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Orange/brown algea problem

PredatorPiqued

PredatorPiqued

Plecostomus
MFK Member
I bought a topfin 29 a couple months ago, put some decorations and black gravel in it, a fuelleborni on cichlid. Nothing out of the normal I don't think.
And after about a month I have the rapidly growing recurring algea problem... I clean the tank give it a good scrub brush off all the decorations, maybe even more then. %50 water change and this stuff comes back like wildfire, I do normal 10-12 hour light cycles everyday.
Can I treat this stuff while the fish is still in the tank. I've never dealt with a algea problem.
 
I get it bad on some of my tanks more so on those near windows and I have lights on for about 7 hours it can be bad on newly set up aquariums I can clean a tank and a week later it is back but it dose tend to be worst on newly set up tanks. If you get the horrible green slimy type that covers substrate glass and even plants chemiclean aquarium treatment will get rid of it without harming fish but it dose not seem to work on the brown algae but yes it is a pain, as your tank matures it should ease off a bit.
 
Sounds like it might be brown diatom algae. Usually happens in newer setups. I think its feeds off phosphates in your tap water. Usually your tank will outgrow it to some extent once it gets seasoned. If you want a quick fix buy a bushy nose pleco. I've heard rubbernose plecos are good at cleaning it as well but I've never had one. My bushy nose had my 100 gallon cleaned up within 48 hours all by himself. I have three of them in different tanks. Between them, and my tanks all being seasoned now, I no longer have diatom issues.
 
How big do those guys get?? It's only a 29 gallon and I do have a very aggressive OB fuelleborni in it. I'd hate to see it get tormented and killed
 
Bushy nose get about 4 inches or so. I had mine with my dovii in a 100 gallon. I'm sure you would be fine in a 29. In fact if anything I would recommend more than 29 gallons for bushynose. If it has hiding places it will only come out at night and put in a ton of work for you.
 
You could start by reducing the hours the lights are on. In fact if you don't have plants, you could reduce the photoperiod to only the few hours you spend in front of the tank, by using a timer. There is no need for 10-12 hours.
Also increasing frequency of water changes to reduce nitrate, depriving algae of the nutrients it often needs helps.
Most "Ancistrus" pleco's do stay in the 4 " range, and are fairly sedentary so one might work.
Do not get a common "regular" eco, they get way too large.
Below Ancistrus


With Ancistrus it is always a good idea to have some real sunken old in the tank, they graze on it, and it provides enzymes they need.
 
Yeah I'll have to grab one then a piece of wood for him. I'd love to have another fish anyways. I hope the OB isn't like a heat seeker towards him hes very particular about his space.... wont leave any flake left behind or on a decoration hes onto anything I do with that tank. Hes really smart lol
 
To back up what Duanes says, yes get the pleco, but that will likely be a bandaid on the problem, and new algae will continue to grow in after he eats it. So I would look to what's causing the algae, not only what can eat it.
12 hours is much too long of a light cycle, I usually do 6 hours, from 5pm (when I would get home from work) until 11pm. Sometimes even then I get good algae growth if there is some natural light, so I will restrict it or use a blue moonlight ramp-down period where the lights are much lower.
I'd also ask what kind of lighting is on the tank; they sell tons of cheap LEDs on amazon nowadays which are great, but often can be way overkill for just a freshwater fish-only tank. In that kind of setup I try to get an undersized fixture with as few LEDs as possible, still allowing me to see the fish, but limiting algae growth.
Nutrients can also be a problem, it sounds like tank is not too heavily stocked, but if the fulleborni is full sized he may be creating a good amount of nitrate in-between water changes which the algae feeds on. Excess feeding can also put lots of nutrients in the water which will boost algae.
It's most likely a combination of these factors causing the blooms, and eliminating the root of the bloom will be the best long-term fix for the problem.
 
Thank you guys for your time and knowledge!! I thought doing those light cycles was just like mocking the regular daytime night time light idea outside. I will get on this!!
 
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