So my planted tank story started about 9 months ago (last June) with my 15gallon freshwater tank. i've learned a great deal since then and I finally like the direction my tank is going in, but I cannot for the life of me get rid of this BBA.
Originally I had too much light over the tank with no CO2 source (except dosing excel). This is where my BBA issues first arose, when it decided to attack the dwarf clover in my tank. It proceeded to spread to the crypts and the driftwood. In an effort to get rid of it I pretty much started over. I removed the driftwood and all the plants. I treated the anubias that had been covered in it (used H2O2, which worked well), got some new driftwood, and rescaped the tank. I also decided to set up a DIY CO2 system, which has been running on the tank.
After a couple months I had developed BBA again on the new pieces of driftwood and the anubias, but I was more concerned with the diatoms that had consumed my tank. So I rescaped again. Pulled out all the plants and tossed them. I treated the driftwood for several days with H202, then let it dry out, and then I boiled it. I also did a 4 day black out on the tank. Since I was tired of the algae issues I decided to be less ambitious, so I began the endevour of a low-light moss tank.
For the most part things are going well, but once again BBA has reared it's ugly head, this time on the very tips of the driftwood (the spots near the surface of the water, right under the lights) and on the petite nana in the tank :swear:
I don't know what to do. I want to try a dwarf clover carpet again, but I'm not going to bother if it's just going to be a BBA magnet.
Tank Conditions:
15 gallon
26W CFL sprial bulbs (2 x 13W) - 6500K
Photo period is 8 hours (12pm-8pm)
water temp is about 78F
ammonia and nitrites: 0ppm
nitrates: 5-10ppm (did a water change yesterday, it's probably a bit higher later on in the week)
CO2: the solution in the drop checker is a bluish-green (more green than blue; I don't know if I test my 4dkh solution though, since i made it).
I'm doing two 20% water changes a week, if that matters.
So yeah, suggestions? I mean, I can go back to spot treating with Excel, since that did work to a certain extent on the anuias. I've scrapped the BBA off the driftwood and it hasn't come back, but again...I don't want to introduce any more slow growers (i.e. dwarf clover) if they're just going to get covered in BBA
thanks
Originally I had too much light over the tank with no CO2 source (except dosing excel). This is where my BBA issues first arose, when it decided to attack the dwarf clover in my tank. It proceeded to spread to the crypts and the driftwood. In an effort to get rid of it I pretty much started over. I removed the driftwood and all the plants. I treated the anubias that had been covered in it (used H2O2, which worked well), got some new driftwood, and rescaped the tank. I also decided to set up a DIY CO2 system, which has been running on the tank.
After a couple months I had developed BBA again on the new pieces of driftwood and the anubias, but I was more concerned with the diatoms that had consumed my tank. So I rescaped again. Pulled out all the plants and tossed them. I treated the driftwood for several days with H202, then let it dry out, and then I boiled it. I also did a 4 day black out on the tank. Since I was tired of the algae issues I decided to be less ambitious, so I began the endevour of a low-light moss tank.
For the most part things are going well, but once again BBA has reared it's ugly head, this time on the very tips of the driftwood (the spots near the surface of the water, right under the lights) and on the petite nana in the tank :swear:
I don't know what to do. I want to try a dwarf clover carpet again, but I'm not going to bother if it's just going to be a BBA magnet.
Tank Conditions:
15 gallon
26W CFL sprial bulbs (2 x 13W) - 6500K
Photo period is 8 hours (12pm-8pm)
water temp is about 78F
ammonia and nitrites: 0ppm
nitrates: 5-10ppm (did a water change yesterday, it's probably a bit higher later on in the week)
CO2: the solution in the drop checker is a bluish-green (more green than blue; I don't know if I test my 4dkh solution though, since i made it).
I'm doing two 20% water changes a week, if that matters.
So yeah, suggestions? I mean, I can go back to spot treating with Excel, since that did work to a certain extent on the anuias. I've scrapped the BBA off the driftwood and it hasn't come back, but again...I don't want to introduce any more slow growers (i.e. dwarf clover) if they're just going to get covered in BBA
thanks
