Hello

I have a tank that has started growing brown algae. I read on some old posts that it can be caused by a cycling tank or poor lighting. I just finished cycling my tank (WOOPEE!!!) (ammonia-0 nitrites-0 nitrates-5) and I have whatever flourescent bulb came with my aquarium kit.

Will the brown algae just go away on its own? It grows on the walls, the gravel, the live plants, and the ornaments. I scrub it off the walls every few days and vacuum the gravel, but I don't know how to clean the plants. Will it just die off and disappear or will I ultimately have to clean it all? I don't know what wattage my light is but do you think the stock lighting is enough?

Any general information would be great.

Hi,

I have the same problem. I just leave it until I really can't stand it. Just keep at it.

Slugger

Yeah - I got it pretty good, too. I just clean it off the glass w/each water change. It's also all over my gravel. I end up stirring it around when I vacuum...such a mess.

There really is nothing we can do about it? I thought it was getting out of control when I saw my red gravel turning shades of brown on the top...I especially notice it on the gravel that butts up to the glass.

Increasing your lighting or reducing silicates in your water may help. Here's link to some silicate removal filter media from a web search.
http://www.aquariumpros.com/c-FMsr.html

I think ramshorn snails will eat it, tho they'll need to be bigger than the goldie's mouths or they'll get eaten.

Is it a BAD thing to have TOO MUCH brown algae? And I guess the real question should be: how much is too much??

tks!

I don't think it's a bad thing. It's filling a niche.
Hot much is too much? However much you can't live with!

Uuugh. I have brown algae too. What a drag. It looks so awful and I'm getting sick of wiping it off of the glass. I noticed the other day it's covering my gravel now and my silk plants are getting brown spots. I just replaced the light for a better one too and look at what happens.

If anyone can think of anything to do, let me know. I'll keep watching this board for ideas.

Brenda

I would really like the answer to this too. I have rust looks like brown algae everywhere and it is next to impossible to get it all out. Its also in tiny grains on the gravel and I worry the fish are eating it- it was interesting about ramshorn snails eating this suff. Are they the tiny little red ones?

I have the same problem! My tank's back is starting to get brown stains and my plastic plants have extremely brown stains. will ghost shrimps help?

Sure Ghost shrimps help but the problem is that goldfish will eat them really fast....

Rams
http://www.aqualandpetsplus.com/Bug,%20S90.jpg

Brown algae is do to Diatoms in the water or Silicons, this is normal in most water systems, there is 2 ways to deal with this with out chems.....

BristleNose plecos or Phosarbe in the filtration system....Those are the easiest to do.....

there are other ways of doing it and that is a planted tank but that takes time, money and lighting to deal with it and sometimes it can be more troublesome.....

Also high amounts of nitrates can cause this normally tanks over the 30ppm mark will start to grow it, also to much lighting can do it too, or to much natural sunlight.

You need to look at all aspects of your tank to see what is going on, its not easy to find out why, just need to do alittle research first....

I'm having a problem with brown algea due to low lighting as well. I looks like there are skid marks on the back of my tank! I got a hood with lights, but my fish are not ready for lights because it stresses them out too much. So now I have to buy floating plants first before I turn on the lights. This is my tropical tank so if I got ghost shrimp, would they take care of it? Its a ten gallon and I'm planning on black neon tetras, cories (maybe pygmy) and maybe a couple pygmy sparkling gouramis. I would want some thing that doesn't take up much space

I have 6 ghost shrimps in there and they are doing fine, i have 3 plastic chain amazons that they hide under.

But they aren't eating the brown algea?

The algea hasn't really grown yet, they are still brown stains in the tank, i'm hoping the shrimps will eat the algea when it actually grows out. I'm also wondering if my goldies will eat it.

Tell me if they do

Sick, I've just started getting some brown algea in my tank. Its only on one ornament though. And of course its on the biggest one and it looks dreadful. I've got to find a way to get rid of it. I'm not sure why its there though. My nitrates are only 15ppm and I've got really good lighting in there. I'm so sick of scrubing the ornament every couple days...last night I got carried away and scraped some paint off of it
Do ramshorn snails really help control the algea?

I seem to get more of it when its summer than in winter it looks like the tank glass is filthy. I have some of it now in my tank. I will be getting rid of it because I'm stripping the tank contents such as gravel etc and redoing the tank set-up. While thats happening Eric my common goldfish will be living in 55 litre container while his 20 gallon tank is being re modelled.

i've been experiencing the same problem. brown algae was growing everywhere...on the spray bar, my rocks, and on the glass right above the gravel.
at first i thought i was the live blood worms left overs that cause the algae to bloom, so i stopped feeding them the worms. even weeks later, i still have brown algae growing. i'm assume i'm leaving the flourscent light on too long. do u think 13hrs is too long?

