# Elimination of BGA?



## ngb2322 (Apr 9, 2008)

My nitrates dropped low last week and a BGA outbreak occurred. I've returned my water to good levels, but the BGA hasn't gone away, and I don't think it will, at least from what I've read. I've heard two approaches: blackout for 2-3 days, or anti-bacterial (Erythromicin, I think that's how its spelled)
Both have their downside and I'm looking for advice on my next step in the BGA battle. I don't want to do either, but I know I need to do something.

Here's some tank specs:
75 gallon tank, 4x65W 6700k CF 
Daily light sessions: 5 hours on, 2 hours off, 5 hours on, 12 hours off
pH 6.8-7
KH 5 deg
GH 10 deg
Ammonia 0ppm
Nitrite 0ppm
Nitrate 10-20 ppm
Phosphate 0.5 ppm
Rena xP3 and Rena xP1 in service
Red Sea 500 CO2 reactor at 1-2 bps
Turbo Twist 9W UV sterilizer in line with xP1 outlet

Any suggestions? I've tried to just rub the BGA off the plants (so far it has only affected the water sprite, camboda carolinia, and hornwort), but it keeps coming back and I think rubbing it off and trying to remove it just spreads it. Has anyone just trimmed the affected parts of the plants and removed them?

Thanks,
nate


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## MatPat (Mar 22, 2004)

If you are positive it is only on those affected plants you should be able to trim it off. I would guess that some of the BGA will become free floating when you remove the trimmed plants and will probably spread. 

I prefer the blackout method since it is free. I really have not found a downside to doing a blackout yet. Plants always do well and it doesn't affect the fish. If there are fry in the tank they may not get enough food without the light but other than that I have never had an issue with doing a blackout. 

What plants do you have in the tank other than those already mentioned?


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## ngb2322 (Apr 9, 2008)

Radica sword
Red Melon Sword
ALTERNANTHERA REINECKII 'LILACINA'
ANUBIAS BARTERI VAR. NANA
ANUBIAS BARTERI VAR. NANA 'PETITE'
BACOPA CAROLINIANA
BACOPA MONNIERI
CRYPTOCORYNE UNDULATA
Didiplis diandra
Hygrophila corymbosa 'angustifolia'
Hygrophila difformis
Hygrophila polysperma
Ludwigia repens
Microsorum pteropus (narrow leaf and regular)
Rotala macrandra 'Green Narrow Leaf'
Sagittaria subulata
Vallisneria asiatica var. biwaensis 

Yea its a lot more than I thought. Anyways, It's pretty heavily planted, but not overly so. I'll post some pictures tonite


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## MatPat (Mar 22, 2004)

As you may have noticed, it seems like the BGA is collecting on your fine leaf plants. Take a good look at your D. diandra and see if it has any forming. For the plants you have listed, none should have an issue with a blackout. They may "reach" upwards for the light or get pale but they should be fine. The C. undulata may or may not be fine...you never know with Crypts. 

Since you just did a semi-blackout, I would try manually removing the BGA to let the plants recover a bit. Put your siphon next to the plant you are cleaning and rub the leaves while siphoning the BGA off of the plant. This should get most of the BGA out with the water change. I hook a hose up to my Magnum on occasion and suck the BGA off of the leaves then clean out the filter. If you can get the visible BGA off of the plants prior to the blackout, 2 days may be sufficient for a future blackout. Skip the Excel dosing this time and definitely turn off the CO2 during your blackout. 

I honestly think the addition of Excel during your blackout did in your Downoi. Some plants do not handle blackouts or Excel very well. Did Tom by chance have Downoi in the tank he used this method on?


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## ngb2322 (Apr 9, 2008)

Thanks for the advice. It seems to have cleared up a good bit already. I'll keep a close eye, use the siphon technique during my next water change and try a black out if necessary


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## ngb2322 (Apr 9, 2008)

so......today i did a major rescape, removed a good amount of DD, hornwort, and water sprite. Also, I removed each plant, one at a time, and rinsed them to remove BGA. Tank looks pretty clear of BGA, but I'd still like to figure out why I had the outbreak in the first place. Was it because my nitrates dropped too low or too high or what? Or is there another stimulus that brings about BGA?

