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algae question

2K views 7 replies 4 participants last post by  Jpokerwinski 
#1 ·
how does one control algae in a tank. I have live plants and a Fluval programable LED light that allows me to control the level of RGB and white lite

algae seemed to just start after the tank cycled or at least it seemed to
Jim
 
#2 ·
change the environment to favor the plants over the algae. filling the lights is one first step. then resume with 1/2 duration lighting and adjust so the plants thrive but algae doesn't.

Obviously cleaning up the algae is using algae eaters help also.

my .02
 
#4 ·
Hello Jim...

Some algae is unavoidable. But, the good news is, it's a great natural water filter. If it gets to be an issue, you reduce the amount you feed and get low phosphate fish foods. Nitrate is an algae favorite. So, you can gradually increase the amount of water you change and change the water more often. This will remove the nitrates and the excess food that has dissolved in the tank water. Livebearing fish are good algae removers. Introduce a few of them. Just make sure your other fish will tolerate them and not make lunch out of them. Floating plants will help. Pond weed, Hornwort and Water lettuce can use nutrients faster than algae, so this is another option.

M
 
#5 ·
Doing more frequent water changes should lower the amount of Nitrates in the water, which is what the algae is feeding off of. You can do daily 30% water changes until the algae growth slows down. If your tank is well stocked, 40% weekly water changes with a thorough gravel vacuuming and algae scrubbing should keep the algae down. It isn't uncommon to have an excess amount of nutrients right after cycling, so often frequent water changes alone will really help.



Lowering the amount of lighting the aquarium gets can help. Try and cut the timing the light is on to 8 hours or so and it should really help lower the amount of algae while still being enough for live plants. Making sure the tank doesn't get direct sunlight during any part of the day should also really help.



You can also add hardy, fast growing plants like Water Sprite to out compete the algae for nutrients. Water Sprite can be planted or left to float.



If none of the above helps and you aren't overstocked already, there are algae eaters you can add as well. For small tanks with small, peaceful fish Amano Shrimp or Nerite Snails are a good option. For tanks 30 gallons or larger, a Bristlenose Pleco will eat up all that algae and turn it into lots of poop for you to grave vacuum up each week. But all livestock will add to the bioload of the tank, so first make sure that you aren't already overstocked, as being overstocked can cause algae issues in the first place.
 
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