# What is this brown stringy algae?



## pleco2007

**please Help Urgent!!!**

I have a 40 gallon breeder tank setup. I use black sand as my substract. I have one hang on filter, one canister filter, 3 sponge filters, (1) 92 watt daylight bulb and (1) 92 watt 50/50 daylight/athinic blue. I leave the lights on for about 10 hours a day. Temp is at 83-88 degrees and I only have a DIY C02 system. I just bought a whole bunch of low light plants and warm water plants and they all have long brown hair-like algae on the leaves. In just one week, all the plants have this brown hair-like long strings on them.

1. Is it too late to save the plants?

2. Is this bad algae?

3. What is causing this outbreak?

4. What should I do?

I am a newbie and I need A LOT of help, sorry guys I really need your help.

Dom


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## hoppycalif

*Re: *please Help Urgent!!!**

The main defense against algae is lots of healthy growing plants. With the amount of light you have that means you need to be fertilizing the plants so they can grow as fast as the light intensity is driving them to grow. You also need good, steady CO2 concentration in the water for the same reason.

The actinic half of the one bulb may be aiding algae growth, but it isn't likely to be helping the plants to grow.

Your water temperature is so high everything will be growing faster than normal, including algae.

I suggest adding another DIY CO2 bottle, with the start day a week different from the first one, which will help keep the CO2 concentration inn the water more steady.

To make it easy on yourself I suggest reading about the EI fertilizing method in the sticky in the fertilizing forum, buying the chemicals needed, and using that method to fertilize and change water regularly.


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## Tex Gal

*Re: *please Help Urgent!!!**

1. You have 4.6 wpg. That is a lot of light! I think that is what has caused the algae.

2. Do you have any fast growing plants? It always helps when you first set up a tank as it helps balance out things quickly. You really need some fast growing plants.

3.Your temperature seems awfully high also. I always keep mine at 78-80 but no higher.

4. Are you dosing any fertilizers? The plants need enough nutrients to out-compete the algae. You want the plants to grow quickly enough for the nutrients to be consumed and the algae to starve. Sometimes you can have too little nutrients for the plants but enough for the algae.

5. You can take the plants out and do a bleach dip of 19:1 or 20:1 water to bleach. Leave them in 1-2 min or less. That should kill the algae on them. You can also put them in a strong water solution with Florish excel or dose the entire tank with Flourish excell. Vals don't like the dip or excel. You have to get the algae off the existing plants. I have also spot treated the plants with straight excel from a turkey baster or a syringe. People have used triple the dosage.

6. Since you have DIY CO2 is it a consistent supply? With irregular supply the plants can't maintain consistent uptake and growth so don't use nutrients and the algae gets the nutrients. It also takes the plants a little time to adjust to the CO2 and begin to process the nutrients. That's one of the reasons there is usually a break in period for new tanks which includes algae/diatoms, etc.

You really need to stop the cause of the algae because it will just come back. I think your light is just too intense. I believe it may be your #1 problem. You could also have a combination of the other issues as well.


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## HeyPK

*Re: *please Help Urgent!!!**

If the algae is soft and easily broken, then there are a lot of things that will eat it including grazing fish---mollys, platys, guppies, etc; shrimp, and snails. If it is hard, tough and ignored by the previously named groups, then it will be more of a problem.


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## NoSvOrAx

*Re: *please Help Urgent!!!**

I know the stuff you got. I seem to get it in most of my newly setup tanks that I let get to warm. Mollies will eat it. Lowering the temp will slow it down, and excel will kill it and bleach it. If you use excel, you'll need to remove the algae from the tank, it comes off pretty easy. Don't just let it break up and rot away as it will cause other algae. I find the python is pretty good at sucking it up. Just becareful you don't suck up the plants, or you'll be watching shoot down the tube to their doom. 

Aside from this algae, like everyone above said, you got tons of light. Your going to need to dose ferts heavily and inject alot of co2. 1 2 liter bottle may not be enough. I have 3 40g tanks with the same amount of light and I can't keep algae under control if the lights are on more than 8 hours a day.

On the upside you'll be able to see colors in your plants that only high can create. 

Hate this stuff, color of diatoms, texture of bga, and stringy like hair algae. Can you imagine anything worse? Oh wait, clado is worse!


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## greenisgood

*Re: *please Help Urgent!!!**

Brown sounds like diatoms, not algae. But at any rate the key is balance between light levels, fert levels and plant density. That is a lot of light, probably too much or too long. And probably too little CO2, relative to light and plant levels. You would need lots of CO2 and ferts and grow plants like mad with those light levels, or algae will outcompete in there.


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## NoSvOrAx

*Re: *please Help Urgent!!!**










Looks like this?


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## Rob Tetrazona

*Re: *please Help Urgent!!!**

5 filters on a 40 gallon? Is anybody else concerned that the sponge filters are causing CO2 to escape at the surface? Are the sponge filters air driven? If this is the case, your CO2 may be going to waste before the plants can get to it.


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## pleco2007

*Re: *please Help Urgent!!!**

Thank you EVERYONE!!! You guys are really helpfull and freindly. I will do a 50% water change and buy some new substract and fertilizer. I will also lower my light time to 4-6 hours. What is the BEST substract and fertilizer money can buy???

