# No Growth- Algae Taking Hold



## Ethan Hamby (Jul 17, 2018)

Hello,

This is my first forum post. I have been a fan of the forum and read many posts searching for help with no conclusion.

Stocking:
My tank is 10 gallons with Rotala, Dwarf Sag, Anubius, an Amazon Sword, Java Moss, and Amazon Frogbit. The tank is stocked with a male
Betta, 7 new Glowlight Tetras, a few Corydoras, and two mystery snails.

Equipment:
The tank is light by a 20" finnex stingray which is said to provide low-medium lighting for 7 hours a day with a siesta period of 3 hours between light periods. I have a DIY citric acid/baking soda CO2 setup running at around 30ppm. I have an aquaclear 20 and a small powerhead used to diffuse the CO2. My temperature is a constant 78 degrees.

Dosing:
I have been dosing with EI ferts according to the instructions for a 10 gallon tank. I have also been dosing Flourish Iron once a week. I perform a 50% water change every week.

Parameters:
Ph: 6.6
Kh: 2
Gh: 5

The Issue:
My plants are exhibiting very poor growth. Nothing I do seems to help. I have been facing small ammounts of green beard algae and a brown sludge algae which I assume to be diatoms. This tank is well established being over 2 years old now. Many of the plants develop holes or the leaves seem to rot away.

Thank you for any ideas! :grin2: :grin2: :grin2:


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## Deanna (Feb 15, 2017)

Let’s get some more data points:

- Light: can you get some PAR numbers, at the substrate depth, for that Finnex by searching the forum?

- CO2: How do you know you are running at 30 ppm? 

- Ferts: What, exactly, are you dosing and how often? Right off the bat, I’d guess that iron is woefully deficient if you’re once-a-week dose is all the iron you are dosing.

- Tests: how do you measure pH? What are your NO3 and PO4 readings?

- Other: What type of substrate do you have? How often do you clean the filter?


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## Ethan Hamby (Jul 17, 2018)

Thanks for responding,

Others say that the PAR for this light at substrate level is around 30 PAR. 

I have a drop checker monitoring my CO2 and I sometimes double check with a kh/pH CO2 table. 

I am dosing EI ferts, so KNO3 (1/8 tsp), K2SO4 (1/32 tsp), and KH2PO4 (1/32 tsp) on M, W, F. I dose Plantex CSM+B on T, TH, SAT. I dose additional supplementary iron on Sundays after a water change.

I measure my pH from the tank with an API liquid test as along with my other parameters. My NO3 reads at around 10ppm and I do not currently own a phosphate test kit.

I have Eco-Complete substrate and rinse the filter media in tank water weekly.


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## KZB (Jan 3, 2018)

Hello @Ethan Hamby, try running your lights for 5 hours with no siesta. You could also dose flourish iron with your csmb. Your lights maybe driving your plants to need more co2 and ferts. Raise your co2 a notch and double your ferts for now and see what it does. You seem to be doing a great job with water change and filter maintenance, so I dont think your getting algae from organics. Once your can get the plants growing well, your algae issue will go away.


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## Ethan Hamby (Jul 17, 2018)

I will give that a shot! Thanks for the advice!


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## Ethan Hamby (Jul 17, 2018)

So I have tried reducing the photo period and increasing the CO2 along with doubling the fertilizers. I waited for a few days observing the results and the algae seems to be growing even faster. I am baffled. I really have no clue what to do at this point. I can't really lower my light period as it's already at only 5 hours and I can't raise my CO2 without killing my fish.

Maybe I am just being impatient and the results will come eventually, but so far things are going downhill.


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## KZB (Jan 3, 2018)

Sorry to hear that. Now we can rule ferts out. Lights, co2 and circulation. The first steps, when battling algae and making adjustments its always best to remove as much algae manually and good water change and cleaning. Ime I experienced both algae you are describing from either too much light without enough co2 or ferts, or lack of maintenance and improper circulation. Another thing once algae is growing strong, even the right adjustments wont help rid of them right away. That's why I am recommending manual removal and thorough cleaning. Spot treating bad areas in tank, and removing hardscape, use a spray bottle with h202 or excel. Once you get it under control and not thriving you then can start to figure out the cause and correct it.


