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Is this algae? help!

1K views 5 replies 4 participants last post by  Byron 
#1 ·
I'm struggling now with this, I'm using Algaefix from API, but I haven't seeing changes. Thanks in advance!
 

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#2 ·
yup its algae, i let it grow on my wood as it makes it look a bit more natural, also have CRS and a plec so they keep it down. I have the same with it growing at the front of the tank below the top of the substrate aswell, dont really mind it to be honest, i just keep it off the glass higher up
 
#3 ·
Agree. You can't have an aquarium without this, frankly.

You have live plants (in the photo) so never use an algaecide. Anything strong enough to kill algae will almost certainly harm if not kill plants. Plus, and this may be even more important, these producets add TDS (total dissolved solids) which do affect fish. Not to mention the chemical issue itself which also is not fish-friendly.

Algae ia a natural part of an aquatic ecosystem. With plants, we aim to control the algae so it does not overwhelm the plant leaves as this can smother the leaf and the plant. But aside from this, it is harmless. Control it by having enough plants to use the nutrients and light. Reducing light (intensity if it is too much to balance, or duration if the balance is OK) is the way to deal with algae.

As for the algae below the substrate surface, you can use a scraper during the water change to get this, just be careful not to scratch the glass with the gravel/scraper together. Or you can leave it. Mine is usually dark brown; your green suggests the room light may be bright.

Byron.
 
#4 ·
many Thanks You both, I will suspend the Algaefix, unfortunately till now I've figured it can hurt the shrimps; I've lost 25 shrimps.
I'm using liquid CO2 in the day and the bubble wand by the night, is this ok or it can help the algae growth?
 
#6 ·
many Thanks You both, I will suspend the Algaefix, unfortunately till now I've figured it can hurt the shrimps; I've lost 25 shrimps.
I'm using liquid CO2 in the day and the bubble wand by the night, is this ok or it can help the algae growth?
Liquid carbon supplements are not safe, in my view. I don't know if they can affect shrimp, but it wouldn't surprise me. They certainly affect fish and plants.

API CO2 Booster and Seachem's Excel are the two most common types of liquid carbon supplement. Both are nearly identical, containing glutaraldehyde and water; Seachem says their product is polycycloglutaracetal, but this seems to be their version of the same thing, since the Material Safety Data Sheet for Excel lists glutaraldehyde as the ingredient. This substance is a powerful toxin used in hospitals to sterilize, in embalming fluid, in antifreeze, and to disinfect ship ballasts when they move from one ocean to another to avoid carrying pathogens and bacteria. In the aquarium, some plants are killed at the normal dose. No wonder it can kill brush algae on contact. It is also a health risk for humans in several ways. I won't use it.

The bubble wand may be driving out needed CO2. There is no evidence from scientific tests to prove the contrary, so I still hold that it probably does. During night, CO2 builds in a natural planted tank, and then when the light is on during the day, plants use this as their much-needed carbon source. In a balanced planted tank, there is no way the fish will have any oxygen depletion, so I would not use any such device.

Byron.
 
#5 ·
I don't have any algae... yet, so I won't try to make suggestions for dealing with it. One thing worth noting though, if you just keep the level of the substrate below or closer to the top of the plastic trim, the light won't get to it to get it growing there. I did have a fungus that I bought some tiger snails for, they cleaned it up and I don't see any sign of it now.

Personally, I'm not a fan of the "sliced" substrate look, see pic. The sides are not as much of a problem due to less direct light and I don't see them as much. The front has actually settled and I will dig it up and put it in the rear some time. Playtime!

As my plants root out I expect less settling over time... we'll see if that theory holds though.

Worth noting, the algae on the driftwood looks great!

Jeff.
 

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