Brown algae taking over tank (not diatoms)

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RJDENNIS

New member
I've been battling an ongoing algae problem for about a month now. This algae is a brown slimy type. I cant seem to get my hands around it to wipe it out. I have to wipe the glass every few hours, this stuff is taking over my sand bed and starting to grow on my live rocks. I tuned my lights off for 5 days and it seemed to knock it down alot but once the lights came back on it was back in full force.

I did a 30 gallon water change last weekend and will be doing another one this coming weekend.

My tank is a 75 gallon with a sump, I run an Octopus Super Saver skimmer have 2 Koralia powerheads and my lighting are 2 Vega Led's. the tank has been up for over 2 years and I have not had any alga issues until this problem started.

Today I tested my water and everything came out fine. I even tested for phosphates with my new Hanna Phosphate Checker that I got in the mail today and it showed 0 on the readout.

I also got a dual chamber reactor in the mail today so I can start running GFO and Carbon. Any one know what else I can do to get this crap under control and eliminated.

I feel like Im fighting a losing battle.
 
lunacris

lunacris

Active member
def try and post a picture , is it stringy and have bubbles in it ? po4 will read low since they are being consumed by algae most likely
 
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RJDENNIS

New member
Yes it is stringy and has bubbles. I was thinking it may be Dyno from what I've read. I will see if I can post up some pictures tomorrow, I turned my lights of because I was disgusted with the way it looks.
 
Siebo

Siebo

Premium member
I think I am battling this in my 14g cube. I am getting ready to try some chemiclean.
 
fwadiver

fwadiver

New member
blackout the tank and waterchange for dyno, it will outcompete most other things, including skimmer and gfo. Blackout for 3-4 days and skim wet and do 20-30% water changes each day if you can. Also dr tims probiotic stuff (refresh i think) helps minimize it during this process.
 
S

sullyman

Member
Just add a little vodka to the tank each day and it will go away, start out with a few mls each morning, increasing the dose every few days and you'll see the brown junk(I agree with Smitty probably Dinos) go away. After a few weeks it should be gone-gone, it may take a little longer depending on how bad it is. After it's gone you'll probably need to continue the vodka dosing but at a lower level, unless or until you figure out what's feeding it. It could be older light bulbs, water params, feeding or flow. Blow out the live rock before every water change and it will go faster.
I have a 210g fowlr with 20 some fish, large angels and tangs and I dose 25mls every morning, the tank is pristine now and I'll start lowering the dose a little at a time but with that many fish at the dinner table I won't be able to stop completely. It's much safer than Chemiclean and the lights out meathod is very hit or miss. This is just my opinion but I've been in the hobby over 30 years.
Good luck whatever you decide to try.
The vodka will make your skimmer work better too.
 
anarchy

anarchy

Active member
I've been doing vinegar for the past couple weeks and cleaning rocks 2-3 times a week and the next day it's right back.
27

in the 30 I have a foxface, lawnmower blenny, and diamond goby so they've been helping but still this

Don't mind the orange glare from my phone case
 
S

sullyman

Member
I've never dosed vinegar but It should work like Vodka. How much are you dosing? That's the same junk I just got rid of, you may need to use a higher dose, or try vodka, I used close to 750 mls before it was gone.
 
Siebo

Siebo

Premium member
Siebo said:
I think I am battling this in my 14g cube. I am getting ready to try some chemiclean.
Click to expand...
So I dosed the cube with chemiclean on Tuesday around 5pm and there is not a trace of the green/ bubbly algae left in the tank/ sand bed today!
 
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