what do do with brown build up

mphelps

mphelps

New Member
I have a 55 gallon s/w tank. I have fish only at this point. (damsels)
I have a brown build up on the substrate is this a form of algae.
Also I have a fake coral in there with a fake plant. Brown stuff on it too.
I'm currently not working so money is an issue at this point. In a few weeks
i am getting my live rock.
Haven't done a water change yet. Have had the tank up and running for about 3 1/2 weeks.
My numbers are all good except nitrates are still high.
How do I get the brown stuff out. Do I vaccuum or siphon it? What type of vaccuum. :help:
As you can tell I am very new to this hobby don't know all the jargon yet.
Pls help
 
cannonman

cannonman

Member
Slow down, you're probably not done with the cycle yet! Brown stuff, probably diatoms- and they are normal, they will go away on there own with time. Make sure you cure your live rock when you get it before you put it in your tank or it will cause an ammonia spike which could kill your damsels (if you current cycle doesn't)
 
symon

symon

Member
Originally Posted by mphelps
I have a 55 gallon s/w tank. I have fish only at this point. (damsels)
I have a brown build up on the substrate is this a form of algae. This is probably just a diatom alge bloom, should clear on it's own!
Also I have a fake coral in there with a fake plant. Brown stuff on it too. Take it out and rinse it off!
I'm currently not working so money is an issue at this point. In a few weeks
i am getting my live rock.
Haven't done a water change yet. Have had the tank up and running for about 3 1/2 weeks. Your tank as probably not cycled yet!
My numbers are all good except nitrates are still high. You need to do the water change to help to bring down the Nitrates, 20%
How do I get the brown stuff out. Do I vaccuum or siphon it? What type of vaccuum. :help: Go to the fish section at Walmart they have many gravel siphons
As you can tell I am very new to this hobby don't know all the jargon yet.
Pls help
A diatom bloom is very normal for only being 3.5 weeks old, I hope your fish survive the changing envornment, As you do your water change, vacuum out the brown alge! BTW once you add your LR you will most likely cause another CYCLE , watch for the Amonia spike, it can kill your fish!
Good Luck to you and your Fishies! :happyfish
 
cannonman

cannonman

Member
Check the water perameters... what kind of substrate do you have, could be a silicate problem??? Could always get some snails to... and more flow to the effected areas should clear it up.
 
tree

tree

Member
Originally Posted by ahmoser
What do you do with diatom blooms at 6 months?????????
You get a Fighting Conch from SWF, they love it

Seriously if you are still having diatom blooms then your RO/DI filter(s) probably needs to be changed. If you don't have your own RO/DI unit, you might try a different water supplier.
 
ahmoser

ahmoser

Member
My phosphate is at .5, could that be why? I just bought a phosphate remover and hope it works. It also removes silicates, so I hope this will end it. I use ro from my lfs.....
 
cowfishrule

cowfishrule

Active Member
my tank is over 2 years old, and i have a massive diatom problem that has never gone away.
i have found the source finally and im going to start to correct it.
 
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