[don_kihotis7]

Hi everyone, this is my first post here.
I have been a tropical fish enthusiast for 25 years now. I have had various freshwater tanks in the past but this is my first planted one.
There are 132 litters in my tank (without the filter) which converts to 35 gallons. I am injecting CO2 (3 bubbles per second), the substrate is plenty of JBL's Manado and the lights are T5 2x39W tubes. Water temperature is 25C (77F). The filter (pics 4 and 5) is built in taking across the back of the tank. It's an old school filter which works with the principal of communicative vessels. After trying several filters like external, submersible, a combination etc I found this to be the best filter to achieve crystal clear water and easy to maintain.

My plan was to use Eleocharis grass and grow it as a carpet. After 2 years no success. I thought that the problem was the LED lights that i used initially. That's why i changed to fluorescent bulbs which have UV rays thus beneficial for plants. I saw some better results with the T5s but it's far from a carpet.

My biggest problem lately is this algae (see attached pics) which is taking over covering the grass and other plants. I think it's the so called plankton. I have searched online and i am doing a 20% water change everyday. I see no results. On the contrary i think it's growing even faster. Shall i use the lights off method? And if so will this affect my plants?

Thanks in advance
Chris

 

[dukydaf]

Hello and welcome to the forum.

The main algae in the photographs is hair algae. You can take a tooth-brush and clean the better part of the algae, however it will grow back until you remove the cause.

In the setup you describe there is one thing missing... what fertilizers do you add ? If you do not add anay macros I would recommend researching 'Estimative Index': The Estimative Index of Dosing, or No Need for Test Kits - Aquarium Plants - Barr Report

Measuring CO2 in bubbles per second is of no use to anybody but you. If you dose 3bps now and increase it to 6bps you can say you doubles the amount of CO2 you dose.However, none of the values tells us if you have enough CO2. To estimate this value you need a drop checker ( such as Dennerle CO2 drop checker) or use the pH and KH values and look into this table CO2/pH/KH table - Aquarium Plants - Barr Report

Your tank seems to have rather low plant mass. Consider buying some easy to grow plants just until you beat the algae. You can remove them once the carpet is ready.

For future reference:
plank·ton
The small or microscopic organisms that drift or swim weakly in a body of water, including bacteria, diatoms, jellyfish, and various larvae.

 

[don_kihotis7]

Hello and thanks for the welcoming and the detailed reply.
I have a drop checker and it has a green color which is the ideal. When checking the table at the link you have provided though, it's blue meaning low. My PH is 7,5 and KH is 5.
Regarding fertilisers i was using Sera Florena and then i stopped since the grass was still not expanding. I also tried JBL's Ferrotabs. Sometimes when i put my fingers in the gravel i still find the melted tabs.
Now with the algae problem is not right to add any fertilisers right?

Just did a NO3 test as well. The reading is zero.