# Help Brown Algae Ugh



## tcald429 (Dec 17, 2012)

I need some help fighting a brown algae problem that I've had in a tank that's been setup about a year. I've researched and heard numerous opinions. I've heard that it was most common in new tanks, and I believe my tank is passed that stage. I also read that increasing my lighting could help promote green algae to take over the brown. I have since replaced my lighting with a Beamswork quad double bright 48" with 10000K white LED and Actinic Blue 460nm LED. I currently have the lights on a 2 hour blue, 8 hour white and blue, 2 hour blue schedule, and have found that the brown algae has gotten worse with the increased light. Can someone please point me in a direction to get rid of the brown and possibly promote green algae growth?

Thanks!


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## coralbandit (Jul 29, 2012)

Any plants in tank?I would try some time without the actinics as they may not be helping?


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## tcald429 (Dec 17, 2012)

coralbandit said:


> Any plants in tank?I would try some time without the actinics as they may not be helping?


No plants as of now, this is the one I recently put rocks in and will be converting over to 75g mbuna soon. I hear plants don't do well with them. I will try turning off the actinics for awhile and see how this helps.


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## coralbandit (Jul 29, 2012)

Ya the plants won't do well with mbunas,but they would love to have to eat!
Do you have a phosphate test kit.Brown is often diatoms that like you said are common and go away on there own,but if they are still holding after a year,I would think phosphates and silicates.They have silicate test kits ,but they are not that common.Possibly a product such as phosban(removes phosphates&silicates) would help.


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## Gizmo (Dec 6, 2010)

I've had diatoms from excess light and new tank syndrome, and also green dust algae (looks brown) caused by excess phosphates in the absence of nitrates. Both have been mitigated with the addition of nitrate (I have live plants), and reduced photoperiod.

Not sure which yours is, and I doubt you want to dose nitrates in an unplanted tank. I would suggest getting a phosphate testing kit, as mentioned above (Petmountain.com sells a nice easy to use API liquid test kit for ~$8), and test both your tank and your tap water.

Excess phosphates can occur in areas with large amounts of livestock or agriculture that might contaminate the public water supply. Looking up your public utility online can usually yield water parameter pamphlets from samples taken at the treatment facility. Excess phosphates can be caused by old carbon in your filter. Do you use carbon in the filter? If so, what is your changing schedule?


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## tcald429 (Dec 17, 2012)

Gizmo said:


> I've had diatoms from excess light and new tank syndrome, and also green dust algae (looks brown) caused by excess phosphates in the absence of nitrates. Both have been mitigated with the addition of nitrate (I have live plants), and reduced photoperiod.
> 
> Not sure which yours is, and I doubt you want to dose nitrates in an unplanted tank. I would suggest getting a phosphate testing kit, as mentioned above (Petmountain.com sells a nice easy to use API liquid test kit for ~$8), and test both your tank and your tap water.
> 
> Excess phosphates can occur in areas with large amounts of livestock or agriculture that might contaminate the public water supply. Looking up your public utility online can usually yield water parameter pamphlets from samples taken at the treatment facility. Excess phosphates can be caused by old carbon in your filter. Do you use carbon in the filter? If so, what is your changing schedule?


Now that I think about it, back in November I left for vacation and had an accident while I was away. I came home to a aquaclear filter with a busted bag of carbon and Carbon all over the inside of my tank. I no longer use carbon in my filters but had a hard time getting it all out of the tank, I'm sure there is a decent amount still mixed in my substrate...could this be part of the problem? I will invest in a phosphate test kit and start there.


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## MriGuy85 (Aug 29, 2013)

Wow, I was reading this because some of my plastic plants are getting brown algae on them too. Then I realized that I still have a bag of carbon in my canister from over a month ago....maybe this is the cause


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## coralbandit (Jul 29, 2012)

Another source of phosphates for most of us is the food we feed our fish!Not only dry(flake or pellet),but even frozen foods will have phosphates as a preservative!The amount in the food may not be alot,but add it up over tiime and how much we feed and it is easy to see how they can become a problem.I would still test your source as it can't be ruled out until.For frozen foods many reefers, where phosphates cause much more trouble(limits coral growth),actual defrost there food and rinse it in a seperate container.I am unaware of what to do for dry foods besides run phosban or similiar product just to be safe and maintain low levels.Wait to you get your test kit and see how low phosphate is detectable,for reefs I think anything over .02 can cause trouble,but I'm not certain of real numbers.I know it is an invisable enemy for many.


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## Gizmo (Dec 6, 2010)

Activated Carbon in the Aquarium
Phosphates in the Aquarium


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## jrman83 (Jul 9, 2010)

If people can dose phosphates in their aquariums to levels as high as 10ppm and not see any brown algae, then how do phosphate levels of 2-3 cause algae overgrowth - as the article states? The tanks I get brown algae in are the ones I DO NOT dose with any type of fert and are at near 0ppm. The article is bogus.

