brown fluffy stuff in my tank.

[guppy_man]

hi since about a week ago i noticed brown fluffy stuff in my tank and thought nothing of it but now its taken over and is all over my gravel and ornaments does anyone know what it is and how to get rid of it ?

 

[Tokis-Phoenix]

Sounds like brown algae...
You long do you leave your tank lights on a day on average?
You much do you feed your fish on average a day?

 

[guppy_man]

i leave the light on about 10 hours a day and feed my fish 3 times a day is that too much to feed?

 

[pseud]

is that too much to feed?

Depends on what fish you have and how many and your personal preference.
I only feed twice a day.

 

[OohFeeshy]

I only feed once. As said, it depens on what fish and how much you feed each time. Brown algae is also caused by low oxygen levels (although I doubt thats the reason) and sillicate or something in the water.

 

[Tokis-Phoenix]

Lowering the amount of time the tank lights are left on will help get rid of algae, try and limit the time they are on to 7hrs. Use a sponge to scrub the algae off the tank and boil any rocks or ornements affected.

 

[Tokis-Phoenix]

Um...is your profile correct and update ??

 

[abstract]

i would blame it on having an EXTREMELY overstocked tank ...you probably need a better filter (or another one running at the same time), a tank cleaning twice a week, and feeding only once per day to keep that many fish alive........

 

[Tokis-Phoenix]

I agree its extremely overstocked with not a great selection of fish either, but wait until he replys back as this could be old info in his profile if he hasn't updated it recently...

 

[OohFeeshy]

Lowering the amount of time the tank lights are left on will help get rid of algae, try and limit the time they are on to 7hrs. Use a sponge to scrub the algae off the tank and boil any rocks or ornements affected.

Actually, brown algae's normally due to not enough light.

 

[Tokis-Phoenix]

Lowering the amount of time the tank lights are left on will help get rid of algae, try and limit the time they are on to 7hrs. Use a sponge to scrub the algae off the tank and boil any rocks or ornements affected.

Actually, brown algae's normally due to not enough light.

Ah, well i learn somthing new everyday- cheers for pointing that out
But i think guppy_man's tank stocking is the issue here more than anything else.

 

[guppy_man]

hi sry i havnt relpied but i havnt got as many fish as i had in there i over stocked so i gave my 2 guppys and 2 tetras to my uncle and i dont use a spnge for the algea i use this mag-float thing its a magnetic srubber it takes the green algea off the tank very quickly.
and i have just looked at my profile for the first time in about 4 weeks and when i said albino plecos lol i was mistaked i meant albino corys.ive changed my profile completly.

 

[Tokis-Phoenix]

So your profile is now update?

 

[guppy_man]

yup updated

 

[abstract]

so you have 2 mollies, 6 white clouds, 4 dwarf gouramis, 4 plecos, and 2 clown loaches all in a 20 gal?

1) the clown loaches get huge and will soon outgrow the tank
2) 4 plecos is way too many for a 20 gallon - are they common plecos? they will grow to over a foot long each if they are
3) the dwarf gourami males will fight if they dont already which could lead to them stressing each other to death
4) mollies get very large too from what i've heard, not to mention when they have babies, they have them by the 100s

you should really consider getting rid of the 2 clowns, 3 of the plecos, a couple dwarf gouramis and replacing the mollies with something smaller in my opinion...or just get a bigger tank

EDIT: i see that you have edited your profile before i was done posting...lol....i guess since there are 3 cories and not 3 plecos that is a lil better....
is the pleco a common pleco? it will outgrow the tank fast.
the stocking you have now looks much better than w/ the clowns, etc - i would still consider taking my advice with the dwarf gouramis and mollies though..

if the dwarf gouramis are all brightly colored they are most likely all males - females are much duller in coloration