Algae Issues

[gwugrad03]

Have had my 55 gallon tank for almost a month now and every thing has been going very well until recently i am getting heavy algae build up on my rocks and plants. anyone have any suggestions on what can be done to help? my light stays on from about 9:30 am to 10:30 pm. is that too much light? just curious how the rest of you have handled algae issues.

 

[Underwurlde]

what kind of algae do you think it is?

 

[Liam]

Algae problems are pretty complex; there are lots of different kinds that prefer different type of conditions. You are right about the amount of time the light is on. Most plants from the tropics get about 9-10 hours of strong light. The extra hours of light is giving the algae an advantage. Cutting back on the amount of time the lights are on should help. Depending on compatibility with the fish and stocking levels you have, adding algae eating fish or shrimps would help. You can take out rocks and wood and scrub the algae off them to help control it. New tanks are much more prone to algae than more established tanks.

You could post on the planted forum here on the site, giving details of your tank such as how much light you have, in watts, how long they are on, how heavy the planting is, whether you add plant fertiliser etc. A pic of the algae would also be useful in identifying the likely cause.