Algae Outbreak

kfryman

Okay, I will order Flourish (It is just called Flourish right?) and I switched back from the siesta, to an 8 hour straight period. I may just buy a 24" T8 dual shop light and build a canopy and save the T5 fixture. I hate to see it go to waste since I spent around $120 and i am a teenager. Would a dual T5 be fine on a 29 gallon tall? As it is bigger and taller as well?

Byron so not doing normal water changes on a tank will make the tank unstable in terms of parameters or what? I know that from a guy on YouTube called Dustinsfishtanks and OldFishLady on bettafish that they both don't do regular water changes on their fitted tanks and everything is fine. That is why I did the same...

Thanks for the help as well! Oh and if there is still algae I will just limit the lights even more.

fish monger

I guess if you go the high tech CO2 route you could try it on the 29. You would probably want to use the 8 hour steady light schedule since you'd be adding CO2. You know more than I about the CO2 system. If you choose to go the low tech route, you might want to try just using the 6500k tube if you can. The fertilizer is Flourish, followed by the description comprehensive supplement for the planted aquarium. It is made by Seachem.

Byron

No, Seachem makes a line of products all under the Flourish label, you want Flourish Comprehensive Supplement for the Planted Aquarium to give it the full title, but just look for the "comprehensive" word.

Here again, on the 29g with a T5 HO you'll have more light than what will balance in a natural setup. Will one tube still light if one is removed?

Without having seen/read these aquarists myself, it is impossible to comment on their methods. There are many ways to run a fishtank, and the specifics of each tank is a major factor. The water in a fish tank deterioriates second by second with fish present. Plants benefit by dealing with some of this, but depending upon the fish load (species and number) and the plants (species and number) the result can vary. Nothing is as good as replacing water. [I really must get my article on water changes finished and posted.]

The more water that is changed, the more the parameters will remain the same. But there is more to stability than parameters. Nitrates are kept lower (unless they occur in the source water, that's a whole different issue). Pheromones and allomones released by all fish continually are removed. Stale water full of fish urine is removed and replaced with fresh. What more excuse would one need?

You are most welcome. Don't expect the algae there to disappear, it won't. But it should not increase. As long as there is no increase in algae, the light is most likely balanced.

Byron.

Olympia

Kfry, OFL changed her methods and views and now advocates large weekly water changes as well.
Posted via Mobile Device

kfryman

Yeah on Amazon it is just called Seachem Flourish and i looked closer to the picture and it said comprehensive supplement. So I will order that and hopefully it fixes my problem, well part of it... I can have just one tube on, I will wait to see if the reduction of time the light is on works first. If not I will add start DIY co2 as well. I would just need to get an airpump so the fish don't get gassed.

Olympia I wasn't aware of that, thanks. I will see about getting a vacuum that hooks up to the sink for ease of changing water in my tanks.

Byron

A single T5 tube will be fine, this would actually be good on the 29g.

CO2 is up to you; I personally wouldn't go down that road on a 20g tank. One of our members, Mikaila, has experience with CO2 and has commented that it is not worth it on small tanks.

BradSD

Dustin uses dirt in his tanks, that may be why.

kfryman

My tank has dirt as well... I would recommend to read the first post so you know the background, plus it isn't a very long thread anyways.

My light timer is being weird... I will have to sort it out tomorrow.

What is the best way to go about removing hair algae? I used an unused toothbrush but some of the algae is very small.

Byron

Get what you can. With the light and nutrients back in balance, it won't increase.

kfryman

Alright thanks for all the help Byron!

I will start using it when I get back as it won't be here until I'm done. Will Prime affect the nutrients when I add them after a water change? If so I will add two days later.