Thanks again,

Dom


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## Yeaulman

What is this stuff?


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## shoteh

This algae has been popping up everywhere. Many people get it think it's thread or hair algae like I did at first but it's actually rhizoclonium. I got this algae about 2 weeks ago and It's been coming back like crazy even after manually removing it (very hard to do just because it's so slimy and slippery). I'm pretty stumped. Help anyone? You can see my thread http://www.aquaticplantcentral.com/...c-problems/49088-help-identify-algae-pix.html for more pictures.


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## Carlos1583

I'm dealing with the same problem in my tank and I have a thread with some more pictures as well. I've never dealt with this algae in the past 3 years since I've had a fish tank. I'm not sure how I got it but I'm going to try to add some fast growing plants and keep a consistant fert schedule as soon as I get back home in 9 days.


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## shoteh

Keep us updated on the process. I've been trying a few methods according to people's ideas and non is working. So far I've tried upping potassium, upping co2, regular water changes every 3 days and still nothing. I've also bought amano's, mollies, Otos, and rosy barbs and nothing eats them. I'm about ready to throw my tank away. 

I'm thinking it may be because I'm not using RO water, but just my hard tap water. what do you guys think?


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## NoSvOrAx

I have soft water and get it. Whats the tank temp and have you tried excel?


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## Amazon_Replica

shoteh,

you have over 5wpg lighting?


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## shoteh

Yeah I do have over 5 watts per gall, but half of my bulb is actinic so I dont think it has much of an effect on plants, though I have taken that bulb out and still nothing has changed. My temp is steady at 78deg. Maybe I'll try a lower temp? I have tried excel, have not tried shooting it with a baster yet though maybe I could though it's like everywhere.

Hard water is just part of it NoSvOrAx, I wonder if there are other things in the tap, because I know we have to use a water softener here so I wonder if that plays anything into it. I do know that my GH is really high like at 300ppm and 120 of that is from calcium which means the rest is from MG? that's a lot I know.


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## cavin1

I'll just jump in here with my 5 cents worth, try 'hydrogen peroxide', I think the concentrate level is 3% solution. Eye dropper it near the algae and watch the bubbles. It works, the reason we get fooled in our hobby is that this brown/black algae is not an algae, it's an animal, I've forgotten the name. A google search led me to it and I mislaid the info.


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## Carlos1583

I had this problem and I can't say if this method worked or not, but it may have helped. Since I went out of town, I cut the lighting to 4 hours a day and I came back home last night to set up my new tank and I noticed almost no algae. Essentially, I left the tank alone and it sort of fixed itself. I don't know if that will help your problem but its worth a shot.


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## shoteh

I just started h2o2 and manually taking some out. It is lowering it a little. Would I need to do water changes after I use h2o2 or is leaving some in there ok? 

Carlos1583 - I can try to lower the amount of time my lights are on, though I do want my plants to grow as well. But I'll probably try that too.


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## Carlos1583

You're right...but believe it or not, my plants still grew with the lowered light (probably with the help of natural light in the room) but the algae is almost completely gone. Its slower than normal growth but if you do it for a week, it shouldn't affect it too much IMO


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## Yeaulman

So does anyone have a suggestion on what this algae, if it even is an algae, and how to combat it?


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## JHipkin

I have it as well in a new tank. I've lowered light levels and photo period. I'm adding stem plants and pushing the CO2 hard. It seems to have slowed but is still a problem. Some definitive advice would be appreciated.


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## erthlng

The definitive answer for me was to lower the photo period. I have two lowtech/natural Nano tanks I've been experimenting with. I experienced this problem when the tanks were taken from natural window light and were placed into a a much longer and more intense photo period. Within 3 days, both tanks had the brown stringy organism and it was coming on VERY fast. 

I increased the water circulation and decreased the photo period and intensity. It died down fairly quickly and started to come off of the plants as well. It's still there to some degree, but for me, the lights caused the problem.


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## JHipkin

Lights rarely cause these types of problems. Something out of balance, light in combination with something else for example, is usually the culprit. 

I thought the brown slime in my 120 was reducing toward the end of the week. I did a 50% water change on Sunday. When I came home from work Monday night it was back with some enthusiasm even with reduced light levels and photo period.

I got 30 Amano shrimp last week. While they were acclimatizing I put some of the brown slime in with them. They ate it all. I ordered some more shrimp on Sunday but I would still like to know what this stuff is. Amanos, by themselves, can't keep it at bay. Need to know the root cause is.


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## Yeaulman

This stuff is only growing on the top of my tank on the water lettuce and where there is very little flow.


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## Jennifer L

I too am experiencing the same problem in my 49 gal planted tank. I keep 6 brilliant Rasbora, 6 Harlequin Rasbora, six LF Cherry barbs, 3 Cory cats, 6 oto cats. I have had this problem for 4 mos. now. I have yet to try the h2o2. Guess that is my next shot as I have no idea what this live organizum is...us there some one more knowledgeable than the rest of us as to how to rid the tank completely! I clean it off manually daily, trim my plants (have even thought of cleaning them in H2o2 3% mix, too scarey!) If I only had a name for it & a safe antidote! I also increased ny water circulation, this helped some, yet it is there every day to remind me this is about research & action. So...off to do more research...anyone figure out even the name, please, clue us all in. It is knowledge I seek!


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