does a black out work for all algae problems?

Linda S

Linda S

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Sep 6, 2009
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Killeen, TX
Real Name
Linda Sholly
I should know the kind of algae I have but I'm not sure, it is black and stringy and can be pulled off the leaves. I tried using a tooth brush but I couldn't get a good hold on it. I am guilty of leaving the lights on way too long, it is a 10 gal tank, I currently have 3wpg, and have been running the lights from about 7:00a.m. to 11:00 p.m. I need to put it on a timer. So I have tried removing the algae by hand, and I have the tank covered with towels so it is getting no light, if I do this for about 3 or 4 days should I be able to remove the algae more easily? It has tiger lotus anubias bartieri and nana, and crypt ponderfloia can I use excel? there are no shrimp in the tank, just dario dario, pygmy cories and otos. If I can use excel how much every day for a 10 gal tank? I have no co2 on this tank, and I don't feed much, I am not using ferts on this tank. should I just use the lights for about 6 hours?
 
Without seeing the algae or having a positive id it's hard to say if a blackout would work. I would suggest first cutting your photoperiod down WAY down, 6 hours for those plants would be plenty IMO. I would try to manually remove what you can and see if that helps to decrease the spread of the the algae and then worry about ridding yourself of it.
 
sounds like staghorn. given your tank description i'd venture to say you've probably got (or will have) BBA as well.

i would...

attempt to lower the light intensity if your fixture isn't a good distance from the top of your tank already.
definitely cut that time down to 6 hours... maybe 8 if your lights are raised up.
get some carbon in there. yes, you can use excel. if the symptoms aren't horrible, i'd just dose it according to the bottle minus the extra big dose.
fert... if you have to (assuming you're using dry ferts by now) you can take a tsp of each fert and mix it up and leave it in a sammich baggie and just take a small scoop every other day. a 1/4 tsp measuring spoon can be eyeballed to 1/4-1/2 full or so for a dose. doesn't have to be perfect, just get it in there.

my reasoning...
both BBA and staghorn are indicators of carbon deficiency.
your first line of defense in carbon and/or other deficiencies (especially when algae is the symptom) is to control your light.
ultimately, once your light is worked out, you'll still probably need the carbon that's deficient. not in all cases, but in your case it should help to speed up the process of getting back on track.
once the carbon deficiency is handled... and you're not dosing... it's highly likely you're going to show signs of nutrient deficiencies as they'll now be your limiting factors for growth. (see liebigs law)
you have plants in your tank to grow plants... or to improve water quality... not to learn to control algae. focusing on good plant growth should result in minimal to no algae.
plants need a well rounded diet for best health and vigor.

as always... observe your plants and overall tank health and make minor adjustments from there one at a time... and tank maintenance is imperative of course. a few extra w/c's and a bit of extra filter cleaning during this time will eliminate the possibility of complications from those areas.

good luck, linda.
 
Ok the sun light to the room is masked, there is no indirect light in the room, I have started dosing with 3x's the normal excel dose today and will dose the regular excel dose daily. I am leaving the lights off for 2 wweks, and will pick up a timer. I'll get a pic of the algae tonight and post it just for verifcation. I don't have dry ferts yet, I am trying to use up the seachem ferts I have. But I do have plenty of excel as I'm using DIY for the tanks I have set up and excel was melting my vals. I need to set up a diy for the 10 gal. I can do that when I turn the lights back on. just need to pick up the poswer head.
 
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