Algae Problems

[the_lock_man]

Having read the "James Planted Tank" article, it seems I have a multitude of algae in my tank - green dust, green filament, diatoms and black beard. The common denominator seems to be poor CO2, although I have certainly in the past been guilty of having the lights on for too long, and overfeeding the fish. The lights are now on for 8 hours, and I've cut down on the amount of food the fish get.

I have the TMC AquaGro CO2 diffuser kit here. Sometimes it appears that the CO2 doesn't always fully diffuse into the water, and it seems that it gets progressively worse, although an explanation might be that the diffuser takes in oxygen from the plants - in any event, I periodically have to remove the tube and let whatever gas is in there escape to the atmosphere, and then the CO2 diffuses better for a while.

The tank is a 65l, with 6/7 standard vallis, and I tested for phosphate earlier (at the same time as doing my normal nitrogen tests) and I have around 1ppm PO4.

Am I right that lack of CO2 seems to be causing my algae problem? Is this down to the CO2 kit being poor quality? What else can I do to overcome the problem?

TIA for any help and recommendations offered - if anyone needs to ask any questions, please feel free, I am going out now, and will be back on tomorrow morning (UK time) when I can answer anyting.

 

[mbsqw1d]

generally its down to having the balance of the elements plants need correct, and more to the point, having them sustained. an inconsistent level of co2 usually creates algae problems as algae is able to take advantage where larger plants need consistency.

what do u mean when u say your co2 diffuser takes up o2 from the plants?

do u have a co2 drop checker? these are a must for checking that your co2 is running consistently throughout the photoperiod.

what ferts are you dosing the plants and how often?

are u able to add some otto fish to your tank? not the best solution but if u like ottos and your tank is a good habitat for them then they will thrive on all that algae!

is your tank 'heavily' planted?

 

[ian]

i would persoanlly remove the TMC C02, as above the C02 is all over the place, which is just as bad as having little or no C02. If you only have a bit of Vallis in your tank, and your light isn't super high i wouldn't bother with any C02. Putting some ferts in every week or so should surfice.

I would do a massive water change, not feed for about 3-4 days, down the lighting to about 4 hours. Repeat the water changes for a few weeks and it should clear up.

Just let us know what your lighting is? ie wpg or the wattage on the tubes.

 

[myrtle]

Otos aren't really algae eaters, though they will feast happily on diatoms but no planted tank should be without a Bristlenose plec! I can't comment on your set up as I've never used that. Your best bet would be to remove as much as you can manually and then double dose with easycarbo or excel or you could blackout. However, if you don't solve the issue it'll come back so maybe continue dosing normal amounts of liquid carbon.
If you don't have a drop checker I'd get one as you'll find it hard to monitor your CO2 levels and distribution without. If you already have one, try moving it around the tank to find any spots that are low in CO2 and adjust your flow accordingly.
I also had a huge algae problem in my 240l since removing the CO2 and adding a 'bargain' ebay buy of crypts which had algae (I thought I'd removed all the affected leaves but must have missed some). It is almost under control now though with the help of liquid carbon.

 

[the_lock_man]

generally its down to having the balance of the elements plants need correct, and more to the point, having them sustained. an inconsistent level of co2 usually creates algae problems as algae is able to take advantage where larger plants need consistency.

what do u mean when u say your co2 diffuser takes up o2 from the plants?

do u have a co2 drop checker? these are a must for checking that your co2 is running consistently throughout the photoperiod.

what ferts are you dosing the plants and how often?

are u able to add some otto fish to your tank? not the best solution but if u like ottos and your tank is a good habitat for them then they will thrive on all that algae!

is your tank 'heavily' planted?

To clarify for you, at first installation, the diffuser is full of water, and I add the CO2 such that the water level goes down to the required mark. 24 hours later, the diffuser is not full of water, there is still some gas at the top. I then add more CO2, such that the water level goes down to the required mark, again, but this time I have added less CO2 than the previous day, because there was some gas left. Another 24 hours later, and the water level in the diffuser is lwer again than the previous day, therefore adding CO2 to the required level mean even less CO2 being added. My logic is that if it was just that I was adding too much CO2 for the tank to take on, then the water level after 24hours would be at a consistent level. It seems to me that all the CO2 is going into the tank, and the gas that is left over is not CO2, but another gas. The 2 obvious other gases would be air or oxygen. I would have thought that air would not be able to get into the system, as it would not be under enough pressure to do so. Therefore, I thought it most likely that some of the oxygen produced by the vallis was ending up transferred out of the water and into the diffuser. Does that make it clearer?

To answer your other questions, no, I don't have a drop checker, first I've heard of it
I haven't as yet used a fertiliser, the tank ahs only been going just over 6 months, and I used the Tetra pre-fertilised substrate underneath my gravel, and was told that this would last a year (Dodgy LFS advice again?).
I don't think I have capacity within the tank for more fish, I'm somewhat overstocked as it is.
I have 6/7 vallis plants in a 65l tank, so in my mind, it's a medium-planted tank, although Ianho suggests otherwise.

i would persoanlly remove the TMC C02, as above the C02 is all over the place, which is just as bad as having little or no C02. If you only have a bit of Vallis in your tank, and your light isn't super high i wouldn't bother with any C02. Putting some ferts in every week or so should surfice.

I would do a massive water change, not feed for about 3-4 days, down the lighting to about 4 hours. Repeat the water changes for a few weeks and it should clear up.

Just let us know what your lighting is? ie wpg or the wattage on the tubes.

Lighting is 2 x 11w PL

Otos aren't really algae eaters, though they will feast happily on diatoms but no planted tank should be without a Bristlenose plec! I can't comment on your set up as I've never used that. Your best bet would be to remove as much as you can manually and then double dose with easycarbo or excel or you could blackout. However, if you don't solve the issue it'll come back so maybe continue dosing normal amounts of liquid carbon.
If you don't have a drop checker I'd get one as you'll find it hard to monitor your CO2 levels and distribution without. If you already have one, try moving it around the tank to find any spots that are low in CO2 and adjust your flow accordingly.
I also had a huge algae problem in my 240l since removing the CO2 and adding a 'bargain' ebay buy of crypts which had algae (I thought I'd removed all the affected leaves but must have missed some). It is almost under control now though with the help of liquid carbon.

It's a 65l tank, which as above, I feel is already overstocked. Plus I thought plecs grew too big for a 65l?

Thank you all for your input, there are a couple of strategies suggested. Would it be acceptable to carry out the W/C changes and not feed for 3-4 days, as suggested by Ianho, as well as adding liquid carbon (and fertiliser, if the LFS was wrong about the Tetra substrate)? Whilst I don't want to appear as one of those people who asks for advice and then ignores it when it's not what they want to hear, if there were an alternative to restricting light, then that would be my preferred option.