Is this black diatoms

My 29g tank as been up and running for over 2 years now. I used Pool Filter Sand for a substrate. For the past year or longer I have had this stuff growing all over my plants, glass, and ornaments. The funny thing is the plants don't seem to mind it, nor the fish. I have in the past tried to get rid of it by taking everything out scrubbing clean, scrubbing the plants clean of it or cutting off leaves covered with it. But doing so just made my tank sick, and lost fish. So I left it alone, and no fish dying for well over a year now. Everything in the tank is doing really well, so no problems there. Its just ugly looking.

What has anyone done to get rid of this stuff. I have poor lighting, just a single florescent light that I laid on top. The kind you can buy for sticking under a shelf in the kitchen or somewhere. But it is suffcent for the type of plants I have, I feed them with Thrive capsules that I stick under the sand, and squirt Thrive complete.

 

it is hard for me to tell from the picture but if it is diatoms otocinclus catfish do an amazing job of keeping them in check!

 

it is hard for me to tell from the picture but if it is diatoms otocinclus catfish do an amazing job of keeping them in check!

I forgot to say that I do have a hill stream loach and a black racing nerite snail. Both of these guys eat this stuff, but they can't eat enough of it to do much good.

 

I forgot to say that I do have a hill stream loach and a black racing nerite snail. Both of these guys eat this stuff, but they can't eat enough of it to do much good.

Ah yes! Between my otocinclus and panda garra they keep it completely in check. They're little piggies tho. Perhaps more live plants will reduce the growth rate for the algae since they will be competing for nutrients?

 

I guess I should have lead with this about this tank. I will be taking it down in the future, maybe six months from now. I have moved next door, and the 29 gal is in my old place.

I have a really nice 55 gallon setup in my new home, and I don't want this stuff in my new tank. In a few months I will take all my fish from the 29g tank and re-homing them into my 55 gallon tank. I don't have much in the 29g, seven corys, and the four mentioned snail and hill stream loach.

So I want to use the bio media from my 29g to jump start the cycle process in my dirted 55 tank. Will the bio media have these black diatoms in it?

 

I guess I should have lead with this about this tank. I will be taking it down in the future, maybe six months from now. I have moved next door, and the 29 gal is in my old place.

I have a really nice 55 gallon setup in my new home, and I don't want this stuff in my new tank. In a few months I will take all my fish from the 29g tank and re-homing them into my 55 gallon tank. I don't have much in the 29g, seven corys, and the four mentioned snail and hill stream loach.

So I want to use the bio media from my 29g to jump start the cycle process in my dirted 55 tank. Will the bio media have these black diatoms in it?

I believe so, but they will only outbreak if they get the chance. I am not 100% sure though, hopefully someone else can shed some light on the situation!