Algae woes

cpn_aaron

cpn_aaron

recovering fishaholic
Mar 3, 2004
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Melbourne, FL
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I've been away from my tanks for 2 months and my fiance took on the role of aquarium enthusiast in my absence. I always hd some algae issues in my 55 gal tank, but it went overboard now. I have a CO2 injection system and my CO2 level is ~15 ppm. My lighting is 260 watts and I fertilize with iron twice a week and all around macro and micro nutrient fertilizers once a week. My substrate is a 2/3 flourite 1/3 small gravel mix. The lights stay on for 8-10 hrs depending on time of year. The algae is thick, dark green, and mats everything. If it builds up thickly it creates a brown almost ground beef looking mat under the algae. I clean it every day and have been fighting it long and hard since I came home 3 weeks ago. It frustrates the heck out of me since I can't seem to fight it off.
Also, my LFS recommended I try an organic carbon source that you dose once a day wiht my CO2 injection. They use it in their tanks and they are pretty algae free. I was curious if this was bull or if it might work.
 
Well, to start with, you've got a crap-wad of light over this tank! Almost 5 wpg!

It sounds like you've got CO2 under control, although you may want to increase your level to 20-25ppm.

Next, I suspect that if you're only adding macros once a week, they're running out part way through the week and the algae is taking advantage. I've got a relatively low light setup (compared to you), about 3wpg, with DIY CO2, and I have to add macros (N and P) every 2-4 days. Get NO3 and PO4 test kits, for about $20 you'll have both and be able to better diagnose your nutrients.
 
OOOOOOO, Happy.....'A Crap-wad' of light'? :p I've never had a crap-wad of light.
That must be an awful lot of light!!!

cpn -
What exactly are you dosing besides the Fe? Please be specific. And how often?
What is your plant mass like? Heavy, medium, light? Are you doing water changes and how often?

Len
 
the light is heavy now because around Jan the tank will be upgraded to a larger size. I've been squirreling money away for a nice 150 gal acrylic tank to upgrade my fast growing oddballs. I'm dosing with a macro containing watersoluble N,K,P along with the macro minerals like Ca, Mg, etc. The micros are all the basic trace minerals (Mn, Zn, Co, S, etc). I don't have the testing kits yet and it might be a good idea to get some. My plant coverage is medium. I'd like heavy but that will come with time. I'll try uping the amount of fertilizers I add to the tank. I've tried upping the CO2, happy, and my fish certainly didn't like that. The level was ~25 ppm and they were breathing heavily. I don't think I have enough plant coverage to not let CO2 build up levels that are harmful to my fishes health. We'll see what happens.
 
The kits to get are pH,kH,N, & P. Nothing else is really necessary, although every one should know the quality and basic parameters of their tap water. Your water company can supply that information.
I question whatever method you used to gage your CO2 ppm. If it was 25ppm, it's probably not what was stressing your fish.

Try reading our sticky on plant fertilization and also there is much useful information on that subject and others here:
http://www.csd.net/~cgadd/aqua/articles.htm

The reason for your algae problem is most likely an imbalance of nutrients among other things. Many of us have found it easier to find proper balance by dosing individual Macros along with a complete Trace Mix. Seachem's Flourish and Plantex are two very good mixes for this.

If it is possible to cut back on some of your lighting, or increase your plant mass, I think it will be easier to work through your current issues. Increasing your fertilization for insufficient plants to use them, under high light is probably going to increase algae issues.

Len
 
ok. my method for testing is KH and pH measurements then using a pH-KH-CO2 table to equate the CO2 concentration. The table does have some error since my pH tester and table has an increment of .2 pH units. Which with pH as a logrithmic function could make my ppm higher than I think it is. All other water parameters are perfect with reagrds to nitrate, trite, and amonia. I could crank off one of the lights on my strips so that I'm only using 130 watts. That may be a better idea until I upgrade.
I've read the stickies on plant care, and I have been keeping plants for almost 2 years now and this is the first real battle I've ever had with algae.
 
I think you might have not enough surface turbulance in your tank. Do not be too anal about reducing surface turbulance.

You can always add more CO2, the O2 can be depleted and that is why your fish are gasping, not so much from the CO2.

Add some turbulance and you should be able to add more CO2.
Once you do that and the tank takes off some, the plants will really kick out a lot of O2 also which is 100% O2 and not 21% like air.

The pH/KH chart is pretty good but it only accurate generally to about 5ppm with pH kits and you increase this precision further by using a pH pen or Probe.

DIY CO2 will vary also, it will put out a great deal the first day or two and then back off.

Try to keep this in mind also.

Regards,
Tom Barr


Regards,
Tom Barr
 
OH! They're oars! I thought they were forks! :laugh:

Perhaps the balance is between what Tom and Len are suggesting. At your current light and CO2 levels (even if you decrease the lighting), fast growing stem plants whould have your water supersaturated with O2 shortly after lights on.

Increase your density of fast growing stems, they'll also help with uptake of excess nutrients. Plus, you can propagate them to help fill your new tank, cutting start up costs, not that stems are particualarly expensive anyway...
 
Yep, they're oars. I row in the US Rowing coleigiate level for my university.
I've cut teh light down to 130 watts and actually added surface turbulance last night to add O2 before IO read these posts. But I never though of leaving turbulance. My plants are all fast growers. I used swords mostly becasue they can grow well even with abusive larger fish. So there are cuttingsa dn plantlets right now I'm hoping to grow on up. So in a while more plants and less algae I hope.
 
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