what's goin on w/ gravel

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Jun 10, 2011
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i noticed this brown stuff on my gravel...and its spreading? its in my 5.5 betta tank, he hasn't been acting any differently

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any tips on removing it? i did a gravel vac today....didn't help much
 
It appears to be diatoms. They usually go away after a while as they are more common in new setups. Oto cats will eat it.
 
You can just wait it out. They'll take over your tank for a couple months, you'll consider throwing it out the window...then they vanish within a few days. You can clean off decorations and stuff if you'd like...but they'll just keep coming back until they burn themselves out. I think almost all of us have dealt with a diatom outbreak in newer tanks.
 
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I've had the same exact thing on my white gravel. It makes it look like I don't clean my tank. My BN Pleco doesn't touch it either, so I guess it will be here to stay for awhile.
 
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