">  Returns are 2 mag 18. <Wow, that's some serious flow.> FISH Purple tang 1 year Foxface   1 year Six line wrasse 9 months Cleaner wrasse 1 year  EATS EVERYTHING AND EVERYTHING OFFERED <You're a lucky one. Keep in mind that only one of the problems inherent with cleaner wrasses is the feeding (although most of them collected end up starving to death) but that their removal from the ocean impacts local fish populations. BOYCOTT THESE FISH! Please read the section of the Conscientious Marine Aquarist by our very own Bob about cleaner wrasses and check our FAQ's.> Red head solon fairy wrasse 9 months Banded possum wrasse 9 months Tiger wrasse 10 months Mister wrasse 11 months <Indeed a spectacular fish!> Red-Tail Wrasse - Anampses chrysocephalus 12 months Flame angel    7 months BLUE spotted Jawfish  7 months Green mandarin  fat and doing well also eats other meaty foods 1 BLUE CARPET   14 MONTHS 1 Green carpet  14 months       yes  I know  I was dumb but they lived from day one <Hopefully they won't chow your fish!> 2 rose bubbles they split <And hopefully all your anemones won't wander around and find each other. They may also be getting on a little chemical warfare, so I would suggest running fresh carbon regularly.> 1 bubble coral 9 months 1 meat coral  10 months 1 candy cane coral snails crabs  etc. Everyone is doing well and I have no problems except my sand being brown, no hair algae no Cyano I have great growth of coralline on my rock and tank. My fish are fat and never had ick, IM surprised about your remark about the copper levels and my fish being alive <I'm not, therapeutic levels for copper in marine aquaria are between .2 and .3ppm. This level is highly toxic to invertebrates, hence it being a successful cure. Your level was somewhere around .6 which is extremely toxic, even to fish! I would assume the worst and run a whole pile of copper removing resin, then get a second opinion because it's highly likely that your kit is giving you an incorrect reading.> I never test my water anymore, only did it today, pH 8.6  1.025, alk 12 temp 80, cal 400 nitrate 10. phos 0. I do 2 water changes a week at the same time of day. The only chemical I use is a buffer since my well waters pH is so low. No carbon nada. I feed everyone once a day, my carpets and bubbles 2 times a week. I finally tested my well water and that's why I wanted too see if the prob was there since I don't use a RO / di or am I over stocked? I don't over feed that's for sure. or am I doing something wrong?  its the silica reading from my well water that I didn't know if it was high or not ill paste last email thank you so much for your time. <I won't go out of my way to find what the NSW level of silica is because this is likely just a case of junk in the source water. I would suggest purchasing an RO, DI, or combination unit to purify your source water. Not only can your well water contain phosphate and silicates that are quickly incorporated into the tissues of your problem algae, but it also can contain metals and organics. This is likely your problem since your filtration seems to be otherwise on par. -Kevin>

Algae Woes? Hi Scott <Hi there!> How are u? <Doin' well, thank you!> I am currently using play sand as a substrate mixed with crushed coral. Could the play sand be the cause of my brown algae problems? <It could be if it is silica-based, rather than aragonite> I wouldn't want to go through the process of stripping the tank down and changing the substrate if not really necessary. <Neither would I!> That would really be a schlep and another unnecessary expense. Please let me know what you think. I just cant handle the algae. I do a water change remove all the algae and within a few days its all back? <I'd check for silicate. That will give yo an idea if your source water or substrate are contributing to the problem. Remember, too, that brown algae is all part of the start-up routine for new tanks. It will pass with time and effective nutrient export methods!> Tell me, how do I get coralline algae to grow on my back glass? I would like to have my entire rear glass of  my tank full of coralline algae. <Do read up on the WWM FAQs on this, or consult the google search feature on the WWM site for more details than I can provide here!> Thanks again Ziad <My pleasure! Regards, Scott F>

