Questiosn about algae

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
Pyramid_Party

Pyramid_Party

Fire Eel
MFK Member
Aug 6, 2008
4,916
4
68
Monterey, CA
Hi,

I been getting some light algae in my tank. I believe its coming from a plant I have in my tank. I dont overfeed, the water is fine, good filtration, tank not near the sun etc. I can only think its from the plant. If I look close at the tank I can see a light film of algae on all the inside walls of the tank. Also, it appears that algae is forming on a plant because the leaves are hairy/fuzzy.


I did use a brush and wiped the tank down and did a 25% water change. I think the alage will come back so I want to get it under control. Im thinking of a few things: Getting an algae eater or Pleco, or something else.


The problem is, the Plecos and Algae eater will produce more waste and take of tank space. I got a 55 gallon and have a black ghost knife and a Chinese perch, both around 3 1/2 inches. Would adding another fish in there compromise tank space?

I am also about having the least waste in my tank, would it be more trouble than its worth by addig another fish? I was even thinking about a few snails, but the plants will be eaten, and the snails will probably be eaten. I was thinking of maybe some clams, but they probably dont clean glass and plants, just the ground area. I dont know, I guess I am jsut trying to get some opinions and find out whats the best for me in this situation. I am gonna be heading to my LFS in a little bit.

Thanks
 
Well everyone has a little algae in there tanks it's gonna be there no matter what. I would personally see if stepping up the water changes helps, and decreasing the amount of time the tank lights are on.

I would not recommend any so called "cleaner fish, or snails" since they usually really do nothing of the sort or at least not to the scale you want them to.
 
Well, I have 2 plants that are affected by the red algae I believe its called. Its got hairy/fuzzy particles on leaves. After cleaning the tank I can see a light film of algae coming back on the glass. So I need to do something to keep this under control. So perhaps a fish could eat the algae of these affected plants or something.
 
http://theplantedtank.co.uk/algae.htm

The algae is not being caused by your plants. Algae is the plant world's scavanger and usually shows up when there's an imbalance of nutirents. Get yourself a fast growing low light plant to eat up the nutrients before the algae gets a chance to.
 
what would you suggest? Oh and some of my plants are looking bad. 2 are covered in this hairy algae, and the others looked discolored and some leaves look like they are deteriorating. What would be a good plan to solve these problems?
 
what are the specs of your tank? lighting? co2? an imbalance in any of these will cause algae to grow
 
55 gallon tank, have a decent amount of plants in it. Basic florescent lights, No C02 or any kinda supplement for the plants. I'll admit, I havent used live plants alot. Last time I used them I has some really common ones and they did fine and I never did anything special for them.

Some of the plants I have now are more advanced. They dont look that healthy either.
 
Pyramid_Party;2080913; said:
what would you suggest? Oh and some of my plants are looking bad. 2 are covered in this hairy algae, and the others looked discolored and some leaves look like they are deteriorating. What would be a good plan to solve these problems?
Click to expand...

Well for starters to get rid of the algae already on your current plants. You can do this with a bleach dip. Sounds crazy I know but I've done it and it works WONDERS!

Make a solution of 1 part bleach (no scented or color safe bleach, just standard) 19 parts tap water. Soak the affected plants in the solution for 1-2 minutes (I did 1 and it worked fine for a huge amount of algae covering the plants) And then put them in a bucket of water treated with a triple dose of Prime for at least 20 minutes. Within a day to 3 or 4 all the algae will die off and fall off.

I'm actually a beginner at planted tanks and learning new things everyday. Come over to the planted tank section for advice on fast growing plants. What they'll do is out compete the algae for the nutrients that it needs to grow and it will starve to death.

Some Oto's will help too

What kind of lighting are you running on your tank? How many watts? How big is your tank LxWxH?

If you're really looking to go all out on a planted tank then CO2 comes into the picture which will also help with the algae control.

Come on over here http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=26
take a read through the stickys and some of the threads, then start asking specific ?'s, There are quite a few knowledgable and helpful members who frequent that part of our forum.
 
the main cause of almost all algae is low levels of co2. you dont have to go all out and build or buy a co2 system, this could be as simple as dosing with Flourish Excel as this is a source of carbon for the plants.

im pretty sure youll see the algae go away if you start adding some carbon in there with Excel.

the thing is, that as long as you dont address the underlying issue (lack of co2), the algae is always gonna come back eventually
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
MonsterFishKeepers.com
Top Bottom