Muchas gracias


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## Missy B (Jul 8, 2007)

I know that not having good water circulation in the tank can also be a factor with BGA.


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## Kaieisis (May 17, 2008)

I had an outbreak of BGA once. I just used the antibiotics (ethryomycin) and that killed it all in about 5 days.
Never came back after that.


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## doubleott05 (Jul 20, 2005)

seachem excel will destroy red black and green algae (not bacterial infections hense blue/green algae) 

over dose your tank with excel(3 to 4 times the reccomented dose) and watch the bba go from red to white and fall off in a matter of days


excel destroys algae no substitues:boxing:


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## Kaieisis (May 17, 2008)

doubleott05 said:


> seachem excel will destroy red black and green algae (not bacterial infections hense blue/green algae)
> 
> over dose your tank with excel(3 to 4 times the reccomented dose) and watch the bba go from red to white and fall off in a matter of days
> 
> excel destroys algae no substitues:boxing:


excel DOES NOT kill blue-green algae (i tried)...this is because BGA is a bacteria and not an algae. Just use anti-biotics.
There was no effect on my biological filter from what i saw.


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## YellowSno (Apr 2, 2008)

curious question... ive just blacked out my tank to get rid of bga and was wondering should i be expecting a reoccurance of it since i only used the black out method...?


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## MatPat (Mar 22, 2004)

YellowSno said:


> curious question... ive just blacked out my tank to get rid of bga and was wondering should i be expecting a reoccurance of it since i only used the black out method...?


If you don't address the issue(s) that caused it in the first place then it will probably return. That goes for any of the methods at eliminating any type of algae. I tend to get BGA when I let my filter flow become too low in the tank or when I let my NO3 levels drop too low. Others claim that high NO3 levels are the cause though I have never had this problem even when my NO3 levels were over 40ppm. Address the root cause for the BGA and it should not return.


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## Kaieisis (May 17, 2008)

MatPat said:


> If you don't address the issue(s) that caused it in the first place then it will probably return. That goes for any of the methods at eliminating any type of algae. I tend to get BGA when I let my filter flow become too low in the tank or when I let my NO3 levels drop too low. Others claim that high NO3 levels are the cause though I have never had this problem even when my NO3 levels were over 40ppm. Address the root cause for the BGA and it should not return.


I saw the same thing.
When my NO3 levels dropped less than 3ppm for an extended time, BGA started to come around. Other unknown factors might have been involved, but thats when it started for me.


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## ngb2322 (Apr 9, 2008)

Mine started when I let the NO3 levels drop. I upped the levels, but once it is established it is hard to get rid of. I first tried removing all the plants, rinsing them clean and replanting them, but the BGA returned once again. Then, by chance, some of my Platys developed fin and tail rot, which calls for an antibiotic treatment. It was mentioned in this post that EM (erythromicin), an antibiotic, would kill the BGA once an for all. I am not one for the addition of tons of chemicals and all that, but I didn't want the infection spreading to the other fish, and if it killed the BGA all the better. I spent about 20 bucks for two packs of the EM. Each pack has 10 packets and you are supposed to use 1 packet per ten gallons per dose. The directions also indicate doing 1 dose the first day, 1 dose the second day and a 25% water change the third day, then another dose on the third day after the water change, a final dose on the fourth day, and a 25% water change after that. The directions also indicate to remove any carbon from your filters prior to use. I don't use any carbon so that was a non-issue. I followed all the directions, my fish are great and the BGA is completely gone, with no signs of coming back. However, the treatment is stressful to the fish, and I lost 2 of the 5 infected platys and an otto . Other than that, the EM worked great.


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## dirrtybirdy (May 22, 2007)

i had pretty bad bga in my 10 gallon last week. i added a powerhead, left it on full blast and in a day most of it went away. its still in there and its still going away...just a suggestion.


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## xspy (Mar 29, 2008)

I have had BGA in 2 of my tanks. Both have power heads and alot of water movement. I have found that water movment dosn't help as suggested before. None of my fish have experienced any issues due to BGA. the stuff I used also never said to remove your filter media. I used Mardel Freshwater Maracyn. No ill effects on any plants nor fish. I have used it on 2 tanks that were infected and I would use it again.


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