Diatoms or Cyno?

monsinour

monsinour

Active Member
So I have something growing in 3 different spots in my tank. It all looks the same, but I have no clue as to what it is. Is it diatoms or is it cyno? Here is a full tank shot just cuz its needed.

In this full tank shot, I have labeled where the 3 problem areas are.

Close up view of spot #1

Close up view of spot #2

Close up view of spot #3

Once the video is finished uploading, it will be placed here so you can kind of get an idea of how the flow is going in the tank.
[strike][/strike]
My test results are
SG 1.025
80 Degrees F
pH 7.8
Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 20 or 5 *
Calcium 420 (time for water change)
Phosephate .25 (barely a green there but I have to count it as a trace)
dKH 8
I have no idea what this stuff is and it seems to be more pronouced as the day goes on. When the lights go out you cant really see it on the sand. When the lights come on in the morning, its like barely there, noticable, but not horrid. Nothing seems to be eating it. So what is it?
*= I have 2 API tests. One is older than the other. The newer one just arrived at the LFS as I had them order the reef master kit (calcium, dKH, phose, and nitrate) and I am fairly certain that its brand new. The nitrate that measured 20 was with the older API kit. The nitrate that measured 5 was with the newer API kit. Should I totally discount the ammonia, nitrite, and pH readings from that older kit as well? Should I go spend $30 on a new kit? I have that Seachem test kit and I get the same results with it, albeit harder to use and harder to get results. I could always bust out the Red Sea test kit, but we all know how reliable those results are. What do I do about my test results?
 
monsinour

monsinour

Active Member
Updated original post with the video.
I have been trying to get the pH up but have had no success. Is there not enough agitation with the surface? I have a sump as well. The skimmer is a forced water type that does not use air injection. I do have a glass top as the PFF is a jumper.
Is it possible that diatoms can come twice for a new tank? I had a diatom bloom before and it went away on its own. How is it coming back? what could I have added to the tank to make them come back?
I need more room in my sump to grow the macros bigger. The cheato prolly could use pruning as well as the calipura. I have pruned much of the halimeda out of the DT but the red stuff still grows just fine. I am open to all kinds of ideas and suggestions on how to improve the tank.
 
slice

slice

Active Member
FWIW, I had a second diatom bloom after adding a rather large piece of base rock to the tank. It went away just like the initial new tank bloom did.
 
monsinour

monsinour

Active Member
ok, so second bloom is possible. About how long should I wait before i get concerned?
No comments on the test kits? I will be redoing the nitrate tests again tonight after I feed the tank.
Any suggestions on the pH?
 
teresaq

teresaq

Active Member
Do you have a fuge?
Get rid of the glass and cover with egg crate. If the egg crate holes are to big, glue window screen to it. Get more water movement, especially at the surface. That should help pH.
 
florida joe

florida joe

Well-Known Member
How are you trying to raise your PH?
Diatoms are most responsive to silca/silicate, and phosphates I would start there, are you using ro water? Check your TDS if you are if not, start also check your water for phosphates
 
beth

beth

Administrator
Staff member
Someone's gonna tell you not enough flow...ok, I'll tell ya that. Need more then just at the top shooting down. What size tank?
As for the unsightly mess forming? If you gently disrupt the growth on the sand in the corner, does it appear to come up in stingy sheets, sometimes sticking to sand (cryno) or does the sand just turn over with no stings, slime, etc. (diatoms)?
 
longislandmike

longislandmike

Member
It looks like cyno to me, you also can see it in the sand bed. When I got it in my 92 corner, it also started deep in my sand bed. You were able to see it through the glass like yours. Try and syphon it with a turkey baster. I would also try and be careful moving it, if its cyno it could spread.
 
