couple questions as this tank matures

[MKNTRAXX]

Well I started my tank on 10/30/08 its a 20 Long with two AC500 and two Koralia 1's. Clean up crew is currently 3 astrea snails, 4 nassarius snails, 8 blue leg hermits and a peppermint shrimp. I turned one of the AC500's into a fuge on reverse light cycle and do water changes of 3 gallons once a week with walmart distilled water and IO.

 

Tank params are SG 1.025, PH 8.2, Ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, all 0 and I don't have many corals yet so I don't even have tests for alk and calcium.

 

I'm starting to have problems with what seems like diatoms and I already reduced my light cycles from 12 hours to 8 and replace my filter media every other day now after I blow off all the rocks and clean everything.

 

 

So I'm looking for ideas to help clean this tank up..

-Should I increase my clean up crew? what and how many

-I want to start running carbon. What brand should I use?

-Cut back my light cycle more?

[zygote2k]

10 hours light, with RDP on the fuge. Start dosing 2 part to get as close to NSW water parameters as possible. The cleanup crew is the right size for a 20. You could even lose 4 of the hermits. Run 2littlefishies carbon or some other good brand in a passive bag in the fuge.

[Brian Ward]

Well I started my tank on 10/30/08 its a 20 Long with two AC500 and two Koralia 1's. Clean up crew is currently 3 astrea snails, 4 nassarius snails, 8 blue leg hermits and a peppermint shrimp. I turned one of the AC500's into a fuge on reverse light cycle and do water changes of 3 gallons once a week with walmart distilled water and IO.

 

Tank params are SG 1.025, PH 8.2, Ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, all 0 and I don't have many corals yet so I don't even have tests for alk and calcium.

 

I'm starting to have problems with what seems like diatoms and I already reduced my light cycles from 12 hours to 8 and replace my filter media every other day now after I blow off all the rocks and clean everything.

 

 

So I'm looking for ideas to help clean this tank up..

-Should I increase my clean up crew? what and how many

-I want to start running carbon. What brand should I use?

-Cut back my light cycle more?

 

What kind of lights are you running? What brand are your test kits? What do you have in the tank? How much LR? Fish? What is your substrate? Sand? Crushed Coral? All of this could contribute. If you're running PC or even T5 lights, it may be time to replace the bulbs. Depending on brand of test kit, you may have nitrates and it just isn't showing - some kits are more accurate and reliable than others. Replacing filter media every other day seems a bit often, usually 5 days is sufficient depending on bioload. Are you running carbon? GFO or other phosphate media?

[Buucca]

The brown diatoms are a natural part of the cycling process. You will need to mechanically remove what you can and perform the cleanup right before your water changes.

[MKNTRAXX]

T-5 lights are 8 months old, test kit is from API,(i'll try something else) 27 Lbs of LR 30 Lbs of sand.

[Brian Ward]

The brown diatoms are a natural part of the cycling process. You will need to mechanically remove what you can and perform the cleanup right before your water changes.

 

while they're a natural part of the cycling process, they shouldn't appear 8 mos in. api is a decent brand for test kits, so your measurements are probably right. I would consider increasing water changes (maybe 6 gal a week instead of 3) and sucking out the diatoms as best you can when you change the water. They'll go away eventually.