brown algea ?

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R

rob1984

Jack Dempsey
MFK Member
May 9, 2012
1,418
1
38
ontario canada
so i have my 130g tank, and have some fake plants and rocks in there.... as well as white pool filter sand for substrate....i noticed that the plant had some brown stuff on the leaves didnt think much of it as figured maybe the light was burning it as i have a 48" t5ho dual bulb fixture (white bulb and a blue bulb)

i was told by a guy the brown algea is normal on newer setups and it eventually turns into green algea...is this true ? and is there a way to control it without a pleco ? as i have put a pleco in form my 75g and there would be green strings of poop everywhere looked horriable especially with white sand, so i took him out .....i have a white pvc pipe i there that has my white sand siliconed to it for a cave and the sand is all brown and the tops and side of my rocks are brown as well as spots on my plants... even a few spots on my substrate is coloured here and there...

what is it, how long will it last and how can i control or get rid of it ?
 
I started getting brown algae in my hospital tank that I had to set up in a hurry. It was coming from the light, I had accidentally grabbed a hood from my old bearded dragon setup that had a high UV rating. Possibly the light you have. Hope this helps.


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Brown algae is caused by inadequate lighting, green is caused by too much. It took me some time to find the "soft spot" for my 55 that I was having trouble with. What K rating are you running? I'm assuming you mean the light is on from 2pm - 9:15 pm? That sounds fairly reasonable, maybe add another hour of run time, and see if that makes any difference of the next few days. I'm not the biggest fan of the ol' Plecos. I had a Sailfin that didn't do anything besides hide, and put a massive strain on my bio-load. Run a water test to see what your levels look like. That can tell you a lot. Algae feeds off excess nutrients, silicates and nitrates to be specific. Before you go and spend money on a UV sterilizer I would recommend adding a bit more of lighting time, with more frequent water changes, and a cut back on the food. After a few days you should be able to tell if it's making a difference. Once you basically starve it, and over expose it you can pick up a more regulated maintenance schedule. I hope this helps bud.
 
Yes light on from 2pm to 915pm ... And the k rating I haven't got a a clue got the lights and fixtures used from a guy but there 54watts each I beileve...I'm doing 50% water changes twice a week at this time now... Typically I do 40ish% once a week ...and my levels seems to be ok mind ya all I have is ammonia, nitirite, ph test kits... And the plecos well they just seem to make a bigger mess then they clean up in my tank especially with white sand
 
Ok well what's the best way to get rid of it ? Driving me crazy lol rocks look grosse and getting a few spots here and there on my glass
 
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