Do Urchins Eat Diatoms?

[Sir Alex]

From the different tanks I've looked at one of the things that really helps to make them look good is to have clean rocks. I was wondering when after the cycle and there's a diatom bloom, whether or not an urchin would help clean it up?

 

[Rufio808]

Yeah they eat right through my coralline too!

 

[Jmck]

Right after your cycle, you will get it no matter what, it will disappear, you wont need to do anything except water changes. The tank just works like that after a cycle. You will get a few algae blooms over the next few months

 

[cms722]

What's the best way to get rid of hair algae? Any kind of CuC critter I can get that seems to like it more than others?

 

[Rufio808]

Getting your phosphates down will be your best option in the long run. I think certain hermits will go after it if its short enough.

 

[cms722]

The tank is pretty new so I figured it was probably one of those things, like the diatomes, that just finds its way in and you just gotta find a way to get rid of it. Lol.

 

[Sir Alex]

Aren't phosphates typically 0 since the algae sucks it all up?

 

[Bifferwine]

Typically yes, the trick is to find something else to suck up those phosphates before the algae can use them as fuel.

 

[cms722]

Other than water changes what would suck up the phosphates like that? And as for the hair algae, it seems to be going away on its own, I was just hoping there was something I could get that would like to eat it so that it doesn't come back in the future. Or at least have something to control it if it does.

 

[Northstar24]

You can use macro algae such as Bifferwine's magical Chaeto to suck up phosphates. You could also look into phosphate removing media such as GFO ,or to a smaller extent BioPellets (those are more for Nitrates though)

 

[pheasant29]

Other than water changes what would suck up the phosphates like that? And as for the hair algae, it seems to be going away on its own, I was just hoping there was something I could get that would like to eat it so that it doesn't come back in the future. Or at least have something to control it if it does.

Trim it so its not so long and the big Mexican turbos seem to eat it in my system. When i had it.

 

[cms722]

Trim it so its not so long and the big Mexican turbos seem to eat it in my system. When i had it.

Maybe I'll try that. I was going to get a few anyway. I did take as much of it out as possible, and it seems to not be nearly as bad now, so I'm thinking that maybe it just popped up due to my cycle.