Brown algae!

[rdang]

My tank is a month old 30L. Im starting to get brown algae on my sand. should i stir my sand? Is this going to die and make ditritus and nitrates. Should i get some hermit crabs, maybe they will eat this stuff. I have a rock in there and its starting to grow over the purple coraline.

 

[Melosu58]

Sounds like diatoms to me. Is it kind of powdery and blows off pretty easy. They feed on silicates that come from tap water. Are you using tap water?

 

[XxKnuckleheadxX]

your going through new tank syndrome.. it happends to all of us..it will eventually go away. you can use a baster or turn your powerheads in the area its building up..

 

[rdang]

what are diatomes and silicates.


i did begin with tap water, which i learned later is bad. i put the anti phosphate stuff in yesterday.

its more like a film......

what can i do?

 

[Bifferwine]

There's nothing you can do except keep doing regular water changes. I would not stir the sand. Instead, you should have a good cleaner crew slowly mix the sand for you. Conchs and nassarius snails are great for that. This happens in every new tank, and there's really no way to beat except to wait it out.

 

[yote]

+1 all the above

 

[rdang]

is my tank too young for a nassarius snail?

 

[Bifferwine]

If your tank has cycled, it's not too young. If you have ammonia or nitrites, it is. You should have more than one. For a 29 gallon tank, I'd get about 10 of the small (pea-sized) ones, or 3 of the larger (walnut-sized) ones.

 

[rdang]

cool, ill look into it

 

[Melosu58]

The diatoms will burn themselves out over time. Excellent advice from the others.

 

[rdang]

i got some little twisty conchs, are they okay? they are about 2'' long and have a snorkel like a conch or nassarius.

 

[yote]

Should be fine.

 

[rdang]

Cool, thanks Yote. My tank is only a month old, and the sand is new. Will i have to feed them?

 

[Bifferwine]

No, they should have enough food from cleaning your sandbed up for you.