diatom filters

[Justusfish]

My question is: Do diatom filters really filter out things like ich from your tank?

Does anyone on the forum have one and if so, what's your take on it?

[KrazyKuch]

Diatom Filters are basically 1 micron filters, so yes they will filter out ich but it will filter out everything else aswell like trace elements and what not!!

[Norstar]

Diatom Filters are basically 1 micron filters, so yes they will filter out ich but it will filter out everything else aswell like trace elements and what not!!

Are you sure about the trace elements? Are far as I was aware, they do not.

They do however do a great job of getting rid of ich!

[Justusfish]

Does anyone carry them in Vancouver, one that could handle my 210 gal tank and 30 gal sump?

[Norstar]

Big Al's in Richmond may carry them. Or I would highly recommend MOPS - their service is excellent!

http://www.mops.ca/cgi-bin/SoftCart.exe/ushop/Diatom-Filters.html?L+scstore+xqpp9800ff0a010a+1174576307

I actually like the Freedom filter the best!

[justinl]

I thought trace elements were dissolved in the water and were in their ionic form (one atom big... less than a micron)? Id understand if it removed precipitates (solids) but that's a whole other story isn't it?

[fkshiu]

Unfortunately, you probably won't be able to eliminate your ich problem with just a diatom filter. It will only filter out the free-floating parasites and not the ones embedded in the fish's body or the ones laying in the substrate and live rock depending on which part of the life cycle the parasite is at.

[Justusfish]

but the ones in the body eventually come off as part of the cycle, though,right? and then the diatom could catch them or at least greatly reduce the number of floaters in the tank, lessening the number that could again attach to the fish bodies?

[fkshiu]

Each and every last ich parasite would have to pass through the diatom filter to completely eliminate it from the tank. The chances of this happening will depend on the flow rate, the size of tank and the number of crevices and low flow spots where the free-swimming parasites can avoid being sucked into the diatom filter.

As you can imagine, in a running display tank with live rock and substrate it would be impossible to for the filter to remove ALL parasites at any one time. It only takes a single parasite missed by the filter during the free-swimming stage to restart the whole life-cycle all over again.

The following quote from Steven Pro's excellent article on marine ich illustrates my point:

"There is another interesting observation I found in my investigations concerning the biology of Cryptocaryon irritans. Mature trophonts leave the host and tomites exit the theront/cyst in the dark (Yoshinaga & Dickerson, 1994). Imagine if you will, a fish that randomly acquires a single Ich parasite. After a couple of days when the trophont is well fed, it prepares to drop off its host but waits for the environmental trigger of darkness. Meanwhile, the fish prepares to "bed down" in its favorite hiding spot in the aquarium; the same fish occupy the same spot practically every night. Now, the trophont leaves the fish, encysts, and begins to multiply. Several days to weeks go by and that same fish returns to its same spot at night, only this time there are hundreds of infectious theronts seeking out a host/victim in the same area. I am sure some of you are thinking that this is absolutely diabolical. Others can appreciate the simple beauty of this plan. To me, it is just another reminder of how remarkable evolution and adaptation is."

In other words, the diatom filter sitting at the opposite corner of the tank can't get to the beasties waiting to infect your fish underneath a crevice where's there's little flow.

Put yet another way: if you installed a magic air filter in your house that could filter out all bacteria and viruses, but someone walks in with a cold and sneezes in your face, you'd still get sick.

The diatom filter method would work best in a QT-style setting without rock or substrate where there would be no places for the parasite to hide. This, in conjunction, with hyposalinity and water changes would ensure the ALL parasites are eliminated.

Diatom filters would also be harmful if used longterm in a reef tank because it would filter out the many of the micro-organisms that corals (and other creatures) feed upon.

[mark]

I'm running 100 microns filter socks and amazed how dirty they become after a few days.

If the plan is to cycle all your water through 1 micron to eliminate free floating ich, must be quite the filter.

[BCOrchidGuy]

Any pet store around Vancouver should sell them including Walmart. The Magnum 350 has a filter that is desingned for use with diatomatious earth, the magnum is or used to be sold through Walmart under their brand name so you'll have to look it up to see a picture of it. They do an excellent job of polishing the water, I'd remove as much of the crud as you can before hand or they will plug up really really fast. Once you've used it you have to rinse it out extremely well but they work great.

Doug