Snails-do-a-great-job-on-brown-and-green-algae......I-love-the-way-my-ramshorn-snails-clean-the-glass-and-plants......They-leave-the-leaves-clean-and-green.

Other-than-reducing-nutrients-and-or-using-algae-eating-fish-and-critters-you-could-try-Algafix.......I-would-only-use-this-as-a-last-resort-and-as-it-deoxygenates-the-water-to-some-degree-you'd-have-to-aerate-or-agitate-the-surface-more-when-using-it.

I can't speak for fresh water but there is a difference between just good old fashion brown slimy junk algae {which is caused by dark, dank, low light, over feeding, to much waste nasty stuff AND Brown Diatom algae which feeds on light and is a bactieria cycle that can last from days to weeks in a tank and usually signals the begining of a mature tank when you go through it and it doesn't come back in a salt system ------ now thats the snowboss interpritation of algae, lol not the scientific explination

hope it helps a little

Boss

Snails-can-multiply-to-an-amazing-number-so-you'd-need-to-be-prepared-for-that....I'd-say-Malaysian-trumpet-snails-would-be-the-best-as-they-mostly-hide-under-the-gravel-during-the-day-and-come-out-when-it's-dark,-but-I-personally-like-ramshorn-as-they-seem-to-be-better-than-most-at-cleaning-algae.....Keep-your-eyes-open-when-at-the-aquarium-store-or-Petco.....If-you-see-snails-ask-if-you-can-have-a-few......They'll-probably-give-them-to-you.

The-other-option-many-would-suggest-are-those-huge-snails-I-think-called-Apple-snails-or-something.....Someone-on-this-site-has-a-video-of-theirs-jumping-off-the-glass.....Probably-a-way-for-it-to-move-to-another-feeding-place-quickly.

I-also-have-Ottos-and-they-truly-are-sweet-little-fish.....Unless-you're-really-into-snails-as-I-am,-I'd-wait-and-see-how-well-the-Ottos-do-their-job......You-could-also-scrape-the-glass-and-take-the-artificial-plants-out-and-bleach-them-with-a-dilute-bleach-solution.....Rinse-rinse-rinse-really-well-and-replant.

I-feed-most-of-my-fish-except-the-gars-and-the-Pleco-Tetra-tropical-flakes.....It's-a-well-balanced-food-and-both-Ottos-and-snails-love-it-too.

I-have-a-theory-that-most-people-don't-clean-their-gravel-well-enough....Maybe-you-do,-but-here's-my-method....When-using-the-gravel-vacuum-it's-hard-to-get-all-the-crud-down-deep-and-in-the-corners.....If-you-do-choose-to-remove-the-plants-to-clean-them-try-this.

Turn-off-all-pumps-so-there's-nothing-creating-current-in-the-tank......Leave-the-fish-in.....Then-use-your-hand-and-dig-into-the-gravel-and-stir-it-up-with-the-intention-of-making-the-water-as-filthy-as-possible....Take-care-not-to-scratch-the-glass-in-the-front.....When-the-water-is-totally-brown-and-you-can't-see-in-more-than-an-inch-or-so-then-siphon-out-most-of-the-water-leaving-just-enough-for-the-fish.....You-may-want-to-set-aside-some-water-a-day-before-that's-conditioned-as-fresh-tap-water-may-be-a-shock-with-a-90%-water-change-as-I'm-suggesting,-or-there's-another-way.

The-other-way-is-to-let-it-settle-for-about-10-15-minutes-after-stirring-it-up-so-there's-a-layer-of-crud-on-the-top-of-the-gravel.....Then-you-can-use-the-gravel-vacuum-and-without-putting-it-into-the-gravel-skim-it-over-the-bottom-to-get-up-the-layer-that-has-settled.

After-doing-this-fill-the-tank-back-up-and-turn-on-the-pumps......When-the-water-is-clear-again-then-you-can-clean-the-filters.

This-can-be-done-without-removing-the-fish.....You-may-choose-to-put-a-net-over-the-siphon-so-fish-you-may-not-be-able-to-see-don't-get-sucked-up.

I-do-this-to-all-my-tanks-every-5-7-months-or-so....A-little-algae-is-the-sign-of-a-healthy-tank-and-too-much-indicates-excess-nutrients.

I-don't-know-about-diatom-algae-in-fresh-water,-but-cyanobacteria-is-like-green-slime.

If-you-want-to-positively-identify-what-kind-of-algae-you-have-try-www.plantgeek.com....under-algae......They-have-great-pictures-and-info....PK

Sounds-like-a-good-choice.......I-lost-one-of-mine-recently-when-the-screen-over-the-intake-fell-off-and-the-little-guy-got-sucked-up.