# Strands of algae starting to grow



## Dynomitefries (10 mo ago)

Hi everyone. Im new and this is my first post. Please let me know if I did something wrong or forgot to include something.

I'm having these strands of algae start showing up in my tank recently and I'd like to address it asap before it gets worse. 
My specs:
Water Params: 0/0/30/8.0 ammonia/nitrite/nitrate/PH (I know my nitrates are high and I'm have plans to address it soon)
My tank sits at 16" in height and is using a Fluval 3.0 plant light on 3" risers running the current lighting plan based on Bentley Pascoe's Day Sim for Shallow Tanks








I am using aquarium co-ops root tabs and I WAS dosing with their easy green (6 pumps twice a week).
I started getting noticeable amounts of algae on the walls and on top of leaves. So I cut back the easy green dosing significantly to 1 pump per week. 
Also, I'm not running CO2.
Recently however, I started to get these strands of algae








Can I assume that since I'm not using a lot of liquid fertilizer anymore, my lighting is causing this issue?
My other concern is my Java fern leaves are becoming transparent, which I'm assuming is due to lack of nutrients....so I need to dose more liquid fertilizer?
All in all, should I be lowering the amount of time my lights are on in order to stop algae growth and allow for more dosing?

Any help/recommendation/tips are appreciated

Thanks!


----------



## mistergreen (Mar 3, 2007)

How often do you change your water?
remove the affected leaves. They’re dying and leaking nutrients so algae grow on them. Looks like staghorn.
25% water change 2x a week seems to help a lot.


----------



## Dynomitefries (10 mo ago)

mistergreen said:


> How often do you change your water?
> remove the affected leaves. They’re dying and leaking nutrients so algae grow on them. Looks like staghorn.
> 25% water change 2x a week seems to help a lot.


So it's because they're dying that causes algae to grow on them? What issue does the water change address?


----------



## mistergreen (Mar 3, 2007)

Any leaves with holes in them are damaged. Simply prune. People forget a gardener's job is to grow and prune.
Water changes remove waste nutrients and replenish Ca, Mg, and some other micronutrients.


----------



## Dynomitefries (10 mo ago)

mistergreen said:


> Any leaves with holes in them are damaged. Simply prune. People forget a gardener's job is to grow and prune.
> Water changes remove waste nutrients and replenish Ca, Mg, and some other micronutrients.


The leaves that the algae are growing on don't have holes in them (I definitely have some plants that have holes in the leaves though). Should I still prune the leaves that have algae on them?


----------



## mistergreen (Mar 3, 2007)

yes, prune leaves covered in black stuff too. That could be black beard.


----------



## Steven F (Aug 1, 2021)

Easy green fertilizer is not a complete fertilizer. Ithas all plant nutrients except Calcium, copper and nickel. If Ca, Cu, Ni are not in your water, or substrate. IF only one nutrients plants need is missing your plants cannot grow. When that happens the plants stop consuming fertilizer. Algae thrives in these situations. 

Now you tank may have originally Ca, Cu, Ni but your plants probably consumed all that was available.

Now there may be other issues with the fertilizer but I have no way of knowing what that may be. But if we assume you tap water has at Ca, Cu, Ni a regular weekly water change would help. Because the water would add what is missing from the fertilizer you add. If it does the plants may outcompete the algae for the nutrients and the algae may die off.

IF he problem is not Ca, Cu, or Ni then the problem will continue to worsen


----------



## mistergreen (Mar 3, 2007)

Oh, try turning down the light duration too to 7 hours. Too much without co2 is no bueno.


----------



## Dynomitefries (10 mo ago)

Ok, so I've pruned off some of the leaves with staghorn algae growing off it. Not sure if I should prune the leaves that are blackish brown, could it just be diatom algae? The tank is like 1.5 months old. Additionally I'll be doing water changes more frequently. Should I hold off on adding fertilizer for now?


----------



## mistergreen (Mar 3, 2007)

Keep adding ferts. Plants need to eat. Reduce your light duration.


----------



## early bird (10 mo ago)

Dynomitefries said:


> Hi everyone. Im new and this is my first post. Please let me know if I did something wrong or forgot to include something.
> 
> I'm having these strands of algae start showing up in my tank recently and I'd like to address it asap before it gets worse.
> My specs:
> ...


What size tank are you running ? the easy green, you use *1 pump for every
10 gals* so if you have a 10 gal tank pump 10 times If you have a lot of plant's
if you have just a few plant's then I'd cut it back to 5 pumps once a week.

If you have a strong light -yes that could be the problem & the best way to 
solve that is to cut your light time back from how long it's on to 1/2 that
like if you have them on for 6 hrs. cut it down to 3hrs in the morning &
3 at night that will be a big help & for the algae you have, looks like bba.

I had that stuff & it's easy to grow & to get rid of just by using peroxide 
you turn off all pumps (water movement) get a syringe & fill it with the 
peroxide & go right on the algae & squirt some of the peroxide on it 
don't turn on the pumps for 10 15 mins & it will kill the algae that's it.


----------



## Javadan3 (Mar 28, 2021)

early bird said:


> What size tank are you running ? the easy green, you use *1 pump for every
> 10 gals* so if you have a 10 gal tank pump 10 times If you have a lot of plant's
> if you have just a few plant's then I'd cut it back to 5 pumps once a week.
> 
> ...



I should introduce myself before writing a reply.

I've been a member for a while, but generally just read and haven't posted anything. I think I was also a member years ago maybe in the late 90s early 2000s. I think it was this group but not sure. I started in the hobby in 1980, but stayed mainly at the hobbyist level.

With regards to this thread, I see that you were dosing six pumps of easy green twice a week. Six pumps with medium light would be a dose for a 30 gallon tank according to easy green directions. One pump for 10 gallons for low light and two pumps per 10 gallons for medium light, once a week. So I guess with your large volume of plants doubling that to twice a week is working for you.

