brown algae: good or bad?

thefatman · 03-12-2003, 01:58 AM

hello folks.. gotta question regarding brown algae. my tank is breaking out with it. a lot of it. i am assuming it's brown algae because of the way it's growing. this is odd. i've never seen it before. i've had algae breakouts in my FW tanks, but they were all green varities, growing on the glass, and rocks etc.. but this stuff is brown, resembling rust. it's not on the glass, but rather on the docorations. i have some clam shells and a dead sponge and dead corals, it's growing on those.

i've read a few articles in the past that mentioned that some types of algae are good for SW tanks. i don't mind the way this stuff looks, because it blends rather well with the stuff it's growing on, but i'm concerned whether it will be bad for the tank.

since i returned the fish, the only thing in the tank right now, is the porceline crab and the emerald crab, all my levels are back to normal, and the crabs seem to be ok, but i'm still planning to let it all stabilize for at least another two weeks before reintroducing fish, but now i'm concerned about this brown "rust" algae.

any suggestions/ideas? thanks!

i can post pictures when i get back from the office, if needed.

Flatfish · 03-12-2003, 10:11 AM

Quote:

since i returned the fish

Sounds like you're setting up a new system or making major modifications?

Brown algae is a normal part of the cycling process. It's a good sign that you're on the tail end. It still may be a bit early to start adding stock. Eventually the brown algae will deplete the nutrients it requires and will be replaced with slower growing algaes (algas, alga whatever).

Good luck!
Joe

Alice · 03-12-2003, 10:47 AM

Sounds as though your tank is having a diatom bloom, and as Joe said, it's a normal part of the process. Diatoms feed on silicates; if you are using tap water for top off or for salt mix, your diatoms may not ever really go away, however. Tap water is often high in silicates.

Alice

bigjohn · 03-12-2003, 11:00 AM

I second Alice's comments. My 135 has been up and running for about 4 years. For the first 3 years I struggled with algae and cyanobacteria outbreaks. My tapwater had silicates and phosphates in it that fueled algae growth. About 1 year ago I started using RO/DI for topoff and water changes, and those problems went away.

However, I added about 15 lbs. of Playsand to my substrate to see if it was suitable. Apparently, this has too much silicate in it because I have brown diatoms growing on my substrate.

Hopefully, with enough water changes and time this problem will go away.

thefatman · 03-12-2003, 11:44 AM

cool, thanks for the replys! yes it's a new tank, been up for about 3 weeks now i'd say. and yes i added livestock too fast. 3 crabs and 3 fish. but i returned them last week, (the fish) because my levels (amm. & nitrite) were climbing.

all seems well now and i saw the diatoms growing on everything, so i got concerned (as this will be my 1st SW tank, though i have 7 FW).

I do use tap water for my top offs and my salt mix, but it is filtered through carbon, although i'm sure that isn't removing any silicates that may be in the water. It's just a homade water "purifier" that i made a few years ago. using a gravel "vac" tube, and it has a spnge at one end, then it's packed full of activated carbon, and "ammo chips" then another sponge at the other end. i jsut run the water through this and into 5 gallon buckets, that i then use for all my top offs and water changes in my tanks.

i also do have sand in the bottom of this sw tank, that's the only substrate, is about a 2 inch thick layer of sand.

from your replies, it sems as though this isn't bad for the tank, and i would assume, that it will possibly even serve as food for some of the livestock, that are forages, algae eaters etc...

good to hear this is a sign i'm at the tail end of the cycle! i'm excited to get some activity back in there!

thanks again!