# 55 gallon algae ridden



## jeremyblevins (Oct 9, 2010)

alright i feel embarrassed to post this but my 55 gallon aquarium is full of hair algae and some bba on the java moss. the hair algae is covering most of the aquarium and i clean up all i can each week but it's back again usually half way through the week. 
the tank has a 4 foot shop light with 64 watts
diy co2
gravel substrate
driftwood
fluval 305
water wisteria
anacharis
java moss
5 pearl gourami

my ideas are that it's either cause by
1 the diy co2
2 the lack of ferts
3 the low stocking level

the only fertilizer i have is aqueon plant food, and due to my budget i can't really afford the 25 for dry ferts.
so any ideas?


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## flashbang009 (Aug 6, 2009)

Welcome to APC! There's all kinds of information here to help you learn and figure out some of your tanks problems.

No need to feel embarrassed about algae problems! I still have algae problems in my 75 gallon after 2 years!

Sometimes Diy co2 can lead to algae because of the fluctuations in co2 levels. With the plants you have, co2 shouldn't be needed so try removing the diy co2 for a week and see how the algae does.

Also, how old are the light bulbs in the shop light? Even though fluorescents take a while to burn out, they lose the ability to emit light that plants can use after 6-8 months. Then algae grows to use the light that the plants couldn't. 

You stocking level is low for a 55 gallon like you said. Try adding another school of fish to add to the bioload. Just make sure that they are compatible fish by searching the internet or asking around.

Also, how old is the tank setup? Most tanks go through a "New tank syndrome" for months even years before they level out and for your plants to out compete the algae.


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## dabrybry (Jun 27, 2010)

Black the tank out for a week or so, only giving it 2-4 hours of light a day, no ferts. Cover with trashbags during the dark periods so it's COMPLETELY blacked out. after that, clean out dead algae and do a big water change.


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## flashbang009 (Aug 6, 2009)

I wouldn't resort to a black out before trying the other suggestions. Black outs can be stressful on fish, will kill most plants, and doesn't address the source of the problem.


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## Seattle_Aquarist (Mar 7, 2008)

Hi jeremyblevins,

How long is your photoperiod? With slightly over 1 watt per gallon your light intensity is low so I am surprised you are having so much problem with algae. 

You might try some other plants like cryptocorynes, water sprite, and anubias in your tank to help remove the nutrients that the algae is using for growth.

Algae is considered a "lower plant" on the evolutionary scale. It has trouble adapting to changing environments. Doing a 30% - 50% water change twice a week will make it more difficult for the algae to thrive. If an algae outbreak starts in one of my tanks, I immediately go to 2X week 50% water changes to help bring it under control.

Fertilizer does not have to be expensive. If it were me, I would use Seachem Flourish Comprehensive (1 teaspoon per 60 gallons twice a week) and Flourish Excel (if dosed at 2X the Daily dosage it has algacide properties, effective on filament type algae).


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## jeremyblevins (Oct 9, 2010)

My photo period is 12 hours. The tank is like 3 months old if it makes a difference?


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## flashbang009 (Aug 6, 2009)

Try adding a "siesta" period in the middle of the day, meaning add 1-2 hours of no light. For instance 4 hours on, 2 hours off, 4 hours on. Like Seattle said, algae is a primitive plant, meaning it has a hard time adjusting and needs lots of continuous light.

And being 3 months old makes a difference. Most tanks go through 3-5 algae stages before leveling off and "maturing".


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## jeremyblevins (Oct 9, 2010)

Do you think it'll go away naturally? I didn't really think it was part of the algea cycle because its covering everyhing.


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## davemonkey (Mar 29, 2008)

With the very little light, it might be that you don't need to add ANY ferts. My thought is that you don't have enough light for the plants to utilize the nutrients available, so the algae is uing them instead. OR, you don't have enough of a certain nutrient (such as Nitrogen or Phosphorus, for example) and the other nutrients (like micronutrients) are overly available and the algae is taking advantage. 

You have to have a balance of lighting, ferts (macros and micros), photoperiod, bio-load, available carbon (which you have with your DIY)... It takes time to figure out what that balance should be, so don't get frustrated too quickly.

For what it's worth, I had a thick carpet of hair algae all over my plants once. I think I finally narrowed it down to inconsistent carbon (CO2) and overly abundant iron. But that was in a higher-light tank (55 gal with 130 watts).