Don't believe that brown algae is all phosphates. Get some phos-guard or whatever other natural way to filter it out and I bet it still will occur - which would throw this whole theory about nutrient levels vs algae growth. 

Green algae will not takeover the brown. They are two separate types of algae and they do not prey on each other.


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## Gizmo (Dec 6, 2010)

As stated above, it could be caused by excess phosphates, but it could also be diatoms from excess silicates, caused by new tanks with unwashed substrate, especially sand.

Ben - it's not the excess phosphates that is always the cause, but rather an imbalance. For example, green dust algae is caused by excess phosphates in the absence of nitrates. So if our friend is rocking 10ppm phosphates and 10ppm nitrates or lower, then I believe that's grounds for a GDA outbreak. In your case, you probably have the ratio down and can dose 10ppm phosphates when, say, you're rocking 40-80ppm nitrates. In that case, your plants can easily out-compete algae for the nutrients cause they're getting the right balance.

Feel free to correct me if I'm wrong.


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## jrman83 (Jul 9, 2010)

I agree that it is an imbalance, but don't believe that if x is this, then y must be that as you are stating. The article you posted doesn't refer to any other nutrient causing algae other than phosphates and it doesn't even "possibly" state that there could be an imbalance.

So in a planted tank if you ridded the tank of phosphates you would also negatively impact the health of the plants if not rid them also.

Why is it that people seem to believe that algae and plants compete for nutrients? If I dose using the estimated index dosing where the theory is that nutrients are dosed in excess to the point that plants are denied nothing it needs and I have no algae, does that mean my plants used up all the nutrients that the algae had nothing to use? Do you really think algae needs much to be able to thrive and grow that even if you didn't use EI on a planted tank with an abundance of nutrients? In a planted tank where the algae is doing well and the plants aren't does it mean that the algae beat the plants to the nutrients? I believe that theory is all wrong. Algae are simple organisms that require very little to survive. How is it competing with anything?


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## jrman83 (Jul 9, 2010)

Here you go Guy, I know you like this forum. If you read the postings of Tom Barr and believe what he says on most things, just skip to post #23 and get his take on plants competing with algae for nutrients:
How can plants outcompete algae for nutrients? this makes no sense to me.


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## Gizmo (Dec 6, 2010)

Thanks Ben! I stand corrected. No out-competing algae, just managing your tank parameters the right way.


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## MriGuy85 (Aug 29, 2013)

So I want to restart this thread because my brown algae isn't going away. I have no real plants, but I do have sand. I washed it pretty thoroughly and it has been in the tank for several months. Did we conclude that testing for silicates and phosphates was the way to go here? Phosban sounds like a solution to high phosphates....but what if it's silicates?


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## vreugy (May 1, 2013)

I would be interested in the answer also.

have a blessed day


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## jrman83 (Jul 9, 2010)

Brown algae can take many months to go away. Once the tank is mature it will usually start to fade. All of my tanks have taken well over a year for it to pretty much stop. It just depends on your water, setup, etc. It will not do very well though if you cut down your light time.


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## MriGuy85 (Aug 29, 2013)

It's an eye sore and I would like not to wait several months more for it to just go away. What else have you got?


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## dalfed (Apr 8, 2012)

Well I will play along, my well water has a very high phosphate level. In my planted tanks I have no brown algae issues but in my mbuna and two vic tanks brown algae is horrific. I use a purigen filled canister filter that I move between the three tanks and that has all but cleared up MY brown algae problem, until I get lazy and don't move it around then its back within a couple of weeks.


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## coralbandit (Jul 29, 2012)

I believe Phosban also removes silicates.
I also think Boyds Chemi pure is listed as a phos/silicate remover.


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## jrman83 (Jul 9, 2010)

For planted tanks personally I wouldn't recommend any products except maybe purigen. Brown algae is not a by-product of too high of phosphates in your water, but removal of all phosphates can have a negative effect on it, but it will also have the same affect on your plants if it is a planted tank.

For any tank, planted or not, the number one controller of algae is control of your light. Back it off enough to kill it and then slowly add more light over a period of weeks, not days, and find the point where it returns. Once there, back down to your previous setting. If you don't already, get a timer for your light. This method will work for ANY type of algae.


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## coralbandit (Jul 29, 2012)

MriGuy85 said:


> So I want to restart this thread because my brown algae isn't going away. I have no real plants, but I do have sand. I washed it pretty thoroughly and it has been in the tank for several months. Did we conclude that testing for silicates and phosphates was the way to go here? Phosban sounds like a solution to high phosphates....but what if it's silicates?


The phosban/phos gaurd should work or help.since you have no real plants it is not as important,BUT jr is right ,and purigen is a GREAT product that may also solve the problem,along with the lights.Algae will not grow without light,so it really is the base of most if not all algae problems(ask me how I know?)


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## MriGuy85 (Aug 29, 2013)

Well it's now been several months and the brown algae is not going away. I have cut my lights to 4 hours since the last time I posted in this thread and can see no other solution than to use purigen. Probably will order some pretty soon because this is just a terrible look for a tank I love to look at so much.


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