Algae Problem

[tqfan]

hi, we recently set up our newest tank, and now have an algae problem.

i have enclosed a pic, as i'm not entirely sure what type of algae it is (assuming it is actually algae, lol!). it's dark green, kinda slimy looking.

any ideas on what kind of algae?

we have 2 small bristlenose plecs in the tank, cos we had diatoms not long after the fish were put in, and the plecs cleaned the tank up nicely.

now a couple of weeks later, we've got this stuff on the plants. it's been there a few days now. we tested the water the day after it appeared, ammonia - 0, nitrites - 0.3 and nitrates - 20. ph is at 7, that's all my test kit tests. we did a partial water change a couple of days later (a couple of days ago).

the plants have grown so much since setup, granted not all will stay in place, but they're growing well!!

any tips for getting rid of it?

 

[Murphee]

Looks a bit like Staghorn Algae to me. Manually remove the affected leaves, and make a big water change, you should also make sure you have a good supply of co2, and have a good flow around the tank. This should eliminate it.

 

[tqfan]

hi, thanks for the reply, however i have looked up this Staghorn Algae on the net, and from the pictures i have found, that is not what is in my tank.

i've attached another pic, hopefully it is better seen. i have a few more pics, but i can only upload a small amount at a time.

from what i read and saw of the staghorn, it grows in strands, the strands you see in my pics, are the plant roots... just in case there was confusion.

we have now noticed that there seems to be patches of this algae on the water surface, just floating about, like a film on the water.

any other help?

 

[Liam]

It is Blue green algae (cyanobacteria). There is some info on it in the stickys above. Algae in the planted Aquarium. A three/four day complete blackout often works.

 

[tqfan]

Hi, thanks for the reply Liam. i will print out that thread for better reading

i mentioned to my dad about the blackout and he's a bit concerned about the fish being without food for a few days, but i assume they can survive? or should we get one of those holiday feeder things?!

i'll look about here for more info on blackouts.

thanks again Liam.

 

[Liam]

You are welcome tgfan, Any adult fish will be fine for four days, not feeding them while doing the blackout is better as the dead algae will begin to rot and that will be enough for the filter to deal with, plus in a proper blackout not a chink of light should get in. The fish that only eat in the day would not see the food, lots of people here have done the blackout without problems. If you don't want to do the blackout, you could do a lot of water changing. I have used an air tube to suck off the algae, it comes away easily, if you have the patience and keep doing that then I have managed to get rid of it. I have done a 20%-30% water change every day, clearing all the visible algae for a week or more to get rid of it, that and only having only 6 hours of light may do the job. Lots of filtration and water circulation will help prevent it from returning, feeding the plants or having less light on the tank will also keep it away. The algae wont do the fish any harm but it can grow to a point that it covers everything in the tank and it smells.

 

[tqfan]

it's TQfan, lol!

another quick question - any ideas where i may have got it from?

like i said, water test said nitrates were 20, lower than 10 helps BGA, so i think it's not that.
filter is an external fluval 205, tank is 120 litres, so should be capable of doing it's job. i do have to figure out what it's set at, for the water circulation, but everything seems to move around the tank fine (ie food when i put it in, floating plants and dead fish...)
when we set the tank up, we put in some stuff to help the plants grow, and it's done it's job too. no co2 atm, cos that might get complicated for me, lol! we've not really had a problem with plants growing well, so have never used co2.
light is on roughly 8-10 hours a day.

have i missed anything that might be the cause?

the tank sits below our windowsill, and the sun only hits the front of the house later in the day, and with the tank being below the windowsill, don't think it's getting the sun.

we currently have a major outbreak of whitespot, which is killing our fish, so if we do the blackout, there'll probably be no fish left to worry about... well, maybe the 5 that don't have it! but hey, that's a whole different problem... however, with the water changes we do for that, that should hopefully help with the BGA.

we're just kinda confused as to where it came from! is it possible for fish to bring it in (like the whitespot)?

sorry to keep going on, lol, but thanks again

 

[RadaR]

Concentrations of ammonia spikes (undetectable by test kits) can also cause BGA.
However white spot is a sign that the immune system of the fish is down therefore has been infected by white spot. Fish health decreases with dirty water (ammonia and nitrite) therefore I'd test both of them. I wouldn't be surprised if the ammonia level was high enough to be picked up by the test kit. If so then that's probably the cause of the BGA and white spot. The dead decaying fish will be producing ammonia too.
Water changes are your best bet. This will help against the algae and white spot.

 

[tqfan]

i tested the water, the results i posted above... water seems to be near perfect to me. the whitespot came in on new fish we bought. as we all know, clown loaches are sensitive to white spot, so i take it from that, that it wouldn't matter if the loach was healthy (which it was) or not.

when the fish die, we take them out, we don't leave them in there to decay, we're not stupid. and yes, we are doing water changes.

you said - I wouldn't be surprised if the ammonia level was high enough to be picked up by the test kit. - i don't understand what you mean by that. the test kit tests ammonia, so don't really get what that sentence means.

 

[snowflake311]

I would say it looks like blue green algea. This is not an algea at all but a bactira that uses photosynthestic to make it's food. In fact it has been around for 3.5 billion years.

I have this stuff in my betta tank. It just grows when condition are right. It likes still water. In my betta tank I don't have much water movment. Do more water changes do more then 25%. Increase water movment and ariation will help. Cut back on how long you have the light on for. Those things should help get rid of it.

Also keep removeing it when you see it.

 

[tqfan]

i'm beginning to wonder if it is the water flow. i'm gonna adjust the way the filter is aimed, move it more to the middle of the tank, see if that helps.

we removed some last night, and i read somewhere, that it smells, but it didn't seem smelly to us. unless i was reading something else, lol, i've read so much the last couple of days!

i can say, it's not actually getting worse, so i'll take that as a good sign.

thanks

 

[RadaR]

you said - I wouldn't be surprised if the ammonia level was high enough to be picked up by the test kit. - i don't understand what you mean by that. the test kit tests ammonia, so don't really get what that sentence means.

When we talk about ammonia levels in planted tank regarding algae we are usually discussing the concentrations that are too low to be detected by a test kit, but still high enough to cause algae. Something like 0.005ppm.
Therefore, with the deaths and possible cause of the white spot, I was anticipating a reading that could be registered on test kit.

 

[RENDOG]

I used a product from Mardel called Maracyn....it contains erythromycin. I doubled up the dose on the first day and then regular after the first day.

I did an extensive amount of research and nothing worked. I had read many articles about this treatment and finally gave in. It worked. You will need to give it at least 3-5 days before you start seeing results.

If you are nervous then that means you are normal but I think you will be happy with the results.

 

[tqfan]

i've read it kills the good bacteria, though, is that true?

and if so, is that not a bad thing?!

see, you can find info on the net, but it doesn't tell you these little things!!

 

[aaronnorth]

The gram stain technique refers to the structure of the cell walls.

Bacteria is broken down into two groups, Gram-positive (G+) and Gram-negative (G-). Erythromycin is more effective on (G+) bacteria.Blue-green bacteria belongs to the (G-) group. But it is alot more sensitive to erythromycin then other (G-) bacteria. The bacteria for the nitrogen cycle are in the (G-) group, and alot less sensitive to erythromycin. So your biological filter is safe.

http/www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlere...gi?artid=252138