I have noticed, growing on my rocks and fake and live plants, a velvet looking black algae. I have taken out several plant and it is very hard to get off and even when most comes off it still leaves a residue. Should I soak my plants in a bleach solution? If anyone has any links or other info on what it is and how to get rid of it I would really appreciate it. Thanks
black velvet algae?
- Thread starter Bugman
- Start date
Algae control
Well, instead of using bleach, just save the money and throw your plants and fish away...just kidding, the algae-infested plants will regrow -never use chlorinated products in your tank.
I'd check to see if phosphates are out of control - frequent water changes and some phosphate-control substrate in the filter will help cut down on that.
Also, change your water more often and evaluate lighting - you may be changing water too little and giving too much light.
Lastly, you could use an algae control additive to the tank - these work nicely but have to be done regularly to break the algae lifecycle.
Your local friendly LFS will set you up....
Well, instead of using bleach, just save the money and throw your plants and fish away...just kidding, the algae-infested plants will regrow -never use chlorinated products in your tank.
I'd check to see if phosphates are out of control - frequent water changes and some phosphate-control substrate in the filter will help cut down on that.
Also, change your water more often and evaluate lighting - you may be changing water too little and giving too much light.
Lastly, you could use an algae control additive to the tank - these work nicely but have to be done regularly to break the algae lifecycle.
Your local friendly LFS will set you up....
Thanks for the reply. The fake plants and rocks that are covered is there anyway to get it off them? I have taken them all out of my tank(left in live plants and others that did not have it on them)
you could always try a blackout to remove it- but if it's just going to spring back because of nutrients in the water column, it may be a bandaid fix.
Do a search for bleach dips on the forum. There are lots of good ones for live plants (see DJLen links). If they are fake plants and rocks then regular bleach at a 10-1 solution (water to bleach or course) should be fine. Just rinse them in dechlorinated water and add extra dechlorinator to the tank when you add them back in case any is left (it should be rinsed really well of course).