Algea Problem

[Lyle]

i learned the hard way that brackish tanks accumulate algea very rapidly. is this algea bad for my fish?? whats the word on diatom filters? i've read that plants can "rid the tank of all algea problems"..... how in the world does that work?! i don't want just a quick fix for this problem, i'd like to do it the right way, what should i do?

 

[IceMan569]

maybe some snails or crayfish

 

[voo]

I've tried adding plants to my brackish tank but still unable to stop the algae, it's covering the plants.

 

[chris_1127]

is it just regular algae, or like a dark green slimey coating that covers everything? I had a cyanobacter problem before that looked like a heavy slimey green coating that spread very quickly - its actually bacterial rather than algae though - treated by a total blackout for several days and treatment with antibiotics.

Alternatively check your nitrates and phosphates - high levels will promote algae growth

 

[Underwurlde]

If you have plants that grow well, they will dominate any algae & it will die off - think of it as a kind of warfare between the two.

Notice the IF above.

For PLENTY of plants, high lighting, CO2, and overdosing of NPK (on even days) and traces (on odd days) will give your plants everything they need and will dominate out the algae. Always follow this up with a 50% weekly water change minimum.

This is the Estimative Index approach...

Blacking out works well but the algae will come back as you have not solved the root cause of the algae..... (Only use antibiotics for BGA - which IMHO is NOT a good thing to do as it may??? kill of the bacterial colony in your filters as well so be warned).

Andy

 

[nmonks]

As Andy said, the best way to stop algae in low-salinity brackish tanks is to use lots of fast growing plants. Slow growing plants (e.g., Java fern) have no effect at all. You need Vallisneria, Hygrophila, etc. Depending on the species, there are standard aquarium plants that will tolerate 1.003 to 1.005. See the excellent pinned topic in this section.

There are also some good algae eaters at your disposal, though the effect that this will have depends a lot on the context. If you have plants, then algae eaters will polish off the last remnants of algae pretty well. If you have an aquarium with tonnes of algae and no plants, then all the algae eaters will do is further fertilise the water. Anyway, mollies and Florida flagfish both eat a lot of algae, and violet gobies will eat some, particularly from rocks. Nerite snails and algae shrimp (amano shrimp) will also do well in low salinity tanks, and some nerite snails (olive nerites for example) and take anything up to marine salinity.

The other way of looking at algae is that it's part of the brackish water habitat. Once it gets to a certain thickness it can actually be quite attractive, and it's often best to simply wipe the glass at the front but otherwise let the algae do its thing. Most fish prefer algae instead of bright rocks and clear glass, and things like scats and cichlids will nibble on its periodically.

Cheers,

Neale

 

[Flumpus]

In my low end brackish tank, I do just what nmonks suggested. The front glass is kept clean with a magfloat, but other than that I let it grow. The rocks look nice with a carpet of green algae on them, and I don't need a background because of the algae on the back glass (and it looks pretty natural).

 

[voo]

I have BGA sweeping through the tank, keep having to remove it each time i do a water change. There's also some brown algae that's covering the leaves on the plants which looks rather unsightly. It's on the rocks, filter and heater too but i'm not bothered about that, it's just the plants.



My vallis also keeps dying but i dont know why. It is growing as there's a new shoot that's growing from one of them and that's growing well. I bought some crypts too which are the ones covered in brown algae. They grow well too as i've just cut off some shoots they had. However i am still losing the battle against algae.



I dont really want to go down the EI route as it's a puffer in the tank so i'm not sure what chemicals would harm it.

 

[Underwurlde]

The NPK & trace element dosing chemicals basically consitite the 17 essential elements that a plant needs (apart from Carbon, Hydrogen & Oxygen).

Think of it like this....

..if a plant needs these elements to live..
..and puffers co-exist with plants...
..then surely the presence of these chemicals (in acceptable quantities of course) must be OK?

Hell, we need the 'chemical' water or we'd die.
Too much and we drown. B)

Andy

 

[voo]

Hell, we need the 'chemical' water or we'd die.
Too much and we drown. B)

Andy

Puffers are sensitive to nitrates, but just how much i dont know. For this reason i dont want to be adding more nitrates, or any other chemicals, that i dont know how sensitive the puffer will be to it.

 

[nmonks]

Nitrate and phosphate are required in much lower concentrations than that normally present in a mature fish tank. Light, CO2, iron, and other trace elements are more likely to be limiting before nitrate. So even if you were adding nitrate to a well planted aquarium because it was being used up, the rate of growth in that tank would be such that the nitrate would be used up by the plants very quickly, and long before it caused your fish any harm.

Vallis fails for two common reasons: the "crown" is below the substrate, or the leaves are pruned too harshly. Vallis should be planted with the top of the roots *above* the sand or gravel. If anything gets into the crown (the growing part) the leaves get damaged and die. When you prune vallis, it should always be at the base, with the leaves pulled away from the crown. Old leaves are always on the outside of the whorl, so they are easy to pull away.

Vallis should tolerate low salinity brackish quite well, as many species are naturally found in estuaries. Of the crypts, Cryptocoryne ciliata is a truly brackish water species and probably the best choice, though C. wendtii is very salt tolerant too (I swear nothing short of fire kills that plant!).

Cheers,

Neale

 

[Underwurlde]

I thought all fish were. Or are puffers particularly sensitive to nitrates?

Anyway, this is why a large weekly >=50% water change is part of EI.... (It maximizes overdosing off ALL chemicals).

Andy

 

[nmonks]

Puffers are -- supposedly -- more sensitive to nitrate than many other fish. I'm not sure whether this is based on scientific experiments or observations by aquarists. Or, for that matter, whether this is reflection to water quality generally or nitrate levels in particular.

I'm also not sure whether this is an across-the-board statement or specific to certain species. Certainly, back when I kept marines during the 80s, puffers like Arothron hispidus were generally considered "hardy" and nitrate-tolerant compared with more delicate marine fish and invertebrates. On the other hand, a freshwater species, Tetraodon mbu is widely said to be very sensitive to nitrate.

Water chemistry may matter, too. Schaefer, in the Aqualog brackish book, states that nitrate levels of 300 mg/l are not toxic because brackish water reduces the effect nitrate has on the fish. Perhaps this is amplified further in seawater, which would explain why puffers kept in seawater (where viable) do particularly well.

It's all interesting stuff, and something I'm not really clear about in terms of science and concrete examples.

Cheers,

Neale