Brown Algae in my new 20 gallon long???

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
I'm still wrestling with the differance between diatoms and brown algae. I like running my lights. But the discussion here is, is my tank cycled ? Until your tank is cycled you can't possibly deal with the myriad of details that come next. if someone told you this was easy . THEY LIED.
 
I'm still dealing with "Brown Algae", my tank is a year old. It's not likely diatoms ( a syndrome of new tanks) so it's likely brown algae. How do I deal with this ? I keep the Nitrates below 15 PPM at all times. I do run the lights 12 hours a day. Short of shutting the lights off how do you solve this ?
 
Well the Rosy Reds really are just here to help cycle the tank... I started with 7 of them but the Crawdad picked them off one by one until I was left with only 2. Now all he does is hide in his little cave and come out to eat the left over food pellets when I turn the light off. Either way, I know I have a long way to go before the tank is cycled. I wish it would go faster though because I'd really like to stock this tank with some small natives but I'm not about to do that until I have my Ammonia and Nitrite levels at 0 for a good week or so.

As for water changes I was told not to do very many during the cycling stage. The Rosy Reds are pretty hardy and should be able to survive the elevated levels of Ammonia and Nitrite. I did my last water change exactly a week ago and the only reading that has changed since then is the Nitrite level has increased greatly. The Ammonia level hasn't dropped yet but I'm expecting it to slowly start to drop towards 0 and then hopefully the Nitrates will increase. Once I see a Nitrate level above 40 ppm I will do another 50% WC and hopefully the tank will be close to being fully cycled. If the Rosy Reds survive I might actually keep them around. As for the Crawdad he may become bait for a early spring fishing trip I'm planning. I don't want him to harm my sunfish when I get them...

And yes, I agree with you that this is not easy at all. I will keep an eye on the Brown Stuff (Diatoms, Algae or whatever it is) and clean it off when I do my next water change. Thanks for the help.
 
I understand you are not fishless cycling but a a look at this chart will tell you where you're at http://malawicichlids.com/mw01017.htm. Whomever told you not to change the water during the cycle is sadly mistaken(someone feel free to school me). If you fishless cycle this is true. If you cycle with fish, not changing the water amounts to torture. The fish don't know where you're at in the cycle, they only know they're not happy.
 
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