Comments on: Why Are My Silk Plants In My Aquarium Turning Brown?

By: patwhite

patwhite — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 19:34:41 +0000

It’s algae dear. When you add nutrients(in this case fish food) to water something is going to grow and that something is algae. Algae can be green; red or brown.
Wipe it off the sides of your tank and wipe it off your plants. Make sure you turn the light off at night and make sure your tank is not in front of a window.
You can put your plants in some bleach water BUT use very little bleach and rinse, rinse your plant until you can no longer smell the bleach.
You can get an Algae Eater but they need a place to hide in during the day, they are only active at night after you turn out the lights and they do get VERY large. It also depends on how large your tank is and how many fish you already have in it.
Never put more than the recommended number of fish in you tank. To many fish and they will die.

By: Josie826

Josie826 — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 16:10:11 +0000

Its probably algae. Go to your fish store and ask what you can add to the water to get rid of it without harming the fish. Don’t know what type of filter you have, but you may need to replace any material in the filter.

By: Spencer

Spencer — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 11:29:34 +0000

It’a Algae. Are you leaving your tank in the sun? If it’s a freshwater get a pleco.

By: Baby Bath Games

Baby Bath Games — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 07:28:55 +0000

I would be willing to bet you have high nitrates and high phosphorous levels in your tank. Depending on how long your tank has been running, it may be ending its cycle, and experiencing a buildup of nitrate (prefect algae fertilizer). Brown algae is not a true algae, it is instead a bacteria. Though not harmful, it is unsightly. Because it is a bacteria, it does not rely on photosynthesis to produce food, it can rely solely on nutrients in the water. Brown algae usually occurs from a combination of weak lighting and high nitrates. Try to upgrade your lighting so it is more penetrating and spectrum specific (6700 Kelvin) as well as thoroughly vacuuming the gravel weekly and changing your filter media monthly. This will either prevent the algae completely, or turn it green (which is MUCH more attractive and sometimes desirable). Email me if you have any questions.
Soop Nazi
EDIT: Not all algae eating fish (Otos, Plecos, Algae Eaters) get large. There are fancy Plecos (Clown, Bristlenose, Bulldog) that stay less than 6 inches, and Otos stay around 2 inches. ALL fish produce waste though, which often does more harm than good, by adding more nutrients to the water for the algae to consume. The best way to remove algae is manually or preventing it all together.

By: Wireless Surveillance Cameras

Wireless Surveillance Cameras — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 02:52:30 +0000

Algae, Clean the plants, I just had the same thing and I took the plants and soaked them in bleach and water for a couple hours and just like new. Good Luck..><> ~

By: Aravyndr

Aravyndr — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 22:08:59 +0000

Its probably brown Algae.
Besides water changes… have you tested the water levels?
Do you make sure not to have the light on constantly? that can cause brown algae.
I’ve had issues with Algae… but I’ve never had issues with brown algae causing illness.
Test your pH, Nitrates, Nitrites and amonias
make sure you don’t leave your light on 24/7
and before you do the next change… wipe down the brown algae (Its easy to just wipe)
take out the plants and wash them down before replacing them
then do a water change… maybe a bit more than 25% for this time around.
see if that helps.
you can also go to an aquatics specialty store and ask for advice.
depending on what type of tank you have you can also ask if there are algae eaters that will feed off of brown algae.

By: Radium Eyes

*Radium Eyes* — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 18:47:51 +0000

Get an algae eater

By: Finatic

Finatic — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 13:44:08 +0000

Soop Nazi is absolutely correct! It’s brown “algae”. Your nitAtes are high. You’ve got decomposing organic matter coming from somewhere in your tank. If your certain your tank is adequately filtered, your using silk plants, and the tank is not over stocked, then here are a few possibilities:
1 – You’ve got driftwood or natural shells in the tank that are decomposing. This is a source of nitrates.
2- You’re beneficial bacteria colony has become inadequate.
3- You’re not vacuuming the substrate adequately.
Bottom line, you need to identify the source of the nitrAtes and correct it. Rinse the “algae” from your silk plants, rinse the gravel (section at a time to avoid further depletion of bacteria), clean the walls and get your water chemistry under control.
Hopefully, this will help.
Good Luck