5 gallon fish tank

Question
I recently bout a 5 gallon fish tank for my son and i bout the filter and everything to go with it. I even made sure i didnt get schooling fish so all my fish are compatible with each other, (and i say all meaning 4). But I've only had them in there for 1 1/2 weeks and theirs what brown stuff growing on the inside of the tank and 3 of my fish died. At first i thought the brown stuff was alga but now i don't think it is. Did i do something wrong, if not how do i keep my kids fish from dying?

Answer
Hi Steve

The brown stuff is algae. Brown algae is is common in a lot of fish tanks, but especially new ones. Just needs to be cleaned using an algae scrubber or aquarium brush.

Your fish are dying because you had too many fish for that small of a tank. A 5 gallon is only good for one or two small fish. The tank has to cycle which takes 4-6 weeks. Only one fish should be in that small of a tank while it is cycling.

Hope this helps, good luck!

Richard