One of the most common problems for salt water fish aquarium owners is algae growth or fungus, but this is usually quite easy to fix. Salt water fish tanks often become overgrown with algae because the fish are being overfed, which can cause slimy sheets of blue-green or red bacteria, which looks like algae. Beginner salt water fish tank owners are often overzealous and get too excited about their new pets, and feed them more food than what they really need. In many cases, algae growth is also just a matter of decay collecting over time, and just means the aquarium needs to be cleaned. Algae thrive in a salt water fish aquarium when there is an abundance of dissolved organics, nitrates and phosphates in the water. When beginner salt water fish tank owners feed their fish too much, all of these are produced in quantity as the excess uneaten food decays.
A little algae growth in salt water fish tanks is normal and fairly unavoidable over extended periods of time, but if the aquarium needs to be cleaned every few days it's probably because there is an excess of food or fish waste accumulating there. If a hobbyist sees their beginner salt water fish tank has some small patches of fungus or mold growing on the gravel and plants, this is also probably because if uneaten food. When fish food falls to the bottom of the salt water fish aquarium or sticks to a plant, a little patch of white stuff that looks like cotton will usually sprout up and grow for a few days, and then it will disappear when its source of food is used up. If salt water fish tanks are constantly flooded with an excess of food, however, this will become a rather ugly ongoing problem. All of these salt water fish aquarium problems are completely avoidable. With a little attention and advice from the experts, hobbyists can easily figure out the right feeding practices and keep their tanks as clean as possible.
