Brown algae

[jws444]

Sorry to hear your frustration. Brown algae blooms (a.k.a. Diatoms) are caused by silicates in the water, which is their food main source. The main source of silicates comes from your water source, so I must ask you what type of water you're using? Tap, or dechlorinated tap, store bought water, r/o (reverse osmosis) water, etc. Depending what your dumping into the tank, you could be the main cause of continuing this algae bloom with your water changes. In new tanks, diatoms are the first to appear as a 'dusty brown' material covering the glass and sand. If controlled, it should disappear after a week or two at the most. Your phosphate remover will not control diatoms. However, it will help you in controlling the next phase of cycling which you'll see hopefully small amounts of green or hair algae.