Diatoms so early? or the lights on all day?

NeonFlux

NeonFlux

Water agent
Oct 16, 2005
2,293
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Los Angeles, California
Real Name
William
I cycled a new 60 gallon planted tank, now there is fish inside. Been a week already. Yes, within a few days I notice brown mini small balls sticking on my dwarf sag!? not only that, it looks like I have little diatoms growing on my acrylic front already?!?! lol I dose flourish excel in a pattern of one day, then not the next day, dose again.

3 Boosemani rainbows
1 Australian rainbow
4 Cherry barbs
5 Neon tetras
1 Balloon blue ram



Should I add some oto cats? i do not have any experience with them
 
NF:

You are probably overfeeding. Do not feed for three days and then resume feeding at 1/2 of your current rate. Some experimentation will be required in order to determine the ultimate correct feeding protocol.

Double dosing with Flourish for a few weeks may help rid you of this also.

TR
 
Don't add Otos. I may be off here, but I have always been under the impression that diatoms were predominantly a problem with in glass tanks. I could be off, I've never had an acrylic tank. I'd suggest you evaluate and adjust the amount of light and feeding.
 
jones57742 said:
I wished! I had a ton a one point in time on my acrylic walls.

TR
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So what corrected the problem in your acrylic tank? I've only had glass and found that diatoms are accelrated by silica. What exactly did you do to resolve it?
 
jones57742 said:
NF:

You are probably overfeeding. Do not feed for three days and then resume feeding at 1/2 of your current rate. Some experimentation will be required in order to determine the ultimate correct feeding protocol.

Double dosing with Flourish for a few weeks may help rid you of this also.

I think i'm not overfeeding at all... well not too much. I feed them twice a day with advanced nutrition packed with vitamins and etc...
tetrapro.jpg

Should I try double dosing Flourish excel?

TR
Click to expand...

Hooked Newbie said:
Don't add Otos. I may be off here, but I have always been under the impression that diatoms were predominantly a problem with in glass tanks. I could be off, I've never had an acrylic tank. I'd suggest you evaluate and adjust the amount of light and feeding.
Click to expand...
I leave the light on for hours...i turned it on from 3:00pm through the night to 10:00am

Ahh the brown spots are on my java fern surface!!! :eek:
 
NeonFlux said:
I think i'm not overfeeding at all... well not too much.
Click to expand...
:lipssealedsmilie: :lipssealedsmilie: :lipssealedsmilie: :lipssealedsmilie:
Yea, Yea, Yea: I know: That is what I said also when mine first started.


NeonFlux said:
Should I try double dosing Flourish excel?
Click to expand...
No.


NeonFlux said:
I leave the light on for hours...i turned it on from 3:00pm through the night to 10:00am
Click to expand...
When you said hours I had no idea that you were indicating 19 hours!
Give your fish and your plants a break here, cut back to 10 hours/day and then start experimenting with increased lighting periods up to 12 hours/day.


Hooked Newbie said:
So what corrected the problem in your acrylic tank? I've only had glass and found that diatoms are accelrated by silica. What exactly did you do to resolve it?
Click to expand...
What I told NF in my previous post.

TR
 
hah maybe i'll turn it on when i get home from work i get home 11:00..
 
jones57742 said:
What I told NF in my previous post.

TR
Click to expand...

jones57742 said:
NF:

You are probably overfeeding. Do not feed for three days and then resume feeding at 1/2 of your current rate. Some experimentation will be required in order to determine the ultimate correct feeding protocol.

Double dosing with Flourish for a few weeks may help rid you of this also.

TR
Click to expand...

I doubt overfeeding is the root problem and turning to dosing nutrients will only exarcibate the troubles IMO. I'd reduce lighting to ~ 8 hours per day and see where things went. No need to mess with the feeding schedule. This seems to be simply too long of a duration for the lighting.
 
lol I have to wake up 7:00am to turn it off. Will it help remove them though? or make them stop for good?
 
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