Algae in a heavily planted tank. Help needed.

[penguinleo]

Some members may already know that I have set up a new heavily planted tank. I am suffering some (quite bad) algae problems. It is quite rare to have algae problems in heavily planted tank but here I am with it. It is green and blue algae and some hair algae (I think). Blue green algae is covering most of my Red pine (turned to green pine :lol: ) and is slowly taking place in other plants. The hair algae has a greenish ting to it. Very fine threads around 3-6mm long and in some places it has covered my driftwood like a small thick and compact lawn. I need to know what is causing this. I have asked many plant experts but not many seem to know. Here are some things to consider:

Nitrate: 0/ppm (Due to Purigen in filter. Will remove it tommorow as I need some nitrates)

Phosphate: 0.5/ppm

Iron content: 0/ppm (I was adding iron about 2 or 3 times a week but after the algae came in large numbers I discontinued for a while which maybe the reason for the 0/ppm. I heard that too much iron can cause algae and I was adding it more than once a week)

Just started to add Potassium.

Adding Flourish every week.

Have 2 black-line flying foxes, 3 Otocinclus, 2 GBAs.

CO2 running

I was going to add some erythromycin but just after some research today I found that it can melt some medication sensitive plants such as Micranthimum micranthemoides. Is there any other way of getting rid of blue green algae?

So what do you think is causing the algae??? If you need to know anything else please ask and all help will be appreciated.

[fishboi]

sounds pretty good penguinleo, what is the lighting and what size tank? any direct sun light?

[jn]

I was reading a link that someone had put up for PMDD. I think it said that an excess of iron can result in an algal bloom. Don't know if they mentioned how to fix it though!

[alanmin4304]

You can get rid if blue green algae with hydrogen peroxide. I had used it years ago but had forgotten the dose rate. I was told they use 1ml of 32%/ 200litres for marines. I have been upping the dose and are now using 2.5ml of 40% twice a day. It is still there (I can smell it) and I have siphoned off all I can from the bottom so a bit hard to tell at the moment. I have killies in the tank which are OK and are pretty sensitive to medications usually. I understand that cyanobacteria are nitrogen fixers and therefore will not react greately to nitrate levals so phosphate reduction may be more important. It is the usual catch 22--- get the plants to grow and do water changes to strip the nutrient. I will do another 50% water change today and keep you posted on progress. I don't add fertilizers so I am not sure how you would get on using them together but I would be tempted to discontinue while treating with H2O2. It will probably drive off the CO2 as well as water has a greater afinity for 02 than CO2.

[dimebag]

hey penguinleo, ive used erythromycin on my planted tank twice now with no ill effects, and it worked amazing. got rid or the cyano in about 5 days.

[evilknieval69]

I second what dimebag said. i have also used it twice

[reef]

Sounds like your tank has too many nutrients? maybe you are adding to much co2 and fertilisers.

When i set up my tank i did not add co2 or fertilisers for about a month so that it i could get the plants settled in and stop the algae from growing.

I now add co2 and fertilisers and still dont have algae and have not cleaned the front glass yet.

Also you dont have enough Otocinclus, i have about 20 in my tank.

Instead of adding chemicals to your tank it is best to find the cause.

Do big water changes weekly to remove nutrients.

Do you use Di or RO? for water changes.

[suphew]

What sort of lighting to you have? It would need to be good with all the nutirants and CO2. I would stop to CO2 and ferts for a while till the plants get settled in, and your tank matures a bit. Since you tank is new I wouldn't recommend erythromycin or bleach, it might clear your cyano in the short term but will also affect the BIO filter causing higher nutirents, and you wil get the cyano back worse

[penguinleo]

Thanks for all the help. I will try to answer on all your comments:

Suphew:

I have Arcadia 39W x 4 T5 plant pro bulbs. I don't know if my tank is that new. It is very developed now. And your erthromycin statement was what I was worried about.

Reef:

I think my tank has (or had) too many nutrients too. My CO2 rate is only at 1 bubble per second so I'm think it should be alright, don't you? When I set up my tank I did not use CO2 for around a month as well, but I added fertilisers but only at the recommended dose. 20 Otocinclus? :lol: That is a bit too much for me. But they don't seem to eat away at blue green algae do they? And the flying foxes are supposed to clear the hair algae. I am going to do a water change today and lets see what happens. And no, I don't use Di or Ro for water changes.

Evilknieval69 and Dimebag:

Just wondering what types of plants you had in the tank you used erythromycin in. Plants such as Micranthimum Micranthemoides (Commonly known as pearl grass) that I have in the tank is highly sensitive to medications and will melt away if used.

Alan:

Hydrogen Peroxide. So it actually works as efficiently as erythromycin? I will try get a suitable dosage rate from my LFS. So it does not harm plants or fish? Phosphate reduction for my tank, I believe is not necessary. Well, not at the level it is at. And thanks, keep me updated.

Jn:

Excess iron causes algae blooms. That is what I was told too.

