Algee help !!

[Wadey87fish]

Hey All,
I used to be quite into this and kind of lost it, but really want to get back into in, I've had my Platy this fella must be 5years old so he's doing very well far as I can tell.

But I'm having an algee problem. (See pictures)

Any tips, is it just a matter of cleaning up 10% weekly for a while?

 

[Wadey87fish]

Will add the filter is brand new, there is some in the filter but 90% of that is just sat on top

 

[Tacocat]

I'm sorry, but what am I looking at? What is the tube in the middle, and shouldn't there be water?

 

[Naughts]

Hey All,
I used to be quite into this and kind of lost it, but really want to get back into in, I've had my Platy this fella must be 5years old so he's doing very well far as I can tell.

But I'm having an algee problem. (See pictures)

Any tips, is it just a matter of cleaning up 10% weekly for a while?

Is the algae brown? Brown diatoms are common in new setups and can be wiped off the sides during weekly maintenance just before the water change. Water changes should be greater than 10%, I do 50% weekly.

 

[Colin_T]

I don't see any algae problems.

Algae grows anywhere there is light and water. If you have lots of live plants in the tank, they limit or stop the algae from growing. If you don't have many live plants, then algae grows instead.

You can reduce the lighting times or add more plants.

 

[Naughts]

Will add the filter is brand new, there is some in the filter but 90% of that is just sat on top

Don't worry that the filter is dirty, it just shows it is doing its job. If you find it unsightly just put a few rocks or plants (moss ball/ anubias nana attached to rock) on top.

Don't change the filter, it's unnecessary and pricey, it also removes beneficial bacteria. Remove the carbon and zeolite granules and discard them. Keep the sponge, just rinse it in old tank water when doing weekly maintenance. The sponge will last for years.

 

[Wadey87fish]

I'm sorry, but what am I looking at? What is the tube in the middle, and shouldn't there be water?

Lol don't worry there is water, and that's the filter/airpump - it's the green/brown on top of the rocks.

 

[Essjay]

I'm sorry, but what am I looking at? What is the tube in the middle

The tank is one of the biorb range and they use an undergravel filter powered by an air pump and the tube is for the bubbles to pass through. The rocks you see on the bottom are the biomedia. The water also passes though a cartridge for mechanical and chemical filtrtation - that's the circular thing under the tube.