New Tank - Lots Of 'bits' Floating Around

Hi everyone, I'm new to this forum and hoping someone on here might be able to advise on a problem I have...

I have a new tank which is only 4 weeks old. After a couple of weeks I started getting what can only be described as 'brown bits' appearing on the rocks, plants, driftwood and gravel. I know it's not fish 'waste' as it was appearing before I even had any fish, but it has the appearance of lots of fish 'waste'. I'm not entirely sure what it is or where it's coming from; it's not your typical algae as it doesn't cling to plants and rocks - wafts off easily and hangs in the water until it either re-settles or gets sucked into the filter. The trouble is, when it settles on the plants its obviosuly blocking light and killing off the leaves and I've bought quite a lot of plants which is obviously upsetting to see them getting killed off, but they are sending out new shoots which is encouraging. I have a air-powered vacuum so almost every day I clear it off, and then the next days it's back again - very frustrating!

I've been reading around and I'm not sure if it's Diatoms Algae - it's hard to see from the pictures exactly what it looks like so I'm not sure. Does what I've described sounds like Diatoms, if not, any ideas what it is or whether it will eventually clear?

A bit of background info: when I first started my tank I had very high levels of Nitrite and Nitrate, after 3 weeks those levels dropped to only trace levels of Nitrite and low levels of Nitrate. pH is 7.5 and no traces of ammonia. The light is usually on from 8am to 10:30pm.

Would any fish / shrimp eat this, and also, would they be hardy enough to survive in a new tank? I've had 6 Neons in for a week and they're still hanging on.

Any help would be appreciated.

BBB

Sounds like Diatoms, its caused by ammonia spikes and i suspect your filter has yet to reach its full maturity, hense the brown stuff. It will disapear eventually, when the filter starts to do its job properly.

what size tank and what stocking have you got in it?

Hi BBB and welcome to our beginners section!

Aspects of what you describe do indeed sound like brown diatom algae, however, other aspects do not. Diatom algae specs look perhaps about the size of a grain of sand individually or even smaller and are dark brown, especially when they collect on leaves. The algae especially likes to grow in areas of slow water motion so you can often detect it at the corners where the substrate meets the glass tank wall. When looking at it on glass the brown looks lighter and more diffuse. When brown algae is young it is quite easy to wipe off of large plant leaves but over time it can get tougher and tougher, becoming more anchored.

All forms of algae, including brown algae, come from light plus ammonia. The main problem for beginners is usually both: too much light (for instance, running the tank light more than 4 hours) and ammonia, which is obviously easy to get while you are still building your biofilter.

Brown algae is usually not visible drifting in the water except immediately after you've been cleaning it off of surfaces. Since you describe it as wafting around, its also possible we are mis-diagnosing the problem and you actually have some sort of problem where bits of debris are being blown out from your filter, either not being trapped in the filter or being trapped and then released.

Let us know your tank size, filter type, types of media you running in your filter and what your filter maintenance habits have been up to now. Your statement about your neons just hanging on and the very fact that you have put neons in a tank less than 6 months old or in to a tank in less than 6 weeks old implies that you have not had access to the knowledge of biofilters and the necessity of having them running properly before fish are introduced (ie. of "tank cycling.")

We get lots of beginners in that sort of situation here each month, so the members know how to give lots of help with it!

~~waterdrop~~

It's a 150l (33g) tank. Ammonia has never been high in the tank, I've checked it from the outset, but I've heard that Nitrite/Nitrate spikes might causes Diatoms outbreaks too, which I did have in the first few weeks. But those levels have subsided so I'm not sure if it's still the old stuff floating around or whether it's still forming. So basicaly Diatoms is loose bits rather than sticking to objects?

At the moment I've only got 6 Neons in, oh and some snails that hitched a lift on the plants. Given the size of the tank, I'm not sure if that's enough to get the filter in full bio swing - what do you think? I've also been supplementing with Nutrafin Cycle to increase the bacteria levels. Do you think a few more fish would help, or should I hold off for the time being?

It would seem that the filter has kicked in somewhat due to the reduced levels of Nitrite...?

Its only Ammonia spikes that cause Diatoms, thses spikes arn't always picked up by test kits either. I wouldn't add any more fish for a couple of weeks. As WD states, diatoms don't float around, they grow on things. Don't bother with the cycle stuff, you might as well just send me the fiver that you spent on it. It doesn't work. BTW you need to be doing regular water changes, to remove the algae spores.

