Algea

[Ghostface]

Hi TPT
Does anyone know how to get rid of this algae? I have had it for a couple of weeks now. I been cutting the effected leaves but it still comes back. What can I do? The algae is on all my plants.( Swords, Anubias,Pygmy chain sword,Cryptocoryne Spiralis)

120g 60x18x26
p.h 6.6
k.h 4
temp 83
co2
4x65 watts compact flourescent liights 6700k
eheim 2028 canister filter

Greg Watson fertilizer
Pmdd Pre-mix - cap full a day
Mono Patassium Phosphate-cap full a day
Iron Chelate-2ml a day

Thanks Ghost

[spinycheek]

Most likely a high nutrient problem. Your plants aren't using it as fast as its going in, so the algae is thriving on the leftovers. Either fertilize less, feed less, do more water changes or get more plants. Your lights may also be getting old, have you replaced them within the year?

[gmccreedy]

How old is this tank setup? Can you scape off the algae? Any ottos in there?

[Ghostface]

Thanks for your replies

Spinycheek- The light has been running as long as the tank has 7m. Do you think I need to add more filtration? The eheim does 158g but it only circulates 198gph,shouldn't it be doubled?


Gmccreedy-The tank has been running for 7 months. I tried to scrape it of with no luck. I have 6 ottos, sae, bristlnose and 4 algae eating shrimp. I need to help my soldiers win this battle.

Thanks Ghost

[Harris36]

Most likely a high nutrient problem. Your plants aren't using it as fast as its going in, so the algae is thriving on the leftovers. Either fertilize less, feed less, do more water changes or get more plants.

Ditto.

CO2 levels?
Water Changes?
How long are lights on?

I battled that same problem for a long time. Finally came down to stuffing the tank with plants (stems), getting the CO2 right, cutting back on lighting hours, and dosing regularly. I also bought a UV sterilizer. It would be nice if there was a magic solution, but you are gonna have to try this and try that and have patience.

[Ghostface]

Harris36

My Co2 is 30ppm,I know this is to high but I just changed my cylinder so I am adjusting it. I do 1/3 water change every week and the lights use to be on for 12hrs, but I changed it 10hrs.

Thanks Ghost

[Bugman]

Anything for flow except the filter? Flow may also be a issue. Your Co2 may not be getting distributed throughout the tank. With a single cannister in my 55's I had to add powerheads to get the flow up adequately.

[flanders]

Originally Posted by Ghostface

Harris36

My Co2 is 30ppm,I know this is to high but I just changed my cylinder so I am adjusting it. I do 1/3 water change every week and the lights use to be on for 12hrs, but I changed it 10hrs.

Thanks Ghost

That may not be too high...How are you measuring? Unless you see noticeable changes in fish behavior I wouldn't worry about it.

I run 112W (56W6700K, 56W10000K) over a 55, no ferts, CO2 ~30ppm, heavy fish load, 35-50% H2O change a week, lots of plants. I get GSA, a little bit of hair algae, and recently tufts of BBA are appearing. I don't really mind the GSA and Hair Algae (I think they're kinda cool and my otos, BNP, and SAE keep it in check). The BBA is kinda annoying, b/c I'm worried it could get out of control.

A couple things I'm trying: 1) As mentioned, increase flow. Does anyone have any advice about the best place for a powerhead? 2) I've noticed that my NO3 is 0. I'm going to start slowly raising my NO3, either by adding fert, or doing less H20 changes.... 3)Adding more SAE or Amano shrimp, but my water is extremely soft with a low alkalinity.

Anyway, in my experience (which is really just a couple of years) algae appears when a nutrient becomes limiting. Whether that be C02 (most common), or a particular macro, you just have to test and experiment.

[Ghostface]

Thanks

I am looking at buying another filter getting some more stem plants and checking my fert's.

Flanders- I use a test kit then plug the information in to Chuck's co2 calculator. The fish are cool. I don't think I will touch the co2 as of yet.

Ghost

[Tex Gal]

If you're calculating CO2 using hardness it doesn't work. There are many things that make the water hard besides CA and mg. You need a drop checker using 4dkh solution. It will tell you that at green you have approx 30ppm of CO2. You can rely on this because the 4dkh is an accurate measure of water hardness.

[Hoppy]

Originally Posted by Ghostface

Harris36

My Co2 is 30ppm,I know this is to high but I just changed my cylinder so I am adjusting it. I do 1/3 water change every week and the lights use to be on for 12hrs, but I changed it 10hrs.

Thanks Ghost

How did you determine that your CO2 is 30 ppm? A drop checker works best for that in that it gets you close to where you want to be, so adjusting further is much easier. I also have BBA problems, with a low light plant tank. Today I cut the lighting in half, knowing that all algae grow best with high light.

[spinycheek]

The pH/alkalinity method can be fairly accurate so long as there are no tannins from driftwood or peat and you do not add non-bicarbonate buffers/acids in the various forms. Essentially, it works if you start with pure water and only have rocks in your tank. Too bad there isn't a drop checker with a pH probe port in it. Then it wouldn't matter what interfering chemicals are in your tank.

There is a way around this problem though to eliminate interfering acids. This won't work if you add buffers other than bi-carbonate.
1) Take a sample of tank water and aerate it for 10-15 minutes then test the pH and determine the "CO2" level

2) Now subtract 3 from that number, call it number A

3) Now determine the "CO2" level in your tank water without aerating it to get number B

4) Subtract A from B to get the actual CO2 level. (i.e. B-A= Actual)

This will give you a much more accurate reading.