Ok, so we have what I believe to be brown algea spreading on the glass of our tank. I need some advice on how to get rid of it and control it.
Here is some history on our tank....
We did a fishless cycle in December which was complete in 3 weeks. It is a 10 gallon tank with dirt and gravel substrate and live plants. After the fishless cycle was complete, we added 8 neons. We have since added 4 cory cats and 2 red cherry shrimp. Everyone has seemed to be very happy so far and the tank has looked extemely clean. We had a slight bit of green algae showing up on the light cover, so we clean that regularly and have reduced the light to 7-8 hours a day. Just this week, brown algae has started to show up on the front glass of the tank. It does not appear to be anywhere else, but it is spreading. I tested to water to see if anything was unusual. Ammonia is at 0ppm, nitrites are at 0ppm, and nitrates are at 5ppm. I have done some research and have read that it is very easy to clean. The problem, however, is that most of it is pretty low on the glass, and I am looking for another solution to avoid regular massive water changes in case the problem is reoccuring. Is there something I can do to get rid of and prevent this stuff? I thought maybe there was a type of sucker fish that would work, but it doesn't seem like there are any that would work in a 10 gal tank. Plus, I already have a good stock of fish and don't want to overcrowd it.
Any help would be greatly appreciated!!
Here is some history on our tank....
We did a fishless cycle in December which was complete in 3 weeks. It is a 10 gallon tank with dirt and gravel substrate and live plants. After the fishless cycle was complete, we added 8 neons. We have since added 4 cory cats and 2 red cherry shrimp. Everyone has seemed to be very happy so far and the tank has looked extemely clean. We had a slight bit of green algae showing up on the light cover, so we clean that regularly and have reduced the light to 7-8 hours a day. Just this week, brown algae has started to show up on the front glass of the tank. It does not appear to be anywhere else, but it is spreading. I tested to water to see if anything was unusual. Ammonia is at 0ppm, nitrites are at 0ppm, and nitrates are at 5ppm. I have done some research and have read that it is very easy to clean. The problem, however, is that most of it is pretty low on the glass, and I am looking for another solution to avoid regular massive water changes in case the problem is reoccuring. Is there something I can do to get rid of and prevent this stuff? I thought maybe there was a type of sucker fish that would work, but it doesn't seem like there are any that would work in a 10 gal tank. Plus, I already have a good stock of fish and don't want to overcrowd it.
Any help would be greatly appreciated!!