Diatom issues Hello, guys! I have one question that no one can seem to answer: brown/diatomaceous algae. I have had brown algae since I set up a tank 1.5 years ago. I still have it. I thought it was nitrates...they're 0 as usual. I thought it was maybe phosphate from foods...very minimal if any (after checking ingredients). Then, I thought it might be tap water quality, so I got an R/O D.I. unit. Then I thought it was salt. Switched to Instant Ocean from Coralife. LFS moron told me on the phone that I needed to buy his Diatomaceous Earth Pressure Filter and that would solve the problem. Ha. <I agree> The tank houses: 2 black and white percula, 2 anemone, one "trooper" Chromis-the 1st fish I bought-, a queen conch and an urchin. The tank is 58gallons, 8.3pH, 75F, 0Nitrate..no signs of purple or even green algae are present. You guys that complain about it, please read my question and be glad. Here are some more clues: I use an XP3 and a Prizm skimmer. Some say that's too little, but I never saw cause for concern as I do weekly 10% changes, have about 40# LR, 16# LS substrate, and have no chemical problems. Water chemicals. Not drugs chemicals.  ;) The only thing I can think of is that I am going to see a gradual process because of the installment of the R/O DI unit...or that there will be leaching from the sand (silica) or the liverock from leftover stuff. Any help is appreciated. Thanks! Ian <Good clues... I suspect what little silicate and available nutrient you have is simply "recycling" itself into your diatom scums... What to do? I would not replace any of your gear... except maybe the lighting... IF you wanted to try the route of switching from the diatom to another group of algae (greens, maybe reds). Elsewise, maybe the use of PolyFilter, continuing to vacuum and rub-a-dub-dub... What say you? Bob Fenner>

Diatom scum city Thanks for the input, I think I've finally figured out the problem. I was flipping through ThatFishPlace. com's catalog and happened to catch a carbon that had "no phosphates" and then read the synopsis about the kind I use, the research grade stuff ( I use it for the turtles and it works wonders...turtles don't seem to care about phosphates). Well, the research grade Black Magic doesn't even say anything about phosphates. Upon closer investigation and analysis, the stuff is full of it. And when I rinse the carbon in tap water to get the dust off, it is absorbing everything from the water I am using RO DI water to eliminate. <Yikes... I always wonder why the gas and electric company sends me notices to stick hot foods in the fridge> I would have been better off with the PetSmart burnt rainforest trees! <Watch that slander, and call me Abdul... not Paula!> I have been using the normal strip lights (3 of them) for my 58 and the anemone have been growing like crazy. I am going to switch to a VHO compact fluorescent fixture in the next month. Should I expect great results and new fauna? <Yes> You guys are great. I wish you could have a caravan coming to each town to right the carelessnesses (is that a word) of the LFS 'gurus.' <Let's see... we could get wireless satellite Net hook-up, correlate the beer and donut outlets locations... you may have something here. Bob Fenner> Thanks again. Ian

Diatom Control & Refugium 1/31/04 Hi Crew, I just realized, when I previously sent this email I forgot to include a subject. In case you require a subject for indexing, I am re-sending the same email with a subject (so just ignore this email if the previous email is being answered). I have been dealing with a diatom problem since setting-up my 180g aquarium 10 months ago. At least, from reading the FAQs at http://www.wetwebmedia.com/brownalgcontfaqs.htm   I think the brown dusting on my glass sounds like diatoms. It is fairly easily removed but it returns in only 1-2 days. I use RO water and I don't *think* I overfeed as my fishes always hungrily finish all food in under 2 minutes. I also have several brittle start, hermits, sand-sifting goby, etc to clean-up any leftovers™t  From what I have read, using a good skimmer is probably the most important step in eliminating diatoms. I have a Red Sea Berlin (non-Turbo), powered by a tee off of my main return (Mag 18). Although the skimmer can produce a significant amount of foam, this foam is generally white in appearance and the collection cup is filled with fairly light-colored skimmate. I reduced the venture airflow so I get a dark-colored skimmate but, at this rate, it takes about 2-3 weeks to fill a 16 oz. collection container. Is it possible that there is very little waste/protein in the water to be extracted by the skimmer? Ammonia and nitrite test zero, nitrate tests 10-20 PPM. Temp is 77F and salinity is 1.0235 SG. If this amount of skimmate production seems entirely too low, do you have suggestions for increasing skimmer output (without just increasing water extracted)? <A good skimmer will help. Increasing the air flow as much as possible, while reducing water flow if necessary should increase skimmate production. Unfortunately, your Berlin skimmer is woefully undersized for your tank. Manufacturers recommendations are often wildly optimistic in this regard.