sewelld Posted April 7, 2009 Report Share Posted April 7, 2009 Hi Is it normal to have quite a build up of green spot algae in the tubes which the air stones sit in? There is also quite a bit on the plants and stones. I did have quite a few snails, but these seem to have all died out... Should I get some more to keep this algae under control? Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crazyzoo Posted April 7, 2009 Report Share Posted April 7, 2009 Hi Excessive algae usually develops because of all/either: over feeding, too much light, and not enough plants. How new is your tank, what sort of set up is it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sewelld Posted April 7, 2009 Author Report Share Posted April 7, 2009 tank size is 600mmx300mmx300mm. Tank setup is quite new, so I have about 6-7 young plants. 2 airstones at both back corners. Carbon filter. Fish are 2 bristlenose plecos, 4 neon tetra 3 male fantail Guppies and 6 glowlight tetras. I did have a good quantity of snails which came in with the plants, but they seem to have died out, I can only find 1 or 2 around the tank, and there are no eggs around now. We feed once a day, either flakes, bloodworm or a pellet. Any help would be appreciated. I'm thinking about getting some more plants and snails, possible with red ramshorn or malaysian trumpet. Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lmsmith Posted April 7, 2009 Report Share Posted April 7, 2009 Go with the ramshorns, the trumpets are really really hard to get rid of and they don't eat so much algae. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sewelld Posted April 8, 2009 Author Report Share Posted April 8, 2009 Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whetu Posted April 8, 2009 Report Share Posted April 8, 2009 In a newish tank it's definitely normal to get algae - it can take quite some time for the whole system to get settled and for the plants to get fully established. I suspect that adding more plants will be a good thing - it will help to absorb any excess nutrient in the water and therefore the algae won't find it as easy to thrive. You didn't mention what kind of plants you have - it's good to make sure you have some quick-growing stem plants that take the nutrient straight from the water, rather than slower growing plants that feed from the substrate. I have always found bristlenoses to be excellent algae-cleaners so I'm a little surprised you would find a lot of algae in a tank that size with two bns. On the other hand I still don't think it's anything to worry about - just keep up good maintenance (water changes etc) and it should all turn out fine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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