New tank and brown algy bloom

[artyruss]

Hi everyone, I have just set up a 16gal Aqua One nano reef tank, it has been cycling for just under two week now.

I have 18 pounds of live rock and a live sand base, the rock is coming alive, I am noticing something new growing everyday. Lots of what looks like tiny water fleas and even smaller snails.

Over the last few days the live sand and some of the rock have started to get covered in what looks like a brown algy. I have been doing as much reading as I can and have read that these algy blooms sometimes occur. Do i have anything to worry about or is this fairly normal.

Getting some clean up crew this week will that help?

Any help or advice welcome.

 

[sadielynn]

Hi welcome to nanotank
The fleas you noticed are probably a copepods that you are seeing they are harmeless and if fact show the start of a healthy system.........As for the algae blooms they are probably a cyno and can be controled by increasing your h20 flow and siphoning some of it off but mostly by letting the lights out , or dramatically decreasing the time that they are on . Your tank is just going through a normal cycle I would wait for the clean up crew till your test are at zero
Ammonia
NitrAte
NitrIte
those are the major tests . Hope this helps Good luck and welcome

 

[skipm]

If this brown algae looks like brown dust or dirt which easily blows off then it is just diatom algae and is a normal part of the cycle in a new tank. If it has a more slime like consistency then it is most like cyanobacteria like Sadie already mentioned. Good luck, Skip

 

[reefman23]

Adding an algae crew and cleanup crew will definetly help, as well as time. Once the tank stabilzes and finishes its cycle, this algae will go away... the next color algae will probably be green.

And welcome to the site!

 

[artyruss]

Thanks for all the advise, you have reasured me. I am getting the water tested today by my local aquarium shop so will see how that goes.

Thanks again

 

[sadielynn]

I was wrong they are right it is a normal diatom I was reading something else as I was typing

 

[artyruss]

Hi all

Thanks again for all the advise, algy bloom has almost gone now. The most usful thing i found was to limit how long I had the light on throught the day. All my test readings are good so hoping to start adding so clean up crew. A few more weeks and maybe some fish.

Thanks once more!