Brown Algae - Tank Maturity?

[sly2kusa]

I was dealing with a "Brown Algae" bloom about a month ago, and still have some smudge-like marks on the sides of the tank that my Algae Eater cleans up on a regular basis.

The person down at my local pet store said that this actually isn't Algae, but another kind of living organism, and he also stated that it's a sign of the tank beginning to mature.

My question is - should I let the Algae Eater take care of it? I scrubbed off the first sign of it back in June, but am not sure if I should let the Pelcos do his thing or not.

Any thoughts on this would be appreciated.

[sumthin fishy]

Im suprised you are trusting the guy at your LFS after reading what he told you in your other post. ;)
I believe it is of a diatomic makeup(single celled) but is still considered a type of algae. Someone correct me there if I am wrong. I tend to leave algae in my tanks, as it gives a natural look. The LFS guy is right that as your tank becomes cycled, algae will present itself. It will feed off of your nitrates once they become available. Keeping up with your waterchanges will deprive the algae of food, keeping it to a minimum. If you want a "clean" looking tank, you cn scrape it all off and keep your nitrates as low as possible. Or if it doesnt bother you, and the plec eats it, leave it. Its really a personal preference, and as long as it is controlled wont hurt anything. If you do decide to keep it out of the tank, make sure you are suplamenting the plecos diet with algae tablets and/or blanched veggies. But then again, Im a democrat, so you might not want to take my advice :D (that was said to be a joke, lighten the mood. I've got plenty of friends that are pubs, greens, commies, etc. no one needs to flame anyone for my remark)

[sly2kusa]

Im suprised you are trusting the guy at your LFS after reading what he told you in your other post. ;)
I believe it is of a diatomic makeup(single celled) but is still considered a type of algae. Someone correct me there if I am wrong. I tend to leave algae in my tanks, as it gives a natural look. The LFS guy is right that as your tank becomes cycled, algae will present itself. It will feed off of your nitrates once they become available. Keeping up with your waterchanges will deprive the algae of food, keeping it to a minimum. If you want a "clean" looking tank, you cn scrape it all off and keep your nitrates as low as possible. Or if it doesnt bother you, and the plec eats it, leave it. Its really a personal preference, and as long as it is controlled wont hurt anything. If you do decide to keep it out of the tank, make sure you are suplamenting the plecos diet with algae tablets and/or blanched veggies. But then again, Im a democrat, so you might not want to take my advice :D (that was said to be a joke, lighten the mood. I've got plenty of friends that are pubs, greens, commies, etc. no one needs to flame anyone for my remark)

Thank you for that advice - donkeyboy! :eek: Just kidding. I appreciate it, and do not have a problem with anyones political beliefs (I just used that as a slam against a couple of whiney people in another thread who were crying about what I was doing - waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa! Go home to mommie and cry to her - I don't wanna hear it!).

I trusted the guy at the store much in the same way I trust you guys out here - can't fault me for that, but my plan is to do weekly 5 to 10g water changes every week. I had read that my grumpy plec likes peas and spinach, but have not ventured to put anything like that in the tank yet.

Thank you for the advice!

[plah831]

yes, brown algae (at least the coating kind you find most in aquaria) is a diatom, which is a primitive single-celled algae, not a plant. It comes off easily when scraped, but algae-eating fish, especially rasping catfishes like oto's and pleco's, can eat it very easily. My oto's love the stuff so much that whenever I push the gravel away from the wall, during water changes, they rush right in to the buffet!

it's good that you take everything we say with a grain of salt. you should never rely on one source of information, whether it's the guy at the store, or a single person on AC.

and i forgive you for being a Republican, right-wing Bible-thumper. just kidding :Angel:

i'm just glad you still have enough faith in this site to continue asking for advice.

[sly2kusa]

yes, brown algae (at least the coating kind you find most in aquaria) is a diatom, which is a primitive single-celled algae, not a plant. It comes off easily when scraped, but algae-eating fish, especially rasping catfishes like oto's and pleco's, can eat it very easily. My oto's love the stuff so much that whenever I push the gravel away from the wall, during water changes, they rush right in to the buffet!

it's good that you take everything we say with a grain of salt. you should never rely on one source of information, whether it's the guy at the store, or a single person on AC.

and i forgive you for being a Republican, right-wing Bible-thumper. just kidding :Angel:

i'm just glad you still have enough faith in this site to continue asking for advice.

Oh well thank you. And I wouldn't want you to be anybody other than the Tofu eatin', tree huggin', hippie chick / Donkeygurl you are. :fairy:

hehehehe - thanks for answering me seriously, and I do appreciate it.

Peace

[plah831]

you're welcome. i AM a vegetarian, so "tofu-eatin" is appropriate and not at all insulting :)

I thought of something else about brown algae. It DOES have a little to do with tank maturity. It tends to be worst a couple months after a new tank is set up. I think I read that the silica (from the tank glass and new gravel, I believe) feeds it. After the excess silica gets removed (either through the algae using it up, or water changes), it tends to go away.

peace :cool2:

[sly2kusa]

you're welcome. i AM a vegetarian, so "tofu-eatin" is appropriate and not at all insulting :)

I thought of something else about brown algae. It DOES have a little to do with tank maturity. It tends to be worst a couple months after a new tank is set up. I think I read that the silica (from the tank glass and new gravel, I believe) feeds it. After the excess silica gets removed (either through the algae using it up, or water changes), it tends to go away.

peace :cool2:


Will my grumpy ol' Plecos be ok to feed on it for a while? I'd rather have him eat the natural stuff in my tank rather than add other stuff, but whatever you all think is the best course of action is the one I will take. I know it's been said already to give him Blanched Veggies if there isn't anything else, but is he going to be ok nutrient-wise with this brownish-orange stuff for a while?

P.S. The Muskies don't mess with him at all.