Fishboi:

Tank is 100x50x40. Only a tiny bit of sunlight. Not really direct. Just light that comes in from a window. And the light is 156W in total.

Thanks to everyone.

[reef]

I don't use Di or Ro for water changes.

Noraml tap water contains many nutrients, so if you dont use ro/di then i would use far less fertilisers.

[alanmin4304]

I got my peroxide from the chemist.

[davidb]

hydrogen peroxide is just bleach isn't it?

[Adrienne]

Hydrogen peroxide is a form of bleach but is not the same as household bleach (so says my husband, a chemistry teacher).

[antwan]

your Hemianthus micranthemoides will be sweet with the erythromycin, I had it in my tank when I used it and it was fine.

[penguinleo]

Thanks for your replies. That is reassuring Antwan...that someone has had it in their tank with erythromycin. So I think the problem is getting worse so I am going to add it today and see how it goes.

[Faran]

Just hit it with the E. Can't go wrong, I don't know of any plants that are affected by it, and watching the BGA die is sooo worthwhile. I recommend leaving the lights off the day before use and only a few hours per day while treating the tank to minimize the amount of dead BGA you'll have to clean up afterwards.

[alanmin4304]

Household bleach is HTH solution which is basically a solution of chlorine. Your fish will not like it. Hydrogen peroxide is used to bleach hair in a hairdressing salon. (peroxide blond)

[evilknieval69]

One thing i have learnt and will do from now on is to treat plants before you put them in your tank..... IMO potassium permanganate is best

I learnt this the hard way :-?

[penguinleo]

So evil, you basically kill all algae and nasties off the plants, and then rinse them before planting them right? Good idea. But where do you get potassium permanganate? :lol:

[evilknieval69]

Well yea thats the plan! It can be bought off trademe pretty cheap. you dont need alot at a time

Search 'condys crystals' on trademe and you will find it. It is used to darken horses coats i think

[penguinleo]

Thanks Evil. But can you tell me how you use and dose it? Used for horses huh? :lol: Do you find it actually works? Does it kill snails? And can it harm plants? Thanks.

And to everyone updating this thread, I have added 400mg of erythromycin to my tank. There are tiny white particles from the medication everywhere but it is dissolving.

Lets see what happens. Oh, and does the blue green algae float to the top or die and sink to the bottom? And I just siphon the remains out right? Well, does the algae it actually fall off the plants? :lol:

[penguinleo]

And another question. I have performed a 40% water change. This time I haven't added any types of fertilisers. Tested my tap water and it had a iron content of 0/ppm. It was 0/ppm for a few days now. Just wondering whether you recommend me in adding some Flourish iron just to about 0.2/ppm since I have macrandra, red lotus and red pine in my tank. Or maybe I should add only Flourish since it does seem to have a bit of iron in there as well. I am thinking of still adding Flourish Potassium. Please post your thoughts and recommendations! :bounce:

[penguinleo]

Just a funny thought. If I added around 50 fresh water shrimps to my tank, would they be able to help me in eating the algae? :lol:

[evilknieval69]

Im not totaly sure. to be honest i dont even have an pp yet :lol: Put some water in a bucket and put enough pp in to make a nice pinky solution. Soak the plants in it for half an hour i believe. It should kill algae and snails

[The Great White Hand]

Hi Penguinleo

How did your treatment of Blue/Green algae go? what causes it?

I seem to be having similar problems.

I have an AR980 which has been set up for about 2 months.

The tank has got little flecks like bubbles (The water looks great until you are about 1 foot away then you can see the flecks could it be Blue/Green algae???) also could be a bit of "green water", I think. I believe it is getting slowly better. Putting Purigen in seemed to help, the Purigen was dark brown within a week, might take it out and revive it.

The plants don't seem to be particularly vital, the old growth of polysperma and cambomba seem to be covered in brown algae (hoping my new Ottos deal to this), there seems to be a light smattering of black algae on crypts and swords. The twisted val has a few small smudges that look like slime(Blue/Green)??

It is extensively planted (variety of swords, crypts, cambomba, anubias, java ferns on driftwood, java moss, dwarf saggitaria, pigmy chain sword, saurarus, straight and twisted vals, glassos, polysperma and some others) and moderately populated (Blue Ram pair, 1 Dwarf Gourami, 3 Corys, 1 Brstlenose, 4 Otto, 2 SAE, 26 neons and 20 harlequins.

I am currently running the AR980 filter and an Aqua One CF1200 canister filter. The water chemistry appears good (0 ammonia, 0 nitrites, Ph 7, very low nitrates, phosphates and iron). I do 20% water changes twice a week, use aqua plus to condition water, add "cycle" occasionally and am using Flourish and Flourish excel for the plants. I have got some new lighting, based on what I've read from this site (Arcadia, 2 x 30, 1 x 25, 2 natural 8000k, CRI 1A, and moonlight)

Regards, TGWH