Out Of Control Brown Algae!

[Cesar]

Besides scraping the glass in my tank, is there something else I can do for the recent out of control algae growth?

[AReeferIsExpensive]

im having the same prob...and ive had it since my first outbreak during cycling-WHICH WAS EARLY JANUARY! I just CANT get rid of the $hit~ Let me know if you haveluck w/ anything..... =/

[Cesar]

Well I have tried the turbo snails and it worked quite good but the problem is that I just had a real bad problem with Ich and it wiped out all my tank. So I haven't touched the inside of my tank in about 1 week. So the algae is blooming like there is no tomorrow. I guess Im going to have to place some turbo snails. It looks nasty though.

[schaferfred]

I as well have had a brown algae attack. I added some new Chemipure since the old was in there for three months. I'll keep you all posted if this helps solve the outbreak.

[Withers]

diatoms never go away completely, but once your tank becomes more established it will die down.

 

turbo snails help the problem, but definitely won't solve it.

[Cesar]

Well I just recieved my mag float in the mail from Dr Foster's and it does work great. Even though you still get the algae its easier to just rub that mag float against your window. It can stay in there all the time. I used it last night and the brown algae was gone with just a few rubs.

[AReeferIsExpensive]

im having a REALLY bad outbreak. REALLY bad. It started like a very thin film on the glass that would easily wipe off, but its getting so bad that its not wiping off by my fingers anymore. Its taking over my beautiful tank. This is the first major tank problem ive experienced ever~

Im not a marine chemist like some ppl here do any of thesenotes strike you as the main problem or contributing factor?

 

 

-I use to use walmart purple lable but they stopped selling it and so i started using target red cap (until i somehow figure out how to hook up this unit). But its distilled, so its the same exact thing right?

-When i use chemipure, it gets rid of my cyano but doesnt even phase my brown algae.

-Over the past month, i slowly changed my salinity. I worked it down from .026 to .023

-I recently pruned my macro algae quite a bit.

- i dose SMALL amounts of iodine and strontium

[KrackerG]

Originally posted by AReeferIsExpensive

... -I use to use walmart purple lable but they stopped selling it and so i started using target red cap (until i somehow figure out how to hook up this unit). But its distilled, so its the same exact thing right?...

 

should be fine...i didn't know walmart stopped selling the purple capped distilled water jugs. are you sure they didn't just change the cap color? dont use green walmart...no good.

 

hehehehe, need help hooking up that RO unit? sounds fun, I remember hooking mine up...fregan directions didn't make sense but I got it working (i used common sense)... and it's working grreattt! i have mine rigged up using a water hose attachment so I can disconnect mine easily.

 

hey, fix up my seaclone...and I'll hook up your RO

[schaferfred]

Mine too AReeferisExpensive......I can't find what is causing it so I am incorporating some cerith snails to see if they do the job. I think my Astreas have become fat and lazy from the overload. The Chemipure hasn't even phased the brown algae which overtakes the sand during the day then disappears (somewhat) overnight just to return again after lights on. This problem started after I added my fish. I am going to just increase water changes to twice a week and add the cerith snails to see if this helps. My wife was harassing me about it last night which forced me to take immediate action by ordering the cerith snails. What does your cleanup crew consisit of AReeferisExpensive?

[Withers]

brown algae will bloom from overfeeding, or a death in the tank. if you aren't skimming, you could start, and that would help out a lot. snails help to an extent, but never completely finish the job. hermit crabs do a wonderful job of keeping the sand/rocks clean.

 

if you have cyanobacteria, and a lot of diatoms (brown algae), that means you have a LOT of rotting organic matter in your tank. it will eventually work itself out, but you could always tear the tank down and look for the culprit. it's always better to find out the cause of your problem, rather than trying to fix it.

 

just be glad you dont have hair algae, that's the absolute hardest to get rid of IME

 

Jason

[EtOH_is_good]

add more snails. in addition to what i have in my sig, i have a couple each of astrea and margarita snails. i don't like to list them because margaritas are not tropical, and astrea are atlantic. if you don't have a clean tank in the morning, u definately need more snails or a greater diversity.

 

kracker, i use the green top bottles and haven't had a problem. what happened when you used them in the past?

[Cesar]

Vicskimmr, I have a pretty bad problem with brown algae but do you think it's worth it to get a Skimmer for a 20 gallon tank? You dont think it's too much power for it? It might sound dumb, but see Im in the process of starting a 60 gallon tank at home. That does have a Skimmer, but a 20? Im getting rid of it with the Mag Float.

[EtOH_is_good]

decision on skimmer depends on tanks final bioload. i probably didn't really need one, but then again i don't have an uncontrollable diatom/algae problem. if i didn't have a skimmer, i'd end up doing a lot more water changes.

[Withers]

i ran a CPR bak-pak 2r on my 20 gallon high constantly, it helped me out a TON when i lost fish due to my psycho brittle sea star (he killed 5 fish over his lifespan). i could never get the fish back out, and all i had was a small outbreak of diatoms from each one. i always skim my tanks, no matter what size they are. it was strictly a softy tank, and i never had any problems with growth.

 

i now have that same skimmer running on a 15 gallon nano, and i haven't had any diatoms at all to speak of, its going on a month and a half and i've never cleaned the glass (its also fishless so far though)

 

 

 

Jason

[Cesar]

I think that one my main problems is that I may over feed at times. Right now im fishless too because of a problem I had with Ich, but the brown algae is really kicking in. Im considering a skimmer. Where can you get one that can be in my 20 gallon?

[Cesar]

Vicskimmr, do you think that adding some more LR can help my tank with brown algae? I only have about 15 pounds in a 20 gallon. Maybe adding 5 or 10 more?

[Withers]

as far as skimmers go, the 3 that i've heard the most about are the remora, the prizm, and the bak-pak 2r. they're all hang on the back skimmers, so they don't take up any space in the tank.

 

as far as the live rock goes, i don't have a clue really. i know adding more live rock should give you better filtration, but whether or not it would be enough to help with the diatoms is beyond me.

 

on a side note, since your running fishless because of ich, i'm sure you know that leaving it like that for a month will guarentee that your tank is ich free, no matter if you medicate or not.

 

Jason

[EtOH_is_good]

more lr will help in the long run (adds stability), but may also cause a whole new cycle event.

[Cesar]

Yes Im waiting for about a month to start placing anything in my tank. I wouldn't want any new fish getting Ich. Im going to take note on those Skimmers to see if I get one for my tank.

[coralreefer]

if diatoms:

 

prevention is the key. silicate can enter the tank through foods,etc. use pure water for top off and salt mix. i've read that ro/di does little to remove silicate, however distilling does. may want to try that.

 

it has been suggested that the product Phosgard can remove silicates (as well as phosphates) from the tank water. Phosgard will tend to pull out the phosphates first, so several applications over a couple of weeks may be needed to resolve the issue.