View Full Version : Please Help! Gross Black Algae
stussy28
11-22-2008, 4:03 PM
My mother has a 20 gallon tank and I came home and saw that her lava rock and a large patch of gravel have this gross black algae. It is very black and "hairy." It does not just cover the rock it grows upwards, almost like a flame moss but black. How do I get rid of this?
reduce the lighting, increase co2, keep up on tank maintenance
Mgamer20o0
11-22-2008, 9:23 PM
excel can kill it but thats only dealing with the problem not fixing it.
irishspy
11-22-2008, 9:26 PM
That sounds similar to some algae I had infesting a piece of wood in my 10g tank. (You'll find pictures of it through the link in my sig.) I yanked out as much as I could by hand, then did multiple water changes per week. Eventually, it went away.
schmidtfarm
11-28-2008, 10:52 PM
It's called black beard algae, unfortunatley most algae eaters won't touch it. The Siamese Algae Eater is the only known critter that will eat it. The SAE can get up to 6 inches long, though usually stay smaller. I just ordered 3 of them because I'm too overwhelmed to clean the algae any other way . If you decide to go with a SAE be careful to avoid similar species. Good luck!