Brown like Algae

I have what I believe to be an Algae outbreak. I have had this problem for awhile now. I have always done regular water changes etc and I really have no idea what is causing this outbreak. My Nitrates and Phosphates are at zero to. It is a very light brown film that covers all of the rocks in the tank. It easily wipes off with a tooth brush etc. I can do a water change and suck this stuff off of the rocks and it all comes back the next day. Has anyone ever seen anything like this before? If so what did you do to fix the problem? I am getting ready to switch from an empty sump to a refugium. I also have a UV filter around. Does anyone think the UV would help? Any ideas are appreciated. Thanks ahead of time

 

sportram

has the tank been set up long? is it a powdery type of brown and when you put the scraper or toothbrush on it , it drifts off?
or does it peel off?

is the sump a late addition to your set up?
have you added anything new in terms of plastics recently?

it sounds like diatoms from the description and these are common in new systems and can re occur when things like a new sump, with all the new pipework/ overflow box etc are added

if its the peel off type film then thats probably cyno which often indicates low flow

if you can get a picture up that would certainly help with an ID on the problem

Steve

 

Steve,

Thanks for the response. The tank has been set up for about 3 years now and nothing new has been added. I had the sump since the tank started. You dont even have to take the brush to it. I can just rush my hand through the water and the extra movement will take the brown off the rocks. I will work on getting a picture up here today.
Dave

 

your problem is likely related to poor water circulation....you might have a dead spot in your tank. I had a similar issue (red/brown algae) and added an extra powerhead seemed to make all the difference. water changes and stuff will help reduce it but if you got low flow somewhere its going to be an ongoing battle. hope this helps

 

Here are the pictures. Any ideas on how to fix and what may be causing?

 

That looks like cyano. Increase your circulation to 20X the tank volume for starters and try to make sure that there are no dead spots in your flow.

 

http://www.3reef.com/forums/algae/cyanobacteria-3-parts-3-links-33062.html

looks like brown cyno to me sportram
the fuge will help as it will compete with it for nutrients (well the macro algaes you put in there will



Steve

 

I have been running the tank with the lights off for about 3 days and added some phosphate remover. The algae appears to be dying off. I am going to do a water change tomorrow and remove the dead algae. Fingers crossed I am hoping to beat this finally. I will also be setting up a new refugium. In a few weeks I hope to add another power head for more movement.

 

Those steps should all help, good luck

 

As of yesterday all of the cyano is gone. I have still been running with the lights off will start putting them back on for a few hours a day probaly cutting lighting in half and see if i can keep it out. Seems to be a good fix so far.