anybody ever get a tds of 0 and still have diatoms?

[nebraska dreamin]

is there some kind of additional silicate stage in my ro/di i need to add? my cartridges and membrane where looking pretty golden but I was getting a reading of 0. I have since replaced. what else can cause diatoms aside from silicate, low light, phosphates...my po3 test is saying 0 but ive read that even if your test is 0 you can still have dissolved organic phosphates or something of that nature. would love to hear your opinions. its only in a little patch in the sand bed but I can stand the brown uglies!! tanks been running for about 5.5 months. Thanks in advance!

 

[Reefing Madness]

Probably everyone that has started a tank using RO water has had Diatoms.

 

[nebraska dreamin]

right, and I expected that but it had its usual bloom and then they came back. i did change some things with my lighting but that was a month ago. any ideas how to combat them now or is it as easy as water changes with the new cartridges and playing the waiting game?

 

[saltyphish]

First need to figure out where the excess nutrients came from. If it was from your old ro filters then doing water changes should help.

 

[NanaReefer]

Silica Buster! Add any new equipment lately? Stir up your sand bed maybe?

 

[AZDesertRat]

Silicates, phosphates and nitrates are weakly ionized so do not register well on a TDS meter. They can be passing through and you not know it. It is important you have an efficient RO membrane and good, fresh properly blended DI resin if you suspect any of the above.

 

[Breakthecycle2]

I had a similar problem for a year. What kind of sand and salt mix are you using?

 

[nebraska dreamin]

First need to figure out where the excess nutrients came from. If it was from your old ro filters then doing water changes should help.

I did start dosing FUEL. I thought that may be it and backed off over a week ago. not getting any worse but not gettting any better either

 

[nebraska dreamin]

I had a similar problem for a year. What kind of sand and salt mix are you using?

used carrib sea live sand...fiji pink I believe and I am using RC for salt mix now but have been thinking about trying aqua vitro or redsea pro maybe even try tritons salt mix for very small h20 changes(like a gallon) daily. any suggestions??

 

[nebraska dreamin]

First need to figure out where the excess nutrients came from. If it was from your old ro filters then doing water changes should help.

Im hoping its as simple. not wanting to add any "snake oil" to the water column

 

[Damon]

Could be that fuel.. I know tons of people like it, but a lot have had the same issue with it(I got slime from it and just stopped.. Went away).

Could, as others said, silicate, phosphate passing through your di. Test your ro water if you can. That way you will know..

But yes, I'm sure tons have run into this also..

 

[Breakthecycle2]

I strongly believe RC is to blame. My issue was the sand I used, which was Tropic Eden Reef flakes. I did a search on Google and there's a ton of complaints of constant brown algae on the sand bed, which is what I was dealing with. Before that, the store I was buying saltwater from, used RC. I'm friends with them, so I asked them what there TDS was, which they said was zero. They told me what the problem could have been and showed me the tanks they kept the saltwater in. At the time, they used RC and the whole tank was covered in diatoms/brown algae. Not sure if that what it was, but I believe it was.

 

[nebraska dreamin]

Silicates, phosphates and nitrates are weakly ionized so do not register well on a TDS meter. They can be passing through and you not know it. It is important you have an efficient RO membrane and good, fresh properly blended DI resin if you suspect any of the above.

got a brand spanking new ro membrane running now been using brs color changing di resin. had the bag for a few months though. I think it was like a 7 lb bag. how fresh is fresh??

 

[nebraska dreamin]

Silica Buster! Add any new equipment lately? Stir up your sand bed maybe?

is that a suppliment? Somewhere I read there is an additional silicate stage you can get in addition to the sediment ro and di for your ro/di

 

[nebraska dreamin]

btw thanks for all the advice guys!!!

 

[nebraska dreamin]

and the only time my sand got stirred up was when I was trying to siphone it off

 

[NanaReefer]

is that a suppliment? Somewhere I read there is an additional silicate stage you can get in addition to the sediment ro and di for your ro/di

Yuppers!
http://www.marinedepot.com/SpectraP...rtridges-SpectraPure-SP34706-FIRORPDI-vi.html

 

[nebraska dreamin]

Yuppers!
SpectraPure® SilicaBuster DI Cartridge - Non-Indicating - SuperDI

thats what i was looking for! I wonder if I should use that instead of my di resin im using or add a second di stage? what do you think?

 

[AZDesertRat]

SilicaBuster is a special resin blend made by Spectrapure specifically for reefkeeping. I have used it in combination with their MaxCap DI in a dual DI system for years and would never go back to anything else. My DI life went from 150 measured gallons per cartridge using fresh mixed bed nuclear grade resins from several other vendors and wholesalers to 830 gallons on my very first MaxCap cartridge and over 3,000 gallons on my first SilicaBuster. I even borrowed a lab grade benchtop Thornton conductivity/resistivity meter to confirm the TDS readings I was seeing on my HM Digital COM-100 and was pleasantly surprised. There really is a difference. Not only in the resins but in the RO membranes too, Spectrapure is the only vendor to offer a guaranteed 99% rejection rate RO membrane which makes the DI last even longer since it does not work as hard.

By fresh resin I meant properly blended mixed bed nuclear or semiconductor grade resin which was packed fresh, damp and shipped properly then once opened, re-sealed using a vacuum sealer such as a Seal A Meal device and stored in the rerigerator and out of direct lighting. Even properly stored as above, resin has a shelf life of about 6 months so buying bulk is not always the best choice. I used to buy in two 50 lb box shipments (100 lbs) then divide it up and vacuum seal it in individual 20 oz portions and sell it at cost to fellow reef club members and it still did not work or last as good as Spectrapure's resin cartridges. Today I buy only what cartridge I need and do not keep spares or extra. I know about how long it will last so order one month in advance and only what I need.I also order resin directly from Spectrapure so I know it was blended and packed the day it shipped and has not been sitting on a shelf somewhere aging.

http://spectrapure.com/FILTERS-MEMBRANES-RESIN

 

[GreatWhiteTang]

Snake oil