brown algae..?

[eceon]

hi everyone. let me get right to it...

i am in the second week of cycling my 150gal tank using 15lbs of live rock, crushed fine coral sand, 10 damsels and bio-spira. recently, almost overnight, i noticed an outbreak of brown all throughout the tank. it covered the 75% of the sands top layer, much of the live rock, some of my decorative pieces and a bit on my prefilter box.

well being the n00b that i am here, i didnt know what to think and called the guy at the local aquarium store. he told me it was probably just brown algae and that it was a sign that my tank was cycling too fast. he continued to tell me not to worry about it and that it will all subside as the cycling continues. he told me i could clean it out if i wanted, but it wasn't necessary and that a "cleaning crew" could handle that job.

i guess my questions for you are:
-does this sound like brown algae to you and what do YOU suggest i do?
-should i worry about the live rock being covered in this? i wouldnt know how to approach cleaning that.
-is my tank cycling normally form what you can tell? i havent noticed much changes in my levels at all since i started.

please help me sort this out! i will post more info if needed. thanks ppl.

e

[Sregnar35]

My tank went through the same thing. Brown algae grows in poor quality water, which is what you have while cycling. Your tank will outgrow the brown algae, and the cleaning crew(snails, crabs, shrimp, stars) will keep it in check.

[OrionGirl]

It's most likely diatoms--also called brown algae. It really is more about free silica in the water than anything to do with the cycling process. You can manually clean it up, or it will eventually wear out the nutrients and go away. To remove it, a baster to blow it off the rocks and suck it up is useful. Otherwise, an algae pad or cleaning magnet will work.

Because you used the Bio-Spira, you really should not see ammonia and nitrite spikes. The live rock is also contributing to the biological filtering, so your tank should be pretty stable.

[eceon]

awesome. i love these forums for its limitless source of info and great users. thanks once again.

here's another thing i forgot to mention earlier. well, ive noticed a red/pink stain on the inside of my return tube close to where it connects on the pump. is this dye from one of the tank decorations i have (color closely resembles) or is this red algae? either way, is this a bad sign and can this endanger the life in my tank?

also, since i am already off topic, ive noticed that my return is too strong and that it causes my sand to displace and reveal the glass beneath. i also think this is the reason why many of my damsels are avoing that side of the tank. is there something i can do here? can i turn the pressure down on the return somehow?

e

[OrionGirl]

For the red stuff--touch it. If it's slimy and easily comes off, it may be red cyano. If it's hard, could be coralline. Coralline algae will grow on everything--and looks different in it's early stages that it will end up.

For the return: You can install a valve to the return line and restrict the flow. You can use larger tubing. If there's enough room, put a small rock underneath the pipe, so it deflects the water from the sand. Or, you can drill a bunch of holes into the return line (below the water level!) so the same amount of water goes through but spreads out over a larger area. I'd probably go with one of the last two options--slowing the water flow through a system is something I just can't make myself do.

[Raki]

I also have a new tank ,125 gallons started Jan 1st. It is also growing some very hot pinkish algae. My very wounderfull support staff at my local aquarium store informed me that it is because the water here in Philly has alot of phophates in it and when I've gone through a few water changes with the water I get from them now, the red will go away . In the mean time it is not harmfull to any of the fish or live rock I have in the tank . And to boot the snails seem to like it.