Brown sand

jeremyhaas

jeremyhaas

New Member
I have a small 10 gallon aquarium that has 15 pounds of LR, 2 Blue Damsels, 6 Blue Leg Hermits and a Scarlett Skunk Cleaner Shrimp. I have TWO 20 watt 50/50 10k/actinic bulbs over my tank. I plan on adding some low/medium light corals in my tank but I seem to have problems with brown sand or Diatoms. I do not have an RO/DI unit yet hence the reason why I haven't got my coral. My tank is cycled...so what is the reason for all the diatoms? I seem to keep coming, but only where the light hits. What can I do? It's unsightly.
 
T

tizzo

Guest
Diatoms replenish themselves with the nutrients in your tap. When you initially set up a tank, they live til the nutrients run out, then die or settle then disappear. You keep feeding them with your tap water and as long as you use it, they will most likely never go away. Wherever you live has something in the water that they like.
 
jeremyhaas

jeremyhaas

New Member
Is there anything you recommend to keep them in check untill I get a ro? Or an RO unit? I don't want to be cheap but I don't want to spend a fortune on one.
 
suzy

suzy

Member
While you get the cause of the situation under control, I would use the diatoms to your tanks benefit. Diatoms are a really nutritious alga, and your microfauna population thrives on them. I actually culture a diatom species to add to my tanks.
Take a turkey baster, make a hurricane and get those tiny cells into the water column. You will find as they are diminishing, your crawly and yummy microfauna larvae is growing. Your tank will love you for it!
 
jeremyhaas

jeremyhaas

New Member
What do you recommend for an RO unit? I don't want to be cheap about it, but I don't use much water because it's a 10 gallon tank.
 
jeremyhaas

jeremyhaas

New Member
Originally Posted by Suzy
http:///forum/post/2512466
While you get the cause of the situation under control, I would use the diatoms to your tanks benefit. Diatoms are a really nutritious alga, and your microfauna population thrives on them. I actually culture a diatom species to add to my tanks.
Take a turkey baster, make a hurricane and get those tiny cells into the water column. You will find as they are diminishing, your crawly and yummy microfauna larvae is growing. Your tank will love you for it!
What do I do with a turkey baster now? I am curious?
 
suzy

suzy

Member
I have CoralLifes 3 stage. There are better, but I use a lot of water, so to me, having only 3 canisters to replace is good. If you get one, get a TDS meter so you know when to replace them.
 
T

tizzo

Guest
Originally Posted by Suzy
http:///forum/post/2512466
While you get the cause of the situation under control, I would use the diatoms to your tanks benefit. Diatoms are a really nutritious alga, and your microfauna population thrives on them. I actually culture a diatom species to add to my tanks.
Take a turkey baster, make a hurricane and get those tiny cells into the water column. You will find as they are diminishing, your crawly and yummy microfauna larvae is growing. Your tank will love you for it!
If you only have a 10 gallon then I'd prolly buy the water if I were you.
We have a vending machine here that dispenses RO water. It's "Glacier" brand. It's only 30 cents a gallon, if you have that, I'd recommend using that.
 
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