Why Am I Still Getting Algae?

[Ch4rlie]

Would say 3 days TOTAL blackout will be fine for your plants.

 

[Byron]

On the link you posted previously, there is no data on the light intensity so nothing to compare it to.  Watts is not very reliable as this is simply the amount of energy a tube requires to produce the light.  So it is not easy to determine the intensity of that light.  Knowing the tank dimensions however, which is a basic (or "high") 20 gallon, I would wonder if this is bright light.  If it is, then reducing the duration may have minimal effect.  There is a balance between intensity and duration, and one does not make up for the other; i.e., if the light is intense, reducing the duration will not help much, and similarly if the light is too weak, lengthening the duration will not help the plants get more light.
 
Second observation is that a week is not much time to gage any changes.  Whenever I make changes to lighting or fertilization, I always allow three weeks minimum to see the results, sometimes longer.  And here, what you are looking for is not for the existing algae to disappear because it will not (unless you manually remove it), but you want to see no increase in what is already there.  Once you see this, you will know you have likely found the factor.
 
I still wouldn't recommend a blackout.  If the initial cause is not corrected, the algae will only return.  In my 20+ years I have battled brush algae several times, and I have always ended its increase by adjusting the light or the fertilizers.
 
Byron.

 

[TallTree01]

Okay Byron, I'll wait a couple more weeks.

 

[TallTree01]

Was talking to a mate today, he said that he had some EasyLife Algexit left over from his battle with algae ( it won the war for him ) so gave it to me. I had a look online and its reviews are great. Has anyone had experience with this product?
I'll give it a go and if it doesn't work or I see negative effects on the livestock I'll stop dosing immediately.

 

[Byron]

Was talking to a mate today, he said that he had some EasyLife Algexit left over from his battle with algae ( it won the war for him ) so gave it to me. I had a look online and its reviews are great. Has anyone had experience with this product?
I'll give it a go and if it doesn't work or I see negative effects on the livestock I'll stop dosing immediately.

 
This I most certainly do not recommend.
 
Adding chemicals to a tank with fish is never a sound idea.  Every substance entering the water is going to pass through the fish's gills.  At the very least, this can be stressful, and stress weakens fish.  And as more than one planted tank author has written, any product actually strong enough to kill algae is almost certain to harm some if not all plants.
 
I went to their website to see what is in this but it is not mentioned, something that raises more red flags.  But I did see this paragraph, which not surprisingly echoes what I have maintained:
 
Algae are produced when an aquarium is not well balanced. Causes of an unbalanced aquarium are the excessive feeding of fish, too many fish in an aquarium, excessive lighting or excessive fertilization. You also take them home when you purchase fish or plants!
 
Using chemicals is like band-aiding.  Treat the problem, don't cover it up with temporary fixes that do not address the issue.  If you had a dead rat in the kitchen cupboard that smells, you don't spray air freshener to cover it up; you get rid of the problem.
 
Byron.

 

[TallTree01]

Well decreasing the light hasnt stopped it from spreading. I haven't noticed a change in the rate of algae expansion. I'm at a loss as to what else to do. I'll hold off on the chems til I'm certain there is nowhere else to go.

 

[TallTree01]

I am happy to report that the algae is gone. The shorter light terms and plant ferts really helped. Thanks a lot guys!

 

[Byron]

There you are.  Thanks for letting us know.
 
Byron.