# [Wet Thumb Forum]-Ugly, Brown, Fluffy Algae



## Sheila (Aug 25, 2003)

I have this ugly, dirty cotton ball looking algae that I cannot get rid of. I have a 29H, heavily planted. I can pull this stuff off but it sticks to everything and seems to try suffocate my plants. I have been doing 2-3 partial water changes a week. The tank is filtered without carbon and has a KH reading of 2, and a GH of 3, PH is 7.0 and currently not injected with co2.

Can anyone tell me how to get rid of this stuff? I also have 8 small killies and 3 baby bristlenose plecos in there.

I'm new to planted aquaria, and don't know the "lingo". A non-technical explaination would really be appreciated.









Thanks in advance.
Sheila


----------



## Sheila (Aug 25, 2003)

I have this ugly, dirty cotton ball looking algae that I cannot get rid of. I have a 29H, heavily planted. I can pull this stuff off but it sticks to everything and seems to try suffocate my plants. I have been doing 2-3 partial water changes a week. The tank is filtered without carbon and has a KH reading of 2, and a GH of 3, PH is 7.0 and currently not injected with co2.

Can anyone tell me how to get rid of this stuff? I also have 8 small killies and 3 baby bristlenose plecos in there.

I'm new to planted aquaria, and don't know the "lingo". A non-technical explaination would really be appreciated.









Thanks in advance.
Sheila


----------



## Roger Miller (Jun 19, 2004)

How long has the tank been set up, what are you using for fertilizers and how much light does the tank have?

Bristlenose have a reputation as good algae eaters. Have you seen them eating the algae that you're concerned about?


Roger Miller

"The indispensible first step to getting the things you want out of life is this: Decide what you want" -- Ben Stein


----------



## Sheila (Aug 25, 2003)

This tank has been set up for a little over 3 months. The plecos have been hard at work, but this stuff multiplies so fast they can't keep up. I did use a fertilizer once....that was when the algae problem went out of control and I stopped using it until it could get it under control again. I'm using a 110w Aqualight. All the plants are very healthy and hearty, but so is the algea. In fact the Madagascar Lace is blooming!

I swear, if I sat and watched long enough I could watch that algae grow.

I hope this helps. Has anyone ever used Algone? I'm almost at my wits end.

I appreciate any help.

Thanks!
Sheila


----------



## George Willms (Jul 28, 2004)

I think that your most likely problem is too much light. How long are the lights on, what kinds of plants do you have? The aqualight is 130w and not 110w, so your running pretty close to 4.3wpg, and doing that without CO2 is asking for trouble! Without co2 and without ferts you are asking for even more trouble!!!! If you don't want or can't do co2 right now I would suggest using only one lamp in the fixture and treating your setup as more of a low-light setup. I have a 29g tank with the same light as you and I use co2 and ferts, it took me a while to find some balance. I would recommend at least a do it yourself co2 system. Let me know if you have any other questions.

George

5.5: mid-tech and maintenance, 29: high-tech, mid maintenance, 45 high: low-tech, low maintenance.

More complete tank specs in profile


----------



## Roger Miller (Jun 19, 2004)

Sheila,

At 3 months, your tank should be settling in or have settled in by now.

Something in your description isn't hanging together for me. You have nearly 4 watts/gallon of lighting over a heavily planted tank, you have a light fish load yet the CO2 concentration in your tank is about 5 ppm and the plants are healthy and hearty, even though you aren't fertilizing.

The problem I have is that with that much light it seems like a tank heavily planted with healthy plants should consume far more CO2 then the light fish load alone could provide. The CO2 level should be lower and/or the plants should not be all that hearty.

What are your standards for heavy planting and for healthy, hearty plants? I know it can be difficult to tell when you are new at planted tanks. For instance, a healthy lace plant should completely fill your aquarium. Flowering doesn't necessarily indicate good health because he Aponogeton bulb can sustain growth and let the plant flower under conditions where the plant can't be maintained in good health.

What other plants are you growing and how often do you prune? With that much light many stem plants should be growing at least several inches a week and require regular pruning.

