Perfect tank untill today... Brown stuff.

[Smoke Reefer]

Sup y'all. My tank just finish cycling about a week and a few days ago. It has been looking great and I have two fish. I recently went and bought a scarlet hermit crab to eat the leftover food my fish were missing. Walking by my tank just now, I noticed some sort of algea or whatnot on my rocks. I had first noticed it when I got my crab and wherever he walked the sand would turn brown. Does anybody know what this stuff is? My saltwater experience has been a breeze so I am just waiting for something horible to happen one day. Is this stuff bad? Is it algea? Did I get it from my hermit crab or a price of live rock? Thanks a bunch.

 

[MinnFish]

Quite normal for a green tank. It's a common brown algae. Did you do a large water change after cycling? Remember your tank is still maturing. So, it will go through a lot of strange change and behavior. Just be a good parent and it will grow to be something proud of.

 

[Smoke Reefer]

Great, thanks for the help and encouragement again MinnFish.

 

[Saltliquid]

It's most likely not an actual algae, most likely diatoms and are now classed as protists and that's most likely what you are seeing. Their swarm you are possibly seeing, that is actually their husks like a shell of very basic silicon in the millions, is usually brown to golden brown, depending on your lighting. They rely on nutrients as foods and if you remove the silica from your waters that they build the brown colouration that you can see, they are gone!! GFO-H will do it for you, as will phosphate sponge. Do not keep a marine aquarium, "œwith current knowledge" with out something like GFO-H or similar used correctly from day one and right through the life of your reef hobby.

 

[kurt_n]

Diatoms. New tanks just about always go through that stage, and they'll die off (normally) just about as quick as they appear.

 

[shesacharmer]

Diatom bloom is one of the first stages new tanks go through after cycling. It's ugly but not harmful.

 

[Smoke Reefer]

Thanks for the information guys. I will do some research on diatoms!

 

[CodeBlueMedic]

I had a similar occurrence in my brand new 30 gallon...It is slowly subsiding, plus my snails are eat the heck out of it, as well as my emerald crab.

 

[merle mitchell]

What do I do if they do not go away?
I've had my setup for 3 years now and no matter what I do, they are always there. Especially after any water change and I use RO/DI from two different distributors. I've tried the phosphate sponge and have torn down the tank for moves twice but have always taken the time to scrub everything.
Makes no difference. I even stopped feeding the fish daily and now they are fed once every two or three days. They don't suffer. But I do. What should I try or what am I missing? I read a little about GFO. Is that the cure?

 

[Saltliquid]

What do I do if they do not go away?
I've had my setup for 3 years now and no matter what I do, they are always there. Especially after any water change and I use RO/DI from two different distributors. I've tried the phosphate sponge and have torn down the tank for moves twice but have always taken the time to scrub everything.
Makes no difference. I even stopped feeding the fish daily and now they are fed once every two or three days. They don't suffer. But I do. What should I try or what am I missing? I read a little about GFO. Is that the cure?

Mate, apply products that take out silica, its in your substrate and in your water changes, take it out and diatoms will decrease, but they will never go away completely.

 

[Josh40996]

What do I do if they do not go away?
I've had my setup for 3 years now and no matter what I do, they are always there. Especially after any water change and I use RO/DI from two different distributors. I've tried the phosphate sponge and have torn down the tank for moves twice but have always taken the time to scrub everything.
Makes no difference. I even stopped feeding the fish daily and now they are fed once every two or three days. They don't suffer. But I do. What should I try or what am I missing? I read a little about GFO. Is that the cure?

To me that does not sound like Diatoms, more like Dinoflagellates. You may want to research into those and see if they match your pest. Dinoflagellates are the mother of all "algaes", but not unbeaten. GL :thumbsup: