brown algae

Question
Hi My daughter has a freshwater tank since july all of sudden we have brown stuff on coral rocks. We cleaned filter over the weekend and it is coming back quickly. Any suggestions what to do? Oh and to complicate matters are all male fish had babies, so we have 30 little ones and we dont want to do anything that might kill them. Any ideas?

Answer
Hi Sharon

Brown algae is common in new aquariums. The best way to get rid of it is to siphon out 20-30 of your aquarium water with a weekly water change, and scrub the rocks in the water you siphon out with an old toothbrush or algae scrubber. You will also likely find the algae on the glass, which you can use an aquarium scrubber to clean.

You could also add an algae eater like a Pleco, Cory Cat, Raphael Cat or common Algae Eater. This greatly depends on the type of fish you have and the size of your tank. With the new babies, your tank may already be overcrowded.

Hope this helps, good luck!

Richard