Is there a test you can do to see what your silicon levels are? I really want to get this crud under control but if my silicon levels are out of whack then that might be kind of difficult. Of all the options I've seen on this thread I think the ramshorn snails would be the best but I'm not crazy about the idea of getting another snail or two....I've already got three apple snails

Yup!
http://www.thatpetplace.com/Products/KW/si...3/Itemdy00.aspx

Seachem also makes a Phosphate test similar to the above test. AP and others make phosphate tests, too: (here's one but do a search at an online store for that word and you will lots of brands)
http://www.thatpetplace.com/Products/KW/ph...9/Itemdy00.aspx

I recently heard of these but I don't know anyone who has used them or what they are made of:
http://www.thatpetplace.com/Products/KW/ph...8/Itemdy00.aspx

I aslo heard that letting it "grow out" would help and it would eventually turn into green algae, so I tried it with my tropi tank - no luck!

Thanks I'll have to look and see if any stores near me have something like that.

I also have brown algae in my tank now...just ending its cycle soon hopefully!! I scrub it off everything then two days later i can see it coming back again. I do get up early with my son and turn the light on and we say goodmorning to my goldies....say about 7 or 8 am...and I stay up late....til maybe 1030 or eleven.....before i turn the lights off. I noticed KoKo said too much light can cause this. and mine are on for AGES during the day....how much light is efficient. I think i read goldies need about 8 or 9 hours a day??

The algae really makes the tank look filthy!!! I hate it....*curse*

i reccomend putting the fish in a bucket emptying the tank and just clening the whole thing out including gravel and plants

I will disaggree with this as it will totally crash your cycle that you have worked so hard to establish...... Not good.

I have a similar problem. I was getting brown algae so I changed the carbon in the filter because it was a bit overdue and scrubbed everything. Now its not back but things are getting a bit murky so I can see it come back.

I dont have a light, the tanks just on a shaded bookcase. So am I best moving it or buying a snail or shrimps?

Snails and shrimp will not eat brown algae. I believe brittlenose plecos and otocinclus will though, if you have enough room for one.

i am having the same problem. my tank has recently cycled and everything was going fine. now i have brown algae everywhere. when the tank is cleaned it lasts for a couple of days before the algae starts covering everything again. it is so frustrating.

We have this problem, I'm just going to crack out the test kit

But seriously it's winding me up, at least green algae looks relatively pretty

No need to scrub the ornaments, put them under boing water for 10-15 minutes, let them cooldown and replace....my brown Algee is driving me to drink.

light on for only 4 hours now ...feeding every 2-3 days as well still no cure....ahhhhh!!


No need to scrub the ornaments, put them under boing water for 10-15 minutes, let them cooldown and replace....my brown Algee is driving me to drink.

light on for only 4 hours now ...feeding every 2-3 days as well still no cure....ahhhhh!!

I think I am going to take up drinking too...I remodelled my 20 gallon, removed all the gravel and went barebottom and now all I have to show for what was supposed to be my pretty new tank is rust brown algae on everything. There is a bit of green growing too, whivh I would be ok with, but eeeeeeeuuuuuuuuuw! I had it before removing the gravel so I though by removing and boiling everything that it would go away, but no. It probably hides out in the filters, which of course were not boiled or cleaned. I only have the lights on 3-4 hours a day, the tank is not near windows. AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!

I read somewhere that brown algae is caused by not enough light. I had the same problem until I started cleaning the glass that covers my lights every week. I left the algae alone and eventually it went away on its own. I do get more green algae, but my plecos take care of that - timid chocolate albinos. (I know, you're not supposed to have plecos with goldies, but I haven't had a problem so far.)

I would definitley NOT put an Oto in a GF tank -- they end up starving to death or getting eaten - thats my experience anyways...

Well I was going to start a thread on how I can get rid of Brown alge but I guess ive been beaten to it!

Has anyone ever tried Apple Snails? or just ghost shrimp and plecos. I don't have a lot of room to spair in my tank.

ive been getting this problem too and ended up trying a bristlenose pleco in my tank ,i must say this guy is awesome hes only been in a short while and you can see a massive difference in my tank hes done the glass and out side of the filters, now hes starting on the plants,i do feed him wafers too he loves them if he gets to them before the goldies anyway just wanted to say this is a great addition to my tank thanks.

p.s they are not everyones cup of tea look wise, i think they are very intresting.

well sometimes my goldfish peak at the algae on the plants

just found that this is an old topic sorry

Well pinned can always be replied to, just not the ones down below.

Hi, I just joined this forum a few weeks ago. I did have brown algae and have found out that by increasing water agitation, the brown algae seems to go away. ( That is in my experience. ). I used to have a high water level with only about an inch left at the top. I am using a HOB filter and by decreasing the water by about 1 1/2 inches more, the water agitation was more active and there is more oxygen coming in to the fish tank. This had diminished the so-called "brown algae" or diatoms in my tank.

Interesting. I also am having a problem with brown algae in my 55 gallon tank. But I also have substantial aeration and filtration (an emperor 400, Biowheel 200, and two air stones). I'm thinking of getting a bristlenose pleco. I'll probably order it from Fosters & Smith unless there is another source. (my lfs isn't too great).

I've got some ghost shrimp and I see them eating the brown algae, but they make no noticeable difference rly.