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View Full Version : How to get rid of 'BROWN ALGAE'


captpete
04/19/2006, 02:36 PM
I have a tank that's been setup for 3 months and I change about 10% water weekly. I have a skimmer on it, and an Aquaclear 200 power filter with two foam blocks and a bag of Chemipure in it. (20 gal tank) I keep getting brown Algae all over the sides of he tank and the crushed coral substrate. Right now I have one Coral Beauty in the tank doing well. I feed twice a day and keep my the lights on for about 8-10 hours per day. I realize that the Algae feed on Phosphates and Silacates in the water. This might be coming from the tap water... I don't know. I use Red Sea Salt. How do I get rid of the algae? I don't really want a ton of snails in the tank. Should I put some sort of Phosphate or Silcate remover in the filter?

Thanks

Pete

MCary
04/19/2006, 03:29 PM
This is not an easy problem to solve with a 20 gallon tank. As the tank matures the brown algae will probably subside, fingers crossed. But with the small tank, the crushed coral substate and the tap water I predict you'll always battle nitrates and phosphates.

captpete
04/19/2006, 03:52 PM
How come with a bigger tank you don't run into the problem of Phosphates? If they come in the tap water and you run lights, I'd think you'd have algae problems no matter what size tank you have. No? Unless, they don't have time to build up into a significant amount to be a problem between water changes. I've seen some 20 gal tank pictures that look fantastic with no algae so there are guys that have smaller tank setups. I would have gone with a really large tank as I have some sitting around from when I was breeding FW Angelfish in large qauntities, but I wanted to test myself with Marine life before going to all the expense.

CarmieJo
04/19/2006, 04:26 PM
What are your parameters, especially NO3 & PO4? My guess is that your tap water is contributing to PO4 buildup.

:fish1:

leveldrummer
04/19/2006, 05:01 PM
ditch the power filter and get a skimmer, that will help remove the nitrates, and when you see the 20 pics, with clear water, chances are they are using ro/di water. thats pure water. you should look for some at a local fish store, its usually sold pretty cheap, and they usually mix too, it would help alot too.

MCary
04/19/2006, 05:54 PM
The small size of the tank means that everything must be miticulous. Uneaten fish food for instance will produce the same amount of phosphate whether in a 20 or a 200, but in the 20 it has 10x the concentration due to the dilution factor. Therefore it is that much more important not to overfeed and to siphon out the uneaten food in a 20 right away. Everything is magnified in a smaller tank.

nm354
04/19/2006, 06:08 PM
With the tank being so new i would guess that its probably diatoms that you are dealing with. It will go away in time but using tap water and having crushed coral substrate you are going to be constantly dealing with problems. I would strongly suggest switching to a sand substrate and using nothing but RO/DI water in your tank.
What kind of skimmer are you using?
What do you have as far as water flow?
Using a good HOB skimmer like a Coralife Super Skimmer or a Aqua C Remora will help out a good bit.

jesseakruger
04/19/2006, 06:26 PM
I think you can cut down on all the "bad" algae that you will get by feeding much less. I have a 75 with 14 various size eating fish and I only feed every 3rd day. also if you feed less your fish will be more healthy.