HAIR ALGAE

[FishKids]

Are there any specific crabs or snails that help control hair algae growth? We are with a 12G Nano Cube. Cheers.

 

[Yano]

Saltwater tank?

 

[FishKids]

Sorry, I thought that this forum was exclusively for fresh ("Tropical") water fish, and thus the reason I never specified. Never-the-less our problem is regarding fresh water hair algae. Cheers.

 

[FishKids]

Let me also add that we have already been advised by someone who seems like a very reliable source from this forum. His recommendation was to throw away *ALL* vegetation and boil all the décor. This is a dreaded solution, and something I hope will never need to be done. Cheers.

 

[Dubby]

Mollys, Barbs, Siamese algae eaters, algae eating shrimp, otocinclus all are known to eat algae.

 

[luxum]

The easiest and fastest way to remove hair algae is manually. Get an old toothbrush or filter brush and wind the hair algae around it like cotton candy at the fair. Only green... and icky... um well, anyways! It works great, it will pop the algae off at its attachment point, even from plants. Do this consistently to any algae you see for 1 or 2 weeks and it should be completely gone.

 

[Fish Buddy]

I had a problem with hair algea in my 20g planted aquarium untill I bought 2 siamese flying foxes (siamese algea eater-same thing). That is what I would recommed (no work and more fish )

 

[FishKids]

luxum wrote:

The easiest and fastest way to remove hair algae is manually

Thanks for the encouraging and interesting reply, yet one question remains, "How does one remove hair algae from the edges of Vallisneria spiralis (Straight vallis)". With a toothbrush?? Perhaps tweezers would be more appropriate Cheers.

dubby wrote:

Mollys, Barbs, Siamese algae eaters, algae eating shrimp, otocinclus all are known to eat algae.

Thanks for your suggestion too. With such a small tank I might have room for perhaps 2 more fish..., in your opinion what are the *BEST* algae eaters? Cheers.

 

[FishKids]

Fish Buddy wrote:

...had a problem with hair algae in my 20g planted aquarium until I bought 2 Siamese flying foxes

Thanks..., sounds very promising indeed! I was wondering if anyone else shared similar experiences?

 

[tstenback]

When you say hair algae do you mean long filament type algae or short hair like a beard. If its the long stuff then you remove it from the edge of the val like luxum stated. Just wrap the end of the hair around the brush and keep turning until you feel the pop which means you have removed it. If its beard algae then it is real hard to remove manually from the plants. For the long filament algae SAEs and shrimp are your best bet and SAEs are one of the only fish to eat beard algae. HTH

 

[FishKids]

tstenback wrote:

...SAEs are one of the only fish to eat beard algae

Thanks for your very positive second support of SAEs..., especially since I have always said that 3 opinions represent "infinite wisdom"!

BTW. To reconfirm, we are most definitely dealing with the hair (beard) type algae. Cheers.

 

[Bol]

Well, I'll third the SAE idea, ... but only from secondhand experience. Rosy barbs kind of eat it, too.

By the way, are you interested in treating the cause (why the algae is there) or just the symptoms (how to get rid of what's there)?

 

[FishKids]

Bol wrote:

I'll third the SAE idea

Thank YOU! and thanks everyone. Lastly, I have never heard of an SAE until this occasion. Having just looked over the Internet I did located a site, Siamese Flying Fox, that indicated a 5" fish. That would be tough in my case with a community of small fish consisting of tetras, endlers, and others totaling 31 in a 12G Nano Cube. I would assume then, one could start off with a baby SAE and remove it when the job is done? Does the job of removing *ALL* the hair algae ever get done? Cheers.

 

[jumpman]

cause - phospates/too much light/excess nutrients
have you tried a phosphate remover like rowaphos??

symptons - a trio of SAE's seems to work well in my tanks.

jump

 

[CFC]

SAE's are a fast swimming constantly active schooling fish that require a minimum of a 36" long 30 us gallon tank, these are also the only fish known in the hobby that will actively search out and eat black hair algea as a habbit.

Controling nitrate, phosphate and lighting levels as well as other algea causing factors works as a prevention but not as a cure, once black hair algea is present it is damn near impossible to eradicate without drastic measures.