Brown Grease Algae

[RainboWBacoN420]

Okay, ever since I moved my cories from my 15 to my 55. Algae has been thriving now...
I'm getting a lot of brown algae, that's not a surprise, but I'm also getting this really annoying brown, grease-like algae on my staurogyne and anubias, I don't think it's on the rocks or anything, maybe I just can't tell that it is. But this algae keeps coming back, not as fast as the brown clumpy algae, but still, I've been looking all over the internet for info about this algae but can't find anything!
The only way to remove it is by rubbing it off, it slowly comes back after a while, but it makes everything..... y'know, not pretty!
Has anyone dealt with this algae before? 
I'm going ti get some shrimp for the tank, so hopefully they'll make a snack out of it if they can... if not how can I rid of it for good? Or will I just have to keep rubbing it off every time it reappears?

 

[Far_King]

I've only really seen that sort of thing on silk plants before.  My live plants don't get it.
 
Have you got and fish that might eat it (or considered getting some)?  My ottos seem to like it but shrimp could be a good plan.

 

[Mark Z.]

I have the same type of algae on my anubias. I have to rub it off with my finger, and it doesn't all come off. The last of my ottos has died, so that may be why I see more of it now.
 
I will be curious to read the replies also.
 
Mark

 

[RainboWBacoN420]

Well, I just picked up some Cherry Shrimp from my job. So we'll see if they make a snack out of this greasey muck.

I think ottos would clean it off better, but I really don't want to put them in such a small tank.
This tank is going to feature cherry shrimp and a few Scarlet Badis (Dario Dario).

 

[Fishmanic]

if plants can be removed easily from the tank (not rooted in substrate) you might try a chlorine dip.  I did it about 4 weeks ago to remove stubborn brown beard algae and the algae has not returned.  I also bought a rubberlip pleco that may be helping keep algae at bay.   I saw him on one of the leaves of the anubias today.   He also keeps all the walls of the tank free from the green algae I used to get.  They can get as big as 7 inches from what I've read online so you need a large enough tank to house it.
 
further reading on chlorine dip methods from a previous post I made
 
 
my plants in my 35 gallon tall hex were covered in brown beard algae...looked really bad.  also the glass had quite a bit of green algae on it...
 
went out and bought a 2 inch rubberlip pleco.  Within 3 days all the algae on the glass was gone...the pleco did a great job of devouring it.
 
Took out all the plants that were still covered in algae.   Performed a chlorine dip (19-1 water chlorine ratio).   Wiped each leaf with a paper towel.  Try not to get any chlorine solution on any driftwood as it can soak into it.  .After 2 minutes, I soaked the plants in dechlorinated water using prime for a couple of more minutes.   Also, I added a dose of prime to the tank to make sure no chlorine got into the tank water.  
 
No more algae on tank walls, and all plant leaves are vivid green.
.

 

[RainboWBacoN420]

Jeez, I'd rather not. All my plants have been well established for many months, specifically the anubias and staurogyne that has been there since the beginning well I first got the tank started.
I'd rather not do that to the tank, and just clean the algae myself or let the shrimp have at it. 
 
Thank you for the advice though, it's very much appreciated.

 

[Byron]

I've been following this thread, as I am curious as to what "brown grease algae" might be.  Can you post a photo perhaps?  If this comes off easily with your fingertips, it may be diatoms; if it does not, it may be a form of brush algae.
 
I would like to offer a suggestion on the "cures" though.  These may deal with the present problem, but algae is caused by conditions, and unless the source is rectified, it will almost always come back.  Light and nutrients are the source of all algae, whether too little or too much of either, relative to the plants' requirements.  I would not tear down a tank to kill off some algae when there is a safer means, namely restoring the balance, and this depends upon the type of algae.
 
Byron.

 

[RainboWBacoN420]

I'll post a picture if it comes back, so far the leaves have been clean since I've rubbed them off. I always dose a tiny bit less than what's instructed on the bottle (SeaChem Flourish) but I do leave my lights on for 10 hours.
 
I really care about the plants health more than the algae, my staurogyne has shred it's leaves for some odd reason after doing so well for the longest time, so I'm mainly focused on helping it restore its leaves that are slowly growing back at the moment. It's not melting, the stems are fine and green, but I'm wondering if the algae has something to do with the leaf loss. That, or it might be a deficiency is phosphate? 

 

[Byron]

I'll post a picture if it comes back, so far the leaves have been clean since I've rubbed them off. I always dose a tiny bit less than what's instructed on the bottle (SeaChem Flourish) but I do leave my lights on for 10 hours.
 
I really care about the plants health more than the algae, my staurogyne has shred it's leaves for some odd reason after doing so well for the longest time, so I'm mainly focused on helping it restore its leaves that are slowly growing back at the moment. It's not melting, the stems are fine and green, but I'm wondering if the algae has something to do with the leaf loss. That, or it might be a deficiency is phosphate? 

 
Again, a photo (of the Staurogyne repens [presumably]) might help us.  Nutrient deficiencies are not always easy to pin down, as symptoms can be common to several issues.  If by "Flourish" you are using Flourish Comprehensive Supplement, phosphorus will be sufficient.  When this fertilizer is being used, I would tend to consider the lighting, or perhaps the GH of the water (the "hard" minerals in Flourish Comp are minimal because it assumes these will be in the source water) as possible sources of a problem.
 
If the brown is diatoms, the light is less likely the issue, unless it is too weak.  Silicates in the source water, or weak light, are the usual causes in established tanks.
 
Byron.

 

[RainboWBacoN420]

Bryon, all the shedding leaves are gone now, they're beginning to grow new leaves at the moment as I mentioned. There's still a few leaves on there that are still hanging on, I'll post a pic as soon as I can, maybe later tonight.
 
Yes, the micro nutrient and trace element supplements, that exact one. 
 
Thank for the help.

 

[alexge]

This may sound silly, but are you sure its algae not not something else?
A picture would go a long way.

 

[HWood]

Hi - I am getting it on my silks and on the motor part of my HOB. Any solutions for me? THANKS!!

 

[Byron]

Hi - I am getting it on my silks and on the motor part of my HOB. Any solutions for me? THANKS!!

 
Hi...you might want to start a new thread of your own, which will probably get more response than posting in an old thread.  And a photo would help...there are several types of algae, and some things that are not algae, and we never did resolve exactly what was involved in this present thread as we had no photos.
 
Byron.

 

[RainboWBacoN420]

I've been trying to posts pictures from my phone for a while, but they won't upload. (referencing previous comments- forgot I made this thread)

 

[jag51186]

I've been trying to posts pictures from my phone for a while, but they won't upload. (referencing previous comments- forgot I made this thread)

 
Upload to tinypic.com and then copy/paste the URL for forums...that's how I always used to do mine.