Quarentine tank question

[EJMaguire]

Hello! I had a single clown in this quarentine tank. He is healthy and in my DP now, and seems really happy. I set aside the QT tank and waited a day or two to clean it. When I did, there was brown powder all over the bottom of the glass. The picture below is from after cleaning it.. there was about 5 times the amount from what you see here.

I may mention that there used to be brown algae in the rock structure, but it has gone away. Did the algae die and congeal at the bottom? I'm new to the hobby, and want to get my QT tank ready for my next addition! (Blenny) I did a water change yesterday in preparation for new fish in QT. Water parameters are good.

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

That is really common to see in bare-bottomed QTs. It's called detritus and it is mostly comprised of cellulose, chitin, dust from tocks and other material that bacteria have difficulty breaking down. Mixed in with it though can be fish feces and uneaten food, and even parasite eggs. The general recommendation is to siphon it out whenever you see it pile up like that. In your case, I'm sure it is the parts of the algae cells that bacteria couldn't digest.

Jay