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mad algea

2K views 7 replies 8 participants last post by  fishkid 
#1 ·
my 15 gallon planted has been doing alright.

some of the plants were from other tanks and seemed... almost stunted? well they are barely growing, and then others have been doing really great and growing huge.


but thats no the issue, the issue im having is i have mad algea growing everywhere! and hair algea! it looks gross!

its all over myplants and im worried its not going to let them get any light. anf the tank walls are just green.

the light is only on for about 8-10 hours for the plants. there is a window but its mostly indirect sunlight, but theres another tank beside it with no algea at all.

i have a golden apple snail, but hes doing a horrible job! and one time i tried a full tank srub and tried to take the hair algea off the plants but its so secure it rips the leaves.

i dont kno what to do! help!
 
#3 ·
You might try cleaning the glass and then cover the tank with towels or blankets with no light for three days. Though i have never had to i have heard it kills off a lot of algae. Then you could add a bunch more plants . they would compete with the algae to use up excess phosphates which often is the primary cause of algae. If you try the blackout method and there are fish in the tank be sure and remove the blankets while the room is dark prefferably at night so you don't suddenly shock the fish. you could feed the fish before you cover the tank they will be fine for three days. If you are using fertilzers or root tabs you may also wish to cut back on application until you get more plants. Hope some of this helps.
 
#4 ·
Well it sounds like a nutrient imbalance. Stunted growth is a sign of a lack of nitrogen. The algae type is a sign of too much of something but I don't remember if it is phosphates for sure.

If you can tell us it will help a lot to know your parameters:
nitrates and phosphates for sure

If you dose anything, or don't dose, tell us what and it will also help to diagnose the problem.

Also, what types of plants are thriving and which ones are suffering?
 
#5 ·
I was having the same problem. My guy at the LFS store said it was due to excess phosphate. He told me I could add some phosphate remover (or nuetralizer) but I'm aways wary about upsetting a natural balance. I just cut back on my dosing of Flourish Excel and seemed to clear up algae wise but I still have some stunted growth on some plants. Is there is a testing kit for phosphate/nitrogen/phosphorus??
 
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