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## Ethan Hamby (Jul 17, 2018)

Tonight I will remove the anubias and sword leaves with the green beard algae. The brown algae is going to be a little tricky as it is everywhere and hard to remove from the roots of the frogbit and moss. I believe I will start increasing water change frequency and filter cleaning to see if that produces any results.

I don't see how some people have beautiful low-tech tanks w/o CO2 or ferts with photoperiods lasting 8+ hours.. I would think with my added CO2 and ferts I would have healthy rapidly growing plants. But hopefully once I get this algae under control I can tweak around with things.

Thanks again for the advice!


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## Ethan Hamby (Jul 17, 2018)

I have made an attempt to reduce the intensity of my lighting by diffusing the light with parchment paper. I made sure to leave the red LEDs exposed as the plants should make better use of the red light. I returned the photoperiod to 8 hours as the light is much dimmer now. Hopefully this will prevent algae and ensure sufficient CO2 and nutrients. I am welcome to anymore ideas when it comes to improving my plant growth.


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## KZB (Jan 3, 2018)

You can raise your light, I have no experience with adding parchment paper as a diffuser so I cant help you there. You could also add some fast growing stem plants to out compete algae. That usually makes a noticeable difference. Check out some of our members journals with low tech tanks. I am sure you will find a lot of answers there.


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## Ethan Hamby (Jul 17, 2018)

I would raise my lights, though I cannot find a viable way to do so as the stingray has no hanging options. I have purchased some anacharis, as when I used to have some, it grew like wild fire. Hopefully things start to turn around in the tank. The algae has stopped growing. Next water change, I will use H202 and some excell to attempt to kill the rest (Hopefully without killing the excel sensitive Vals in the process). Thanks so much again for your advice.


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## Ethan Hamby (Jul 17, 2018)

Update:
After diffusing my light, raising my photoperiod, and halving my fert dosages, the gha has mostly died off. I am noticing many new leaf formations with the frogbit, and I am even seeing new runners from the dwarf sag. This is more growth than I have seen in the last few months together. There is still a fair amount of whay may either be filamentous diatoms or dead algae. I am planning to remove the affected leaves. My moss may be a lost cause as it is suffocated in the seemingly permanent sludge.

Thank you for the help. I hope I have finally found the path to a beautiful tank!


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## KZB (Jan 3, 2018)

Very happy to know things are working out for you.


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## Godsgift2aquariums (Feb 12, 2019)

Hi Ethan, Just throwing my 2 cents into the ring here.

I'm willing to bet that your troubles aren't over yet. I hope I'm wrong.

I've read Diana Walstad's book _"Ecology of the Planted Aquarium"_ (one of the "bibles" of low-tech aquariums) several times. You are doing a few things differently than she recommends for a easy care low-tech aquarium. If you decide to make these changes I think you will experience the success you're looking for.

1. You didn't mention the use of dirt in your aquarium. I might have missed that. *Diana recommends 1" to 1.5" of organic soil in the bottom of an aquarium*. That should be covered in 1" to 1.5" inches of gravel or sand. Dirt helps support a very healthy colony of bacteria which break down plant and fish waste and uneaten food. These bacteria release nitrates (nitrogen cycle) and CO2. Between this and the very occasional, rare water change (water has other nutrients the plants need occasionally) you shouldn't need to add fertilizer or CO2 to your tank. 

2. A low-tech Walstad tank should *never use an undergravel filter.* Not saying you have one, just mentioning. 

3. *Try your darndest to eliminate water turbulence from the surface of the water* (waves and bubbles or any other movement). Turbulence removes CO2 from the water therefore interfering with the growth of your plants. Just say no to powerheads and air pumps. You want a very smooth, undisturbed water surface. If you have to have filtration (highly unlikely with a 10 gallon tank) use a small powerhead attached to a sponge filter placed toward the bottom of your tank. Proper placement will keep water turbulence to a minimum. 

4. *Stop adding fertilizer and CO2 to your tank*. A true low-tech tank won't need them. 

5. *Stop doing so many water changes*. You're getting rid of the materials the bacteria use to help feed your plants. Diana's book mentions water changes every month to 3 months. Top off evaporated water with Reverse Osmosