Help with algae?

[YoungGuppy]

Have a 16gal with Marineland LED light bar. It was on for 6 hours but I had to cut back to 4 1/2 hours because of algae. I have plants that are thriving with this amount of light and don't want to cut back again, but the algae is also thriving... I can rub it off with my fingers but it just comes back. It's even making my white sand filthy. I tried to get cherry shrimp but they all escaped and died.... I don't want snails. What can I get?
I have 5 female guppies. It is medium planted.

 

[Caliban07]

Cutting. Back the lighting would have been my first move. Is the tank exposed to any natural light from a window of skylight etc?

Check for high nitrates and phosphates. You can get phosphate test kits.

If it's a fairly new tank then algae can be a problem at first. This is what I've read but I'm not sure what the reasons are behind that statement.

 

[mrvincent]

Look at the balance Nitrates/phosphates levels should be at 10:1, minimum light for plants is 6hrs.

 

[jestes]

Is it a new tank? If its the brown film I'm seeing, it's diatoms. Don't worry about it. That's a fairly common problem with sand substrates whine they're new. My 180 had a TON of it when it started. Eventually the diatoms will consume the silicates in the water and that brown film will disappear.