brown alge help! help!

[Dunken]

I need help fast with my alge problem!

there is brwon alge growing everywhere

my 35 gal tank was setup 2 weeks ago and started cycling.
amonnia peaked and so did nitrite...now they both hit 0..
havnt tested nitrate yet, but did a water change 2 days ago!
temp in the water 82....one 5 inch bala shark....tank did get some direct sunlight for a couple days!!

help!

 

[Wonderwoman]

mmm...sounds familiar.  my tanks always get some brown algae, especially toward the beginning.  I've always found that it usually goes away on its own, but I realize that sometimes 'just wait it out' isn't good enough    I've read that ottocats will eat it all up, I may actually try that myself this time, since in the past I've always just sorta wiped it off where it was bad and sat it out.  from what I understand, it's not really caused by too much light, and sometimes an increase will actually get rid of it...?  can anyone out there confirm?  ???

 

[Fatboy]

According to the Baensch Aquarium Atlas, the brown algae found on the sides of an aquarium is due to a lack of light. The glass appears brownish and seems covered by a thin layer of chalk. The algae can be easily removed with a sharp bladed scraper. When similar algae is seen on the bottom gravel it generally indicates extra hard water and the water values should be checked asap. If this is the case then replace part of the water with soft water. The quantity of light should be increased as indicated by wonderwoman. The quantity of light might even have to be doubled or more. You may need to add an additional tube or a more powerful bulb. Hope this info helps.

 

[Dunken]

well theres brown algae on plants rocks and the reef sand and also on the glass..almostr everywhere

i increased the light..u think this will help..how many hours per day

thanks

 

[Fatboy]

Tbh i'm not sure as to how long you should leave the lights on but having more light should actually help. As for the rest of the algae on the plants, gravel, etc, you might want to follow recommendations that others use for getting rid of other types of algae. This might include taking out the rocks and boiling them for a bit as well as removing some of the plants that are badly affected by it. Your lfs would be a good place to get advice for this sort of thing, if you trust the people there. I had a algae outbreak in my tank a little while back and it still isnt all gone because i did not feal like having to take the whole tank apart in order to irradicate it but I took some measures to stop it from taking over my tank. I removed some of the plants badly affected as well as some of the patches of gravel that were covered in the stuff. As well I have several fish in my tank that like to snack on the stuff such as a couple of platys and a SAE. As of now it's mostly under control so I don't worry too much about the small patches that I didn't take out, but daily observation will give you an indication if your doing the right thing. Good luck and I hope someone else on this board can offer better insight as to how to deal with brown algae.

 

[Wonderwoman]

thanks fatboy, I think i've read similar things elsewhere, must be right    as far as how long to leave your lights on, probably as long as possible.  if you have live plants, that does NOT mean 24 hrs/day, it will mess them up and they won't be able to perform photosynthesis properly.  I don't know about an exact number, but I've heard that 12 hours is probably the limit...?    :-/

 

[Dunken]

i donèt have live plants..so thats not a problem..but also donèt feel like touching anything in the because it just finish cyling..

but i did get a strong,brighter light witch should help