Red Algae

[tidytourniquet]

I have been getting red algae on my gravel for a few months now and at first I thought it was brown algae but thought maybe the lights or the decor of the tank is making it look a little redish but it started growing on the outflow of my filter and is actually becoming stringy and is definitely red. I tried to look up red algae but the only stuff I can find has to do with salt water tanks which mine isn't. I took a pic of it, the white stuff is just air bubbles caught in the water flow but you can see the red all over the plastic of the filter and the stringy stuff.

Any ideas on what it is and what is causing it? I know our water company had a problem around when I started noticing it and we weren't supposed to drink or cook with the water without boiling it first but that has since been fixed and I'm still getting this even after I have cleaned it. I also have problems with brown and green spot algae but have had those problems for years.

 

[tidytourniquet]

No one has any ideas on what it is, what's causing it or anything at all?

 

[ShoC]

No idea sadly,
It's very hard to tell from this picture!!

can you get a better one?
maybe pull it out and stick it on some white paper and snap a shot!!

 

[tidytourniquet]

Sorry about the pic but for some reason I have the hardest time taking any good pics of my tanks. Right after I took the pic I completely scrubbed down everything in my tank, I am getting some algae already but nothing like what is in the picture. I used a toothbrush to clean the filter off and was rinsing it off in a bowl of hot water and the algae had come off in chunks. Usually when I clean algae off of stuff it sort of breaks up into the water but this never did that and stayed in chuck form. I'll be sure to take a better pic or do as you said and just put some on a paper to take the pic the next time I get enough of this nasty stuff.


Edit: I decided to read some of those Similar Topics at the bottom of the page and in this topic, http/www.fishforums.net/content/Plants-a...-Algae-Problem/ there was a pic of what mine looked like before it started getting stringy on my filter and what it looked like on my gravel and silk plants. They said it just cleaned right off though which I guess it did on the plastic but on my plants when I scrubbed it off it was very difficult and removed some color from the material.

 

[aaronnorth]

it may be a plant like java moss where you get 1 strand which then keeps growing, probably not but worth a guess but i have never seen or read it anywhere.