Brown stuff growing on gravel

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abnscout82

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Feb 20, 2005
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a couple have said that your Ottocinclus should take care of this, maybe your tank is too big for just one???
 

Boohoo

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Feb 22, 2005
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Bridgewater,Nova Scotia
About a moth ago my 10g was over run with brown algea(diatoms) I put 3 otos in there for about 2-3 weeks and they ate like there was no tomorrow. I didn't even supplement them with algea wafers cause they were always chowing down. I have since moved the three to my 55g and purchased just one for the 10g.
 

abnscout82

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Feb 20, 2005
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I just got one, cute little guys. He is looking at his new home now (still in the bag).
 

mooman

Scratch my belly Human!
Mar 8, 2005
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Another trick is to totaly "black out" the tank with cardboard for about three days. The algea will die, but the plants can handle many many days without light. Adding more plants to he tank will reduce the amount of nutrients available to the algea (plants are better at taking nutrients out of the water than algea)

Otos are great fish. They work twice as hard as my pleco, and are 1/4 the size. You really can't beat them.
 

abnscout82

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Feb 20, 2005
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Well, a little late to acclimate it slowly, was out of the bag in about 30 minutes. that is after my gourami decided to venture into the cut i put in the bag, he did not like it so he left.

Otos are great fish. They work twice as hard as my pleco, and are 1/4 the size. You really can't beat them.[/QUOTE]

Darn right i cannot beat it, too little and too fast.

Little pig went straight to eating. Glad they stay small or I would need a small lake the way he is eating...
 

knashash

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Oct 28, 2004
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Hes already got 2 Sword plants in a 10 gallon.......if your swords grow anything like mine do....you have no room for anymore plants and having 2 will get crowded very quickly.
 

abnscout82

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Feb 20, 2005
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knashash said:
Hes already got 2 Sword plants in a 10 gallon.......if your swords grow anything like mine do....you have no room for anymore plants and having 2 will get crowded very quickly.
Yeah they are growing well.... Gues there will some pruning going on...
 

ShmooBeast

Poor College Student
Mar 5, 2005
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Boise, ID
Ya, just brown algae (a.k.a. "diatoms"...lol, makes it sound much spookier, I like that).
Ottos work wonders, as you've been told. They don't take up much space, don't create much of a bioload, and love to eat algae.

Just be glad it wasn't green algae. Now that's a bother!
 
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