> Unfortunately my red leg and blue leg hermits seem to think Astrea shells are in fashion these days so I think I need to supplement my janitors. <This, among other reasons is why I generally recommend that hermits be avoided. If they kill one snail for it's shell, they have put more waste into the tank than they could consume in months. Certainly not a good cost/benefit ratio!> What is the best diatom cleaner for glass (or acrylic in my case)? If I order more snails, I want to ensure they are able to right themselves before a crab moves in. I have several Nerites and Ceriths but neither appears to have a strong appetite for diatoms (some Nerites at least try but they cannot keep-up with the diatom growth). <I would give up the hermits to eliminate the risk all together. Turbos, Astreas and Trochus all make good grazers.> Apparently my sand sifters are doing a very good job of keeping diatoms off the sand because I never notice a problem there.  I am in the process of adding a 20g refugium to this aquarium so I am hopeful this will help to reduce the diatom problem as well provide pods for a mandarin and food for tangs. I have read that mangrove is one of the most efficient consumers of nitrates and I have read that Caulerpa is the best consumer of nitrates/ phosphates. Which do you recommend growing in a refugium (or do you recommend both)? Of the various types of Caulerpa, what type is the best at NNR and phosphate reduction without releasing toxins or being overly-invasive? Since I have many tangs, I was planning to grow IPSF's Tang Heaven in the refugium as well but I see they offer three types (red, yellow, gold and green). Which type would be most attractive / beneficial to tangs and how would Tang Heaven " without Caulerpa toxins or being overly-invasive? Since I have <Mangroves are not very efficient consumers of anything. They simply grow too slowly. I like Chaetomorpha more than Caulerpa because it does not "crash" like Caulerpa and makes superior habitat. Growing Gracilaria (red tang heaven) is a great idea, but it is not one of the easiest algaes to grow. I am not sure what the other types are, but you could give them a shot. They will never be as effective at nutrient uptake as Caulerpa or Chaetomorpha. FWIW, diatoms will thrive with the tiniest trace amounts of nutrients. The limiting factor in their growth is generally silica, which is not always effectively removed by RO and or DI. The best bet is to increase your grazers and to siphon out as many silica rich snail droppings as possible. Also consider that if you limit the silica or seriously reduce diatom growth, other less manageable algaes may grow in their place. Best Regards. Adam> As always, thank you for sharing your wealth of knowledge with all of us in the hobby!  --Greg 

Algae- The Good, The Bad, and The Best! Hi Crew, <Hi there! Scott F. with you today!> I have been dealing with a diatom problem since setting-up my 180g aquarium 10 months ago.  At least, from reading the FAQs at http://www.wetwebmedia.com/brownalgcontfaqs.htm I think the brown dusting on my glass sounds like diatoms.  It is fairly easily removed but it returns in only 1-2 days.  I use RO water and I don't *think* I overfeed as my fishes always hungrily finish all food in under 2 minutes.  I also have several brittle star, hermits, sand-sifting goby, etc to clean-up any "leftovers". <All good nutrient control and scavenging techniques, but there are more things that you can do> From what I have read, using a good skimmer is probably the most important step in eliminating diatoms. <Well, actually, skimmers are excellent at removing many of the excess nutrients and substances that contribute to many different nuisance algae, and I recommend a skimmer for every tank, but if you're dealing with brown diatoms, the causative factor is often an accumulation of silicate in your source water. RO is a good start, but you may need to use a "high silicate removal" cartridge on the RO unit, or utilize a silicate-removing chemical filtration media somewhere in your system. Otherwise, every time you change your water, you are re-supplying the algae with "fuel" for more growth!