brown algae - diatom problem

[switchcats]

Hi All,

I know that this has been discussed a bit lately, but I am still confused about what to do to get rid of the diatoms growing on my plastic plants. In my 20G, about once every couple of months I take them all out and scrub them, and put them back in all nice and new looking. In about 3-4 weeks the brown stuff is back. This has been going on for about 2 years now. Last nite I took a good look at the 65G, and it's starting in there now too. The tops of the plants typically start first, and then it slowly moves down.

I've read on here about silicates and phosphorus and overfeeding (which they aren't), and water changes, and actually feeding the stuff when you're trying to clean the water!

For someone who has no clue about chemistry, this is too much! Could someone please explain, in plain English, why this is happening, and what I can do to make it go away. The less chemical manipulation of the water the better.

Thanks so much!

 

[Star_Rider]

Diatom algae..I've done a ton of research..

basically from what I understand..you need silicate and phosphorus both can come from the water source.
diatom algae is not affected by the amount of light..atleast the species I have..

I tried reducing the feeding(there couls be trace source for diatom in the food or waste) NO effect..


it will hopefully run it's course..but oto's love the stuff...LOL

I have 3 in each tank..and they keep it down...

 

[mooman]

Without sounding too dismisive: There's algea in life baby.

what I mean is, there is no way to get rid of algea. In fact, if you don't have algae growing in your tank, there is something seriously wrong. We can limit algea growth to a minimum:

Less light
more water changes
feed less
add live plants to outcompete for nutrients

but we can never get rid of it completely. I would count yourself lucky that brown algea is the one your having trouble with. It's fairly easy to clean off glass, and lots of algae control species like it. Otos are at the top of this list, but a search on otos will show that they arent' the hardiest fish in the world (they just don't acclimate well). If you can get some that survive acclimation (first couple weeks) then they will practically elliminate brown algae from the tank (they even like to clean off plant leaves)

Common pond snails, malaysian trumpet snails, and red ramshorn snails do a great job of keeping my plants clean. They will usually give you some for free at lfs if you ask nicely. Warning: In tanks where algea is out of control and the tank is overfed or not well maintained (usually the second factor is causing the first) snails can breed to a point were people feel they are a nuisance. Personally, I love them.

A blackout can be very useful when you want to get rid of all your algae periodically. cover the tank with a blanket that is so thick that not even the slightest pinprick of light can get in. Leave it there for 3 days (NO PEEKING, not even to feed the fish). when you take the blanket off, the tank will look like new.

 

[switchcats]

So basically it's not anything that I'm doing wrong, I just have to learn to deal with it. Guess I'm going shopping for some oto's tomorrow.

Wish me luck!