Brown algae question

[ed84g]

Hi guys, so ive been browsing this forum for a while and set up my first ever salwater aquarium about 3 weeks ago and now i have brown algae (diatom?) growing all over the sand and rocks. I know that this is apparently normal for a new setup but it seems to be growing quite fast and has spread like this over 4 days and i feel like the entire thing will be covered beyond repair soon?!!

Is this something i should be worried about and if it is how should i go about getting rid of it? I asked at a local shop about whether there was anything that would help clean/keep it down and they said no just clean it however im sure ive read on here that there are critters you can get?

Another side question, my ammonia/nitrite/nitrate levels seem to be stuck at almost zero and have been since i set the thing up. I have live rock in there for 3 weeks with everything running and there is a starfish, some worm and snails alongside some other things including small bits of coral living in there that came with the rock. Is my tank just a slow starter?!!

Thanks for your help

 

[mcarroll]

Stop wasting your lights growing diatoms. ;-)

No, it's nothing to worry about - in fact a round of green and red algae are almost sure to follow in the diatoms' footsteps.* Also notng to worry about.

My recommendation is to leave the lights off until there's something in the tank that needs em - coral.

-Matt

* Diatoms do not have feet. ;-)

 

[ed84g]

hahaha yeah i did think it was a bit weird leaving the lights on but figured it might help things along whilst cycling... I actually tweeted a photo of my 'pet rock collection' the other week! Twitter / EdDJGex: Soooo I actually have a pe

 

[ed84g]

oh and ignore the rock formation in that last post... its much improved now