Hi Steve,
Viewing the outer planets is definitely a thrill just like oberving some of the closer planets like Saturn and Jupiter.
I remember Uranus to be a blueish green colour when I last had a look at it. I'm not sure why it appeared brown. The only reasonable explanation I can think of is that being quite dim and low in the horizon, the visible colours changed maybe due to dust or smoke in the air at the time.
Sorry I can't comment on the eyepieces.
