Algae ID

[gavinz]

Hello all, was wondering if any could clarify that this is indeed diatom or not? If it is then what should I do? I’ve only had the tank for over a month and I’m new to the reef hobby and really don’t want to lose any of my coral. Any help is much appreciated.

 

[Lavey29]

Can't see the vid because of it down loading. You typically want to wait about 3 or 4 months before turning on lights and adding coral to give your tank a chance to develop some biodiversity. It's difficult to control parameters in a new tank unless you are very experienced and this will lead to unhealthy environments and coral loss.

 

[gavinz]

Can't see the vid because of it down loading. You typically want to wait about 3 or 4 months before turning on lights and adding coral to give your tank a chance to develop some biodiversity. It's difficult to control parameters in a new tank unless you are very experienced and this will lead to unhealthy environments and coral loss.

I tried shortening the video so hopefully that helps :/

 

[gavinz]

Here are some pictures since the video won’t load, I hope these help!

 

[Theulli]

Yep those are diatoms

 

[gavinz]

Yep those are diatoms

Is there anything I should do or should I be worried at all? I’ve read several different posts that contradict each other so I’m trying to figure out what is right and what is not, thanks in advance!

 

[Theulli]

Is there anything I should do or should I be worried at all? I’ve read several different posts that contradict each other so I’m trying to figure out what is right and what is not, thanks in advance!

Diatoms are often a transient phase, a diatom bloom should be expected in a tank the age of yours and is not a sign at all that you are doing anything wrong and as other organisms get going they will squeeze these guys out. If you are too troubled by them you could get a sand sifting creature of some sort. I have a conch that absolutely massacred mine.

 

[gavinz]

Diatoms are often a transient phase, a diatom bloom should be expected in a tank the age of yours and is not a sign at all that you are doing anything wrong and as other organisms get going they will squeeze these guys out. If you are too troubled by them you could get a sand sifting creature of some sort. I have a conch that absolutely massacred mine.

Should I be worried about it killing any of my coral? Especially my two bubble corals? I also have 3 nassarius snails that stir up my tank but they typically hang out at the back of my tank by my green bubble. I know I probably rushed my tank considering everything in my tank rn and the fact that I’ve only had it up and running for about a month or two but I typically check my Parameters every day or so with no bad changes in anything and everything in my tank seems to be flourishing so far

 

[Theulli]

Should I be worried about it killing any of my coral? Especially my two bubble corals? I also have 3 nassarius snails that stir up my tank but they typically hang out at the back of my tank by my green bubble. I know I probably rushed my tank considering everything in my tank rn and the fact that I’ve only had it up and running for about a month or two but I typically check my Parameters every day or so with no bad changes in anything and everything in my tank seems to be flourishing so far

They *can* smother corals. I am not sure what to do there because cutting off light to diatoms is also cutting off light to corals. Maybe try to move the corals to locations in the tank that seem diatom free and just keep an eye on where they are spreading? From the picture you don’t have it too bad so far. The nassarius snails are carnivores and won’t eat diatoms, they just disturb the sand bed, which can help a bit but mind tend to bed down in one spot for days.

 

[gavinz]

They *can* smother corals. I am not sure what to do there because cutting off light to diatoms is also cutting off light to corals. Maybe try to move the corals to locations in the tank that seem diatom free and just keep an eye on where they are spreading? From the picture you don’t have it too bad so far. The nassarius snails are carnivores and won’t eat diatoms, they just disturb the sand bed, which can help a bit but mind tend to bed down in one spot for days.

I heard ceriph snails can help with diatoms so might see about getting a few this Friday and see if they help. It seems the spot underneath the rock that’s shaded isn’t growing any diatoms

 

[Lavey29]

I heard ceriph snails can help with diatoms so might see about getting a few this Friday and see if they help. It seems the spot underneath the rock that’s shaded isn’t growing any diatoms

That's because diatoms need light to flourish. They will probably go away in 3 weeks once the silicates in your sand are gone. Make sure you are using RODI water that is silicate free. After diatoms you can expect GHA most likely unless your parameters are off then other bad algaes take over.

 

[gavinz]

That's because diatoms need light to flourish. They will probably go away in 3 weeks once the silicates in your sand are gone. Make sure you are using RODI water that is silicate free. After diatoms you can expect GHA most likely unless your parameters are off then other bad algaes take over.

Probably going to do a water change this weekend in addition to getting a few ceriph snails. The only things off in my tank rn is my ammonia spiked a little because one of my hermits got killed by another hermit. But my nitrites are starting to go up and my ammonia is going back down, another reason as to why I’m doing a water change this weekend

 

[Lavey29]

Probably going to do a water change this weekend in addition to getting a few ceriph snails. The only things off in my tank rn is my ammonia spiked a little because one of my hermits got killed by another hermit. But my nitrites are starting to go up and my ammonia is going back down, another reason as to why I’m doing a water change this weekend

Because your tank is so new and already added corals, you should consider no more then 8 hours of light all blue and UV with little to no whites. You are probably going to have some rough ugly stages over the next 6 months. I'm on 10 months and just starting to see some tank balance and maturity with good coral health and minimal algae problems.

 

[gavinz]

Because your tank is so new and already added corals, you should consider no more then 8 hours of light all blue and UV with little to no whites. You are probably going to have some rough ugly stages over the next 6 months. I'm on 10 months and just starting to see some tank balance and maturity with good coral health and minimal algae problems.

I have a Hydra 32 HD, and wasn’t sure what to set my lights to so I use the one that David Saxby uses and it looks like the picture I posted below.

 

[Lavey29]

I have a Hydra 32 HD, and wasn’t sure what to set my lights to so I use the one that David Saxby uses and it looks like the picture I posted below.

Not familiar with hydra lights but on a new tank if you are running longer then 8 hours and more then 20% white you can expect a prolonged algae battle.

At almost 4 months I turned on my lights and added 4 beginner corals. Only one of those corals survives today.

 

[gavinz]

Not familiar with hydra lights but on a new tank if you are running longer then 8 hours and more then 20% white you can expect a prolonged algae battle.

At almost 4 months I turned on my lights and added 4 beginner corals. Only one of those corals survives today.

Yikes, guess I’ll just do the water change and add the snails and just keep an eye on the situation and pray for the best

 

[adittam]

Adding corals to a tank that’s barely cycled is a big roll of the dice. Much safer to wait at least a few months, but unless you have a friend with an established reef tank who can babysit them for you for a few months, your only option at this point is to ride it out. Regular water changes will help, but make sure you’re only using water that’s 0 TDS to mix your salt.

 

[damsels are not mean]

Diatoms. Just wait. They bloom when there's a lot of silicates but don't do harm. They can come back if you do water changes with water that is high in silicates, which are hard to remove even with an RO/DI but unless your water is unusual this is rarely an issue. I have never ever heard of diatoms crashing a tank thought I am sure diatoms appeared to smother coral during a tank crash.

 

[gavinz]

Update - I did a 50% water change, added phosban, and added two tiger conchs and 5 ceripth snails to help clean up some diatoms. It’s working slowly so far, when lights come on it’s not blooming as bad, however it did smother one of my gonioporas sadly but I don’t think it was doing so hot when I got it tbh because it never opened up like the other Goni I had right next to it but other than that everything else is doing alright so far. Will keep an eye on everything, thanks for all the help!

 

[gavinz]

Here’s some photos of my coral so far, sorry for the bad quality, but everything seems happy and healthy so far I hope. All except for my green bubble. He sometimes deflates like this, I think it’s pooping but he’s definitely much smaller now than when I first got him and I don’t know why because my purple coral seems to be doing good and growing so I’m at a loss rn :/