Ianho is right. The ammonia we're talking about for triggering algae spores to become active algae is below the levels that our ammonia test kits can detect. Its an ammonia level present in most tanks (because fish are always putting off ammonia of course) but in amounts that vary in different places in the tank depending on the tank circulation. Suffice to say its very, very difficult to totally eliminate the ammonia side of it, leaving the light as the thing we can better control. How many hours are your lights on typically and does the tank receive any window light?

Unfortunately, the brown algae, which is harmless to fish, is probably not your most important concern at the moment though. It sounds like you may still be in what we call a "fish-in cycling" situation, although you may be nearing the end of it. What type and brand of test kit are you using? What are the numerical results of your most recent set of water tests?

~~waterdrop~~

"Ammonia spikes that cause Diatoms, thses spikes arn't always picked up by test kits either."

That's re-assuring! What's the point in a test kit then? It's a Hagen test kit which is a reputable brand...


"diatoms don't float around, they grow on things"

It only floats around when I trying to clean it off. but it does come off very easily, like it's not actually attached but more restings on the surface of things. I can waft my hand over it and it'll start floating around. Like I say, it's like fish crap, but it aint fish crap because it appeared before I even had any fish. This stuff is bigger than a grain of sand. The filter is working fine; the bits it sucks in aren't coming out again.

"How many hours are your lights on"
12 hours a day. It's a dual light, and I dont have any floating plants

"What type and brand of test kit are you using?"
Hagen

"What are the numerical results of your most recent set of water tests?"
The last test I did was...
pH: 7.5
Ammoina: 0
Nitrite: trace
Nitrate: 30ppm

I do a 20% water change every week.

My filter is a Fluval 205. I've not cleaned it yet because I want to give it time to establish (my fish have only been in a week). However the signs that Nitrite levels have dropped would seem to point to it starting to establish, so I might do a clean when I do the next water change.

The reason I asked about getting more fish is not because I'm getting giddy and want more fish, it's because I need fish to build up and maintain the bacteria in the filter. 6 Neons in a 150 litre tank isn't going to be adding much... They seem happy and healthy; no gasping for air, always up when it's feeding time, no signs of illness.

FYI: I'm not a complete Newb, I kept fish for many years when I was younger but had to sell my tank when I went off to University. I've just never experienced this type of stuff before, and it's driving me nuts.

OK, quick analysis (apologies, getting kids off to school).. You are indeed going with too much light in my opinion. You could drop back to 4 hours, go for some weeks and confirm that the diatoms are under control and then try increasing to 8 hours and see if it comes back.. OR drop to 8 hours total and see if that solves it. (Plants need 4 hour block to get their machinery going, so any light block less than 4 hours only aids algae, not plants.)

You are in a Fish-In cycle still and sound like you're doing ok although I think there are aspects of managing it that we would do differently in our forum, basically probably more and larger water changes (with good technique) based on test feedback rather than just a more or less fixed percentage like 20%. I'll try to get back with more comments as will other members I'm sure.

~~waterdrop~~

Yeah the light thing is a funny one; some people say if you get Algae to increase lighting duration as this over-exposes the algae and it dies off, and some people say to reduce it. I guess since mine is on for 12 hours I could try reducing it to see if it makes a difference. However, if it did occur because a Nitrate/Ammonia spike and those levels have now reduced, then I won't know whether it's stopped because of that or because of the decreased light levels. For a fair experiment I might be inclined just to ride it out for a couple more weeks and see if there's any change, and if not then try reducing the lighting periods.

Oh, and no it doesn't get any direct sunlight on the tank.

I'll try doing a mid-week water change too and see if that helps.

Oh, I've -never- heard that one before, that increasing lighting could "over-expose" algae and kill it off. Has anyone else?? WD

not me... (re: lights on to kill algae)

I think someone's having you on

The theory was since it's brown algae it forms where light levels are low, whereas green algae forms through too much light. The stuff, whatever it is, is brown and therefore increasing light levels may rid it.

They say a picture is worth a thousand words, so I've taken some snaps of the offending 'brown bits'. Can anyone confirm what I'm dealing with here? As you can see it's settling on the plant leaves and killing them

Can't view pics - I think you have to put them in one of those web services. WD