# Algae



## Fishboy93 (Jun 11, 2005)

I have recently had a huge algae bloom. I think it is one of these things:

It bloomed after i got my new pc lighting (65 watts)

Too long of lights?(I think we have it for like 11hrs? :sad: )

Phosphates too high?(Dont have kit yet)

My otos are lazy fat lards?


Specs:
Planted 29gal
Ammponia-.3ppm
pH-7.1
No Ferts 
No Co2

Sorry I havent been able to buy all the kits yet($$$$$$$$$)


Lol i asked the guy at petco(Mistake) and he lectured me about how i had a light that was WAY to strong...he said it would fry my fish..Its only 2.2Wpg!!


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## Alin10123 (May 22, 2005)

Fishboy93 said:


> I have recently had a huge algae bloom. I think it is one of these things:
> 
> It bloomed after i got my new pc lighting (65 watts)
> 
> ...



The biggest thing is the lighting in the tank. I think that 11 hours is too much i think. Or... is your tank near a natural source of light? 
You could always get some live plants. The live plants will compete with the algae for food and as a result the algae wont flourish.


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## Fishboy93 (Jun 11, 2005)

Thanks, Ill cut down on the lights i have these plants:
Anubias barter
Anubias bateri var nana
Australian ambulia 
Dwarf Sag
Crypt. Balanese
Crypt. Wenditii Bronze
Jungle Val
Corkscrew Val
I think thats it...


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## Fishboy93 (Jun 11, 2005)

The farthest source of natural light is parallel to the tank like 7ft away but the blinds are usually closed


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## Damon (Jan 18, 2005)

While the light amount may possibly be contributing to your algae, reduce the lighting time to 8-9 hrs. (10 at the most). You will need to add ferts also. I suggest flourish (or tropica's Mastergrow) and flourish excel. What kind of algae is it? Can you describe it?


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## Fishboy93 (Jun 11, 2005)

I got green spot for sure(On anubias and on glass) and some sort of beard/hair algae on almost every plant and wood decor..I looked into flourish but some people said it killed certain kinds of plants.. I was completely lost on how to dose correctly..

How do ferts kill algae?? I thought it would make them thrive even more....


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## Damon (Jan 18, 2005)

When plants do well, algae cant. The green spot algae in your anubias is common when they get too much light. If possible shade them with other plants. Flourish excel will not kill plants. Thats what is was designed for (helping plants). Just follow the instructions on the bottle. If you add alittle too much it won't hurt anything. CO2 is your best bet for preventing more algae from growing with that much light.


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## Fishboy93 (Jun 11, 2005)

Alright ill try the flourish excel and lower the time the light is on


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## Fishboy93 (Jun 11, 2005)

Today I did a 30%water change and added the excel and scrubbed the algae off where i could and looks a little better...............


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## Damon (Jan 18, 2005)

Always remove algae with filters off. Then let settle and do a waterchange. Many types of algae will release zoospores which will spread through current.


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## Fishboy93 (Jun 11, 2005)

All right im gonna do another on Sat. Morning so i will do that i just hate all this algae it changes the entire look of the tank...


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## Damon (Jan 18, 2005)

The most effective way to prevent algae outbreaks is a consistent supply of Co2. It doesn't even have to be 30ppm. But it does have to be consistent. Algae uptake adapts faster than plant uptake. Once the plants have stable Co2 (whether it be a high rate or low rate) they will outcompete algae for nutrients. Mind you too much nutrient in the water column or too much lighting still allows algae to thrive. You have to balance all 3 for good plant health and little algae.


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