[Empress Akitla]

I have two issues in my 29 gallon tank. And I don't like them. They are not welcome!


First, I have this stringy stuff that I think is staghorn and that I do a lot of removal of by hand. Second, this really soft tough stuff appeared and I don't like it. It looks like the start of BBA. I just removed the one leaf that was the most afflicted. But I don't want it on the other stuff.


My tank parameters are:
Ammonia 0ppm
Nitrites 0ppm
Nitrates ~10ppm
pH 7.2
GH ~300 (very hard water)
KH ~80
Half dose of Iron and Potassium on Sundays after a 30% water change


Equipment:
2x15 watt aquarium bulbs sitting directly on the hood, on a 4-6-2 light schedule
40i Whisper Internal Filter
100 watt Aqueon heater
Generic bubble wand


Plant Stock:
1xAmazon sword
3xAnubias nanas
1xAnubias petite
1xAnubias congensis
1xJava fern (which hasn't grown very much)
10xGreen gecko crypts
1xSpider plant floating on a cork raft


Fish Stock:
7xAdult fancy guppies
20xGuppy fry
2xPeppered cories (getting some more hopefully today)
1xBristlenose pleco
2xPanda platies
1xCandy cane platy
1xFlame tetra (getting more of those, too)


Any ideas at all?

 

[Hoppy]

Are the light bulbs incandescent bulbs? If so, you are unlikely to have enough light. That would stop the plants from growing, and encourage the algae to move in.

 

[Empress Akitla]

Are the light bulbs incandescent bulbs? If so, you are unlikely to have enough light. That would stop the plants from growing, and encourage the algae to move in.

Just checked, and yes they are incandescent bulbs. I would like to put new lights on this tank (seeing as the hood is Frankenhood right now), but I don't really want to dole out the cash on this tank because I'm setting up a 55 gallon this spring and this one has to come down when that happens.

Cheap options?

 

[AdamTill]

A 6400k or similar coil bulb from Lowes etc would retrofit if you have the space and can handle the wattage (generally lower than incandescent).

 

[Nordic]

this one has to come down when that happens.
Cheap options?

You may want to keep it as a hospital tank/plant nursery.


...Lol, aquariums are a bit like golf, the only cheap option, is quitting.

 

[ShukiAi]

Walmart sells their brand compact florescent bulbs that I use in my 10 gallon. They're 'daylight' bulbs with a 6500K rating. Give those a try. They're like $3.00 for a pack of 4 bulbs.