> I have a Red Sea Berlin (non-Turbo), powered by a tee off of my main return (Mag 18).  Although the skimmer can produce a significant amount of foam, this foam is generally white in appearance and the collection cup is filled with fairly light-colored skimmate.  I reduced the venturi airflow so I get a dark-colored skimmate but, at this rate, it takes about 2-3 weeks to fill a 16 oz. collection container.  Is it possible that there is very little waste/protein in the water to be extracted by the skimmer? <Not usually. Even very well-established, nutrient poor systems will contain enough organics for a well-tuned skimmer to produce something dark and yucky weekly, or even more frequently. Keep tweaking that skimmer until it produces, or consider a more capable skimmer...> Ammonia and nitrite test zero, nitrate tests 10-20 PPM.  Temp is 77F and salinity is 1.0235 SG.  If this amount of skimmate production seems entirely too low, do you have suggestions for increasing skimmer output (without just increasing water extracted)? <No specifics for your skimmer, as I have not used it before, but it usually has a lot to do with getting the right air/water mixture into the unit, a considerable amount of time, and use of colorful metaphors in the process. In other words, it's a pain! But keep trying!> Unfortunately my red leg and blue leg hermits seem to think Astrea shells are in fashion these days so I think I need to supplement my janitors. <Yep- I've seen that, too!> What is the best diatom cleaner for glass (or acrylic in my case)? <Well, as a "cleaner", Trochus and Strombus are good ones, IMO. The best thing to do is keep the silicates and other nutrients out to begin with...> If I order more snails, I want to ensure they are able to right themselves before a crab moves in.  I have several Nerites and Ceriths but neither appears to have a strong appetite for diatoms (some Nerites at least try but they cannot keep-up with the diatom growth). <I use this species, and find them more interesting to look at than effective as a nuisance algae control, myself. They are pretty cool, though!> Apparently my sand sifters are doing a very good job of keeping diatoms off the sand because I never notice a problem there. <Good> I am in the process of adding a 20g refugium to this aquarium so I am hopeful this will help to reduce the diatom problem as well provide 'pods for a mandarin and food for tangs. <A refugium will definitely help process organics to reduce some nuisance algae> I have read that mangrove is one of the most efficient consumers of nitrates and I have read that Caulerpa is the best consumer of nitrates/phosphates. <Well, in my opinion, and the opinion of many others- mangroves simply grow too slowly to be considered an efficient nutrient export mechanism. Caulerpa is a great consumer of nutrients, but has some potential drawbacks to its use in some cases, such as a propensity to crash and release its gametes and adsorbed nutrients back into the system. Look for the macroalgae Chaetomorpha, which is every bit as prolific as Caulerpa, without any of the "dark side"! Or- you could try propagating Gracilaria parvispora, a great and useful algae!> Which do you recommend growing in a refugium (or do you recommend both)? <Chaetomorpha or Gracilaria, baby!> Of the various types of Caulerpa, what type is the best at NNR and phosphate reduction - without releasing toxins or being overly-invasive?   <Other hobbyists may disagree- But I feel that none of them are without this potential problem!> Since I have many tangs, I was planning to grow IPSF's "Tang Heaven" in the refugium as well but I see they offer three types (red, yellow, gold and green).  Which type would be most attractive /beneficial to tangs and how would "Tang Heaven" compare to Caulerpa or mangrove for NNR or phosphate reduction? <"Tang Heaven" (Gracilaria) is an awesome macroalgae, which would be my first choice for organic nutrient control. However, many people seem to find it a bit tricky to grow. I would utilize any of the Gracilaria species, but I prefer the red variety. The limiting factors in its propagation are nutrients, lighting, and water motion. Try to keep it well lit, and in constant motion.> As always, thank you for sharing your wealth of knowledge with all of us in the hobby! --Greg <My pleasure, Greg! Keep working that skimmer and limiting incoming nutrients, and things should work out okay! Good luck! Regards, Scott F>