Brown algae??? Need ID

Question
Hi there!

 I am having problems with a small tank and would like to get your opinion on the matter.

It is an eclipse system 5 hexagon (5gal) and I have had it for about five or six months.  I just can not seem to get rid of this brown algae (or ?) that is growing in there.  It was healthy for a short time after I cycled it and then just *poof* this stuff started to appear.  The tanks inhabitants are a very small pleco, a ghost shrimp, and a pea puffer.  Everyone is healthy and happy.  I have tested (and retested) the water and everything is normal... I have even had other people test the water to make sure.  I have recently taken all the decor out of the tank (boiled it and now it is dried out in a different container until I can manage to get this under control), lowered the temp, am limiting light, and am vacuuming the tank out every three days (25% water change).  haha... I am STILL not seeing much improvement.  I have been fighting this stuff for about two months now.  This is tenacious stuff!  I feel like a slave to this little tank!

What is making things difficult is that I have not found a positive ID for it yet and I keep getting different information for everyone.

On the glass... thin red/brown film that is easy to remove
On the gravel... thin red/brown specs (I have off white gravel and it is easy to see where it is growing) it seems to accumulate more directly under the light.
If I miss a day and wait a week or longer to suction the gravel long thin brown/clear strands (slimy looking and thread-like) can be seen (.5-6" in length, very random placement)

Are these even the same thing?  With the very frequent water changes and less lighting it seems to be cutting back... but its not gone.  One thing I am afraid of is that I think the filtration system may be too weak for this tank.  But I am really not sure... SO... any ideas???

THANK YOU for any help or information you can share with me!

Answer
Hi Alecia,
I know this may not be the answer you want to hear but doing large water changes and continual removal is probably the best way to get rid of algae. Try doing 40-50% water changes at a time and scrape and remove as much of the algae as possible. You could also try adding a lot of fast growing aquatic plants to your tank so they can help outcompete the algae for nutrients.
Keep trying, this algae can be hard to get rid of once it gets established and is going to take some time.

I'm pretty sure with the continual aggressive maintenance schedule that you should get rid of the algae for good. Usually brown algae is typically caused by high nutrients, low light, or high amounts of silicates. You can control both of the first two by keeping up with the large water changes (remember plecos are big polluters no matter water- especially because of the food they eat), keeping a moderate amount of light plus some live plants would help. And for silicates, you can buy silicate removing filter media. I'm not sure what kind of filter you current have, but hang on the back type power filters are the best always. And you can find silicate removing media for these types of filters as well. It may help to check your nitrate and phosphate levels as well.

I really hope this helps!
Best wishes,
Karen~