3 Gallon

[terka]

hi,

my first attempt at a planted tank was with my 10gallon. blue-green algae took over the entire thing and i gave up (probably a mixture of not enough plants and no co2).
so i recently got a 3 gallon (or so) vase for my betta and decided to try it out again. just something simple, not a lot of fuss etc. i've seen a lot of people with 1-10gallon tanks that don't do anything extra and they turn out fine.
my 3 gallon has flourite for the substrate and the plant was growing quite quickly for a little while (it well over doubled in size), and now i have algae and i can tell it's slowly taking over. the tank is near a east facing window as that is the only light it gets (no bulb). is there anything at all i can do? should i add some more plants? do i move it away from the window? i really would just love to save it. any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[DiscusKeeper403]

you got to get an algae scrubber and get that stuff off. of course the magnit one won't work on rounded glass but they sell ones that are attached to a stick. that should do the trick.

 

[terka]

i do have a scrubber and the stuff on the sides will be easy to get off. but what about the algae that is all over the plants? that is my main concern.

 

[Liam]

I wrap ‘hair’ algae around a toothbrush if its long enough or pull it off with a tweezers, if its really soft algae you can just remove it between your fingers, not sure which it is from the pics, a bit painstaking I admit but worth it if its irritating you, it’s a nice little betta set up you got with the plants.

 

[terka]

it's definitely not easy to grab but i will try.

what exactly should i be doing to make it not come back though?. do i need to add a fast growing plant to it? move it further away from the light? closer? i don't want it to get so out of control.

 

[rayjay1234]

I dont know how suitable it would be to get an algae eater. Something like a dwarf otto? They sell for $4.99 CAD each at my LFS.

If youre concerned about space or even the betta being territorial towards it you could invest in algone pads. I cant tell how deep your substrate is but they sell really tiny ones that adsorb excess phosphate, nitrite and nitrate in the water. Its safe for the plants, because it only takes up excess, thus not leaving anything for algae. It works wonders in my tank, but I had to stop using it because my ottos had nothing to eat

Just a suggestion

 

[voo]

I'd move the tank away from the window so that it doesnt receive any direct sunlight. That will be the most probable cause of algae.
You could also try the blackout method to get rid of the algae. Cover the tank completely so that no light gets in for 3-4 days.
Overfeeding/bad water can also help algae. How often do you change the water? I don't see a filter there