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## jeremyblevins (Oct 9, 2010)

davemonkey said:


> With the very little light, it might be that you don't need to add ANY ferts. My thought is that you don't have enough light for the plants to utilize the nutrients available, so the algae is uing them instead. OR, you don't have enough of a certain nutrient (such as Nitrogen or Phosphorus, for example) and the other nutrients (like micronutrients) are overly available and the algae is taking advantage.
> 
> You have to have a balance of lighting, ferts (macros and micros), photoperiod, bio-load, available carbon (which you have with your DIY)... It takes time to figure out what that balance should be, so don't get frustrated too quickly.
> 
> For what it's worth, I had a thick carpet of hair algae all over my plants once. I think I finally narrowed it down to inconsistent carbon (CO2) and overly abundant iron. But that was in a higher-light tank (55 gal with 130 watts).


yeah those two are along the lines of what i was thinking..
maybe i should just remove the diy co2 even though my plants really took off when i put it in, now they are pearling like an airpump by 6 pm


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## jeremyblevins (Oct 9, 2010)

Seattle_Aquarist said:


> Hi jeremyblevins,
> 
> How long is your photoperiod? With slightly over 1 watt per gallon your light intensity is low so I am surprised you are having so much problem with algae.
> 
> ...


and sorry flourish excel and comprehensive are around 10 a bottle around me, so at that point i could just get dry ferts that would last a lot longer. maybe it's cheaper around you idk.


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## jeremyblevins (Oct 9, 2010)

flashbang009 said:


> Welcome to APC! There's all kinds of information here to help you learn and figure out some of your tanks problems.
> 
> No need to feel embarrassed about algae problems! I still have algae problems in my 75 gallon after 2 years!
> 
> ...


thanks for the welcome 
and i had suspect that the co2 might be the culprit. and the bulbs are about 2 months old so i don't think it's that. they're just phillips daylight bulbs from homedepot if that is bad?


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## jeremyblevins (Oct 9, 2010)

dabrybry said:


> Black the tank out for a week or so, only giving it 2-4 hours of light a day, no ferts. Cover with trashbags during the dark periods so it's COMPLETELY blacked out. after that, clean out dead algae and do a big water change.


and i agree this seems cruel to the fish and doesn't solve the problem it just hides it for a week or two.


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## flashbang009 (Aug 6, 2009)

Now don't get me wrong, blackouts are sometimes necessary, but i think there are better alternatives in this situation.

Anyways, the Phillips bulbs work fine, i used them for a few years with no problem. Very cost effective too!


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## xavierj123 (Aug 24, 2008)

A couple of years ago I had a BGA problem in my 55 gallon tank. I tried the algae killers, the black out treatments, the scraping & cleaning of the algae, the DIY CO2, the water changes, all to no avail. As luck would have it, I discussed my 55 gallon aquarium algae problem with a co-worker who doesn't have an aquarium. One day I was telling my co-worker how my aquarium has live plants and a piece of drift wood that I scrounced out of a local creek and how the slimy blue green algae was covering everything. He surmised it might be the creekwood and advised removing it. After researching the different kinds of algae, I knew it was BGA, a bacteria and not really an algae. (You could have fooled me) So in desperation I removed my beautiful piece of creek driftwood and bought some "maracyn" which was recommended to kill the BGA. To make a long story short, it worked. My BGA disappeared and never returned. I guess the moral of the story is to find out what is causing the algae problem.
In case this helps, I use the KISS Aquarium System (keep it simple stupid) have hard water, no water changes other than added evaporation loss about every 3 days. I switched from 4/10000k lights to 2/Freshwater SlimPac 6700k 54w plant lights on a timer for 8 hours a days. I have live plants which grow like weeds. I use an Ehiem Classic 2213 with only charcoal & 100% polyester. My media is a garden dirt mix with gravel on top about 4" deep. My water is crystal clear, my Angel fish are spoiled rotten and wiggle their bodies when they see me approach at feeding time once a day---except if I wear my cowboy hat, they don't recognize me and are scared to death.


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## Big Dog (Nov 30, 2009)

I think it is not the co2 is causing the problem but how long your light is on for. Look into doing dry fertilizeing. It will cust you about $20.00 a year and your plants will love you for it. I get my stuff at Greenleafaquariums.com


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