Algae in Low Light Setup

[gcis]

I guess I am going to go with Low Light plants but what I am running into now is how to get rid of all of the algae in my tank because it was already setup with fake plants. I am starting to see algae on my java fern and sword and I have the light on the tank right now for about 12 hours a day. Should I cut back on the duration of the lighting?

[MrGoodbytes]

How much light (in wpg) are you providing? What's your bioload and your water change regime like?

[Freshwater Noob]

I have 80 watts over my 55 gallon tank. I have 15 neon tetras, 6 peppered cories, 2 cherry barbs, & 3 mystery snails. I do a 25% water change every 5 days and I only have 1 java fern and 1 amazon sword in the tank.

[StereoKills]

I found two things to help me with algae in a large low light tank. Frequent water changes (every other day or so) and splitting my photoperiod up (ex: on for 6 hours, off for 2, on for 6). I did that until the algae cleared up, which only took a week or two.

[bushwhacker]

any planted tank is going to have some algae, after all it is a plant.. but the higher order plants ( the ones ya want) can outcompete the algae you need more plants to use up the nutrients.. also and there are different opinions on it i have used a product called al-gone with good results just my opinion
bush

[phanmc]

I agree with bushwacker's first point, get more plants in there. The most common mistake that people make with a planted tank is starting with only a few plants to see if they'll live. Pack that tank up with hardy plants and you'll have less algae issues.

[Freshwater Noob]

It sounds like I have made a rookie mistake........only starting with two plants against a tank of algae.......If I go to more plants with my low light setup do I have to worry about CO2 or ferts or just let them be and dose the tank with flourish?

[phanmc]

If you remain at low light then you won't need CO2 and you'll likely not need a lot of extra ferts, dosing Flourish once or twice a week should be sufficient.

[wesknox]

How long has your tank been setup? If your tank has been up awhile and you have a lot of detritus/buildup in your substrate, the rich nutrients will make it very difficult to keep algae at bay even if you increase plant population. I'd suggest that you evacuate the livestock and drain and wash gravel and then plant. Add some substrate ferts (in moderation) and start with a good supply of live plants. Stirring up the current substrate while planting new plants will almost guarantee a nasty algae attack if you've got built up detritus down there.

[fishorama]

I use root ferts for my low light sword, both micro w/iron & macros. It's ok at best after a few years. I'd shorten your photo-period to 9 or 10 hours.