Why is my sand turning brown?

[Habitat]

why does the top layer of my sand bed keep turning brown? Should I take out some sand. 20 gallon with 20 lbs LS and 25 lbs LR. Prizim Skimmer, HOT Canister Filter, power head, 96 watt coralife quad. My levels all seem ok...not sure whats going on.

 

[mhaynes01]

is it cycling?
if so mine is doin the same thing i am pretty sure it is normal

 

[Habitat]

not cycling, I think i maybe feeding too much. have been feeding flake food. Went out and got some frozen I'll try thath in a day or two.

 

[steve-s]

What is your water source?

Cheers
Steve

 

[Anemoneman]

Sound like diatom algae. Get some snails or hermit crabs to eat it. Try to reduce nutrients by growing macroalgae or large water changes. Reduce feeding until you get it under control. It is a clasic symptom of new setups. Generally not too much to worry about.

 

[MT79]

Besides water sources(yours?) some flake foods are high in phosphate, which will add nutrients for the diatoms to feed on. Might want to try using less dry food. FWIW, my tank is 8 months old and I still get patches from time to time.

 

[Habitat]

thanks all, stopped using dry food for two days and problem seems to be getting better, going out to get a snail or two today.