What I'm getting at is that your tank sounds to me like it *should* be growing algae -- bright light, low CO2 and low or erratic fertilizing are a formula for growing algae.

At the same time the plants *should not* be very healthy. The amount of light you're using should promote fairly rapid growth and force the pH over 7 a few hours after the lights go on. The growth should demand fertilizers in excess of what the fish waste can provide and if the fertilizers aren't given the plants should not look very healthy; I would expect to see yellowing leaves, damaged leaves, plants that drop their older leaves and plants with their older leaves browning. 

I think you can go in three different directions with your tank. You can stay the course you're on and see what happens; you can reduce the lighting to a level more appropriate for slow growth and use a minimal fertilizer regime or; you can add CO2 and fertilizers to balance the amount of light you are giving the plants.

I think you can see the course your on. You probably want to change something. Your second option should give you a slow-growth, low maintenance tank and that may take another three months to settle in. The third option will give you a tank with more growth and require more work but it will give you a result that is more typical of the planted tanks that you see in photographs.

As far as the specifics for the algae is concerned, it would be helpful to have a photo so we can tell what it is. As for the Algone, I can't advise you to poison your tank.


Roger Miller

"The indispensible first step to getting the things you want out of life is this: Decide what you want" -- Ben Stein


----------



## Sheila (Aug 25, 2003)

Thanks!

I do have a nice co2 system, the problem is trying to find a place to get it filled. There is a home brewing store about 2 hours away that I'm going to have to take the time to travel and get it filled. My light is only a 30 inch light, not the 36 that would be perfect for my tank size. That tanks gets about 12-14 hours of light a day.

I have lots of crypts, swords, java fern, madagascar lace, val, anubias, lotus, riccia on rocks, dwarf sag, mondo grass, camboba and more odds and ends.


----------



## Roger Miller (Jun 19, 2004)

> quote:
> 
> I have lots of crypts, swords, java fern, madagascar lace, val, anubias, lotus, riccia on rocks, dwarf sag, mondo grass, camboba and more odds and ends.


Sheila,

The mondo grass will not stay healthy while submersed. The Cabomba and riccia rocks need quite a bit of light but the rest of your plants are suited for tanks with less light than yours.

Most common sword plants will quickly outcrow your aquarium when they are healthy -- in fact most will easily outgrow a tank considerably larger than yours.

You need to pick where you're going with this tank. Most of the plants you have are suited to a low-maintenance tank, but keeping a low-maintenance tank will mean reducing your light level. If you want to stay with a brighter tank then you need to add some faster growing plants to compete with algae and give your plants the CO2 and nutrients to match the light level.

Roger Miller

"The indispensible first step to getting the things you want out of life is this: Decide what you want" -- Ben Stein


----------



## George Willms (Jul 28, 2004)

I totally agree with Roger on this one Sheila. Most of your plants have low-light requirements like he said and many will get too big, specifically swords, aponogetons, and vals. If you want low-light, just use one of the bulbs and remove the riccia and cabomba. Remove the mondo as it isn't aquatic. Depending on which cryupts you have some of them may also outgrow your tank.

There are no welding shops nearby you? That is where I usually get mine filled. I think it's called ag welco or something like that.

George

5.5: mid-tech and maintenance, 29: high-tech, mid maintenance, 45 high: low-tech, low maintenance.

More complete tank specs in profile


----------



## Sheila (Aug 25, 2003)

Thank you so much! My goal is to have someting Amano Takashi would be proud of, but Rome wasn't built in a day. I do have a few welding places close by, but they will not fill anything less than a 20# tank and I just have a 5# tank.

The mondo grass has been pulled out, riccia vacuumed up and one light bar turned off. A friend of mine said he thinks it may be brown hair algae. I will post pics soon.

Thank you guys, so much! At least I know where to start.

Sheila


----------



## ranchwest (Jul 17, 2005)

How about a beverage dealer? Places that sell kegs of beer often have CO2 in various sized tanks.


----------