monsinour

monsinour

Active Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by TeresaQ http:///forum/thread/383653/diatoms-or-cyno#post_3357099
Do you have a fuge?
Get rid of the glass and cover with egg crate. If the egg crate holes are to big, glue window screen to it. Get more water movement, especially at the surface. That should help pH.
Yea there is a sump/fuge down below. The PFF is a jumper and that is the reasoning behind the glass cover. I can try some egg crating but I would rather figure out a way to keep the glass still on the tank. Let me try something.
Quote:
Originally Posted by florida joe http:///forum/thread/383653/diatoms-or-cyno#post_3357101
How are you trying to raise your PH?
Diatoms are most responsive to silca/silicate, and phosphates I would start there, are you using ro water? Check your TDS if you are if not, start also check your water for phosphates
surface agitation is all really. I havent done much of anything else. I use RO/DI water from sprawlmart. The water tests 0 for everything that I can test for.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Beth http:///forum/thread/383653/diatoms-or-cyno#post_3357103
Someone's gonna tell you not enough flow...ok, I'll tell ya that. Need more then just at the top shooting down. What size tank?
As for the unsightly mess forming? If you gently disrupt the growth on the sand in the corner, does it appear to come up in stingy sheets, sometimes sticking to sand (cryno) or does the sand just turn over with no stings, slime, etc. (diatoms)?
Its a 56 gallon column tank with a 16 gallon sump. I think it just turns over. I dont think its in sheets.
What doesnt make sense is that its on the seal rock. Cyno is common in low flow areas and that seal rock is in constant flow. Maybe more powerheads.
 
2quills

2quills

Well-Known Member
Nerite snails and Cerith snails would be a good edition. I'd up the flow with at least one if not two more powerheads. The flow honestly looks pretty low on the bottom. My frog spawn and xenia sway a good deal more than that. I also had a second diatom bloom that started about a month ago and is slowly disapearing now. Egg crate/light diffuser is just that...light diffuser. I guess I've been lucky so far, my pff has never attempted the great escape. FWIW I've seen folks recomend pond netting but I was up at lowes not long ago and looking at this stuff sold right next to it called tree gaurd. It has smaller holes than the egg crate and pond liner but it's more like a rigid plastic and wouldn't cut down nearly as much light as the egg crate. I'm thinking about making some covers out of that stuff.
 
longislandmike

longislandmike

Member
In picture #1 there is red inside the sand bed along the glass. That is exactly what mine looked like. It would make its way up to the surface and bubble up. I found that old bulbs (spectrum was off) was the cause of cyno in my tank. I changed the bulbs and added some conch snails, it was gone in a couple of days and never came back.
 
natesreef1997

natesreef1997

Member
for PH i would suggest using kent marine super buffer it always raises ph without a problem for me. also in my opinion that is diatoms.
 
monsinour

monsinour

Active Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by 2Quills http:///forum/thread/383653/diatoms-or-cyno#post_3357140
tree guard...

You over estimate my DIY skills. The running joke in my house is that I once tried to make a box. It came out like a rhombus.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Al&Burke http:///forum/thread/383653/diatoms-or-cyno#post_3357146
Hey Monsi - I am just curious if you have a sump why isn't your heater in there, is it too big.
I would rather have it in the sump, but alas you are correct. The heater is too long to fit in the sump.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Natesreef1997 http:///forum/thread/383653/diatoms-or-cyno#post_3357187
for PH i would suggest using kent marine super buffer it always raises ph without a problem for me. also in my opinion that is diatoms.
Buffers dont fix the problem. Someone has said that before me. I think it was a mod on these boards. Someone who has a really sub sub compact car now.
 
monsinour

monsinour

Active Member
I am thinking about running this test and have a few questions:
Some of the possibilities listed above require some effort to diagnose. Problems 3 and 4 are quite common, and here is a way to distinguish them. Remove a cup of tank water and measure the pH. Then aerate it for an hour with an airstone using outside air. The pH should rise if the pH is unusually low for the measured alkalinity, as in Figure 3 (if it does not rise, most likely one of the measurements (pH or alkalinity) is in error). Then repeat the same experiment on a new cup of water using inside air. If the pH rises there too, then the aquarium pH will rise with more aeration because it is only the aquarium that contains excess carbon dioxide. If the pH does not rise inside (or rises very little), then the inside air contains excess CO2, and more aeration with that same air will not solve the low pH problem (although aeration with fresher air should).
How long should I have the airstone in and how long do I run the test? AN hour? 2 hours?
 
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