Unless I'm reading early bird's post wrong, I think it's mistaken. One pump per 10 gallons. 10 pumps is enough for 100 gallons. Now, I should say I don't use easy green. I mix my own from dry ferts and being that my tanks are small, the largest being 29 gallons, I dose daily using a 1 ml plastic syringe. I've also made root tabs from clay infused with dry ferts. So maybe being that I never used easy green I don't have a right to speak up here, but seeing that information posted in error for how many pumps of easy green to put in a 10 gallon tank, I thought I should say something.

As far as the algae goes, of course as has been suggested water changes are good and turning your lights down can help, but you can also try something to get rid of the algae naturally. I realize hydrogen peroxide was suggested and can be used carefully in low doses, but I stay away from it. At a local club auction I recently bought a huge piece of java fern on driftwood. It takes up a third of my 29 gallon tank and is beautiful, but when I got it home I saw there was a lot of algae on the one side of it. My fix for that was to stop putting zucchini in the tank and the Rams Horn snails ate the algae off of that Java fern in a few days. They haven't bothered it since because from what I understand java fern is not a leaf that anything likes to eat, so I'm putting the parboiled zucchini in the tank again. Otocinclus cats love algae as well and are a big plus to have in a planted tank, but they really should have algae or a good biofilm to graze on.

So that's my two cents. Find the balance for light, fertilizers, partial water changes, and feedings for your tank.

Early bird, I really like the picture that you use. It reminds me of the long body goldfish that I used to keep in a 100 gallon long, years ago. My daughter and I used to catch them out of a local pond. They had nice long finnage like that and some of them had beautiful red and white colors.


----------



## Javadan3 (Mar 28, 2021)

Dynomitefries said:


> Hi everyone. Im new and this is my first post. Please let me know if I did something wrong or forgot to include something.
> 
> I'm having these strands of algae start showing up in my tank recently and I'd like to address it asap before it gets worse.
> My specs:
> ...


Rather embarrassed that I have to amend what I wrote about the easy green dosing. Easy green directions say one pump(1 ml) per 10 gallons.
Dose once a week for low light aquariums.
Dose twice a week for medium light aquariums.

So you're dosing six pumps twice a week. You're also running pretty good lighting, so your six pumps twice a week would be a dosage for a 60 gallon tank.

Fertilizers usually recommend using the standard starting dose initially and wait for a while to see how it's going before increasing the dosage.


----------



## alisonc (Mar 28, 2021)

Dynomitefries said:


> Hi everyone. Im new and this is my first post. Please let me know if I did something wrong or forgot to include something.
> 
> I'm having these strands of algae start showing up in my tank recently and I'd like to address it asap before it gets worse.
> My specs:
> ...


Hi. I will add my two cents for what it’s worth! I always have a mix of fast growing hungry plants along with less active types to mop up excess nutrients and find this keeps the balance. That said, I run nutrients EI - daily - macro one day, micro the next with minimal light levels 2watts per gallon. A few Floating plants might work to lower the light getting to your rooted plants? If their roots grow fast it might indicate excess nutrients? I used to get black beard algae before I set up my Walstad tanks. I got rid of BBA with liquid carbon dosing but it’s nasty stuff and wouldn’t use it long term! Also snails and or Amano shrimp help keep algae in check too. I’m not an expert but this approach works for me so thought I would share!


----------



## early bird (10 mo ago)

Javadan3 said:


> Rather embarrassed that I have to amend what I wrote about the easy green dosing. Easy green directions say one pump(1 ml) per 10 gallons.
> Dose once a week for low light aquariums.
> Dose twice a week for medium light aquariums.
> 
> ...


"I have to amend what I wrote about the easy green dosing." 
I use easy green for my plants, but I also use my dirty goldfish 
filter cleaning water for fertilizer as well for nitrogen & I pour 
a 16 oz bottle of that every _OTHER WEEK_ of the easy green.


----------



## Javadan3 (Mar 28, 2021)

I haven't heard of using fish waste regularly as a plant fertilizer, other than the fertilizer provided by fish in that tank and any bits of food that might not have been eaten. Perhaps it's being added to a tank that has no fish?

I used fish waste water to fertilize terrestrial plants, but would never add it to any of my aquariums, not wanting to deteriorate water conditions for the fish in those tanks.


----------



## early bird (10 mo ago)

Javadan3 said:


> I haven't heard of using fish waste regularly as a plant fertilizer, other than the fertilizer provided by fish in that tank and any bits of food that might not have been eaten. Perhaps it's being added to a tank that has no fish?
> 
> I used fish waste water to fertilize terrestrial plants, but would never add it to any of my aquariums, not wanting to deteriorate water conditions for the fish in those tanks.


That's just it there is no fish in my planted tank, It's just plant's.
That's what makes it so nice to have a 110 gal stock tank with 
8 comet goldfish & a wild carp, I have a 66 qt storage container 
that I turned into a filter box for the goldfish & once a month I
clean the filter pads in a 3 gallon bucket of goldfish pond water 
& after cleaning all the muck out, I rinse them in clean water &
from the water I used to clean the filters with is what I use in 
my planted tank & everything is growing just fine.


----------



## Dynomitefries (10 mo ago)

Thanks everyone for the suggestions. I cut back on the liquid fertilizer for now and added some floating plants to address my nitrate issues. My next step will be to reduce the lighting to see how that goes.


----------



## early bird (10 mo ago)

Dynomitefries said:


> Thanks everyone for the suggestions. I cut back on the liquid fertilizer
> for now and added some floating plants to address my nitrate issues.
> My next step will be to reduce the lighting to see how that goes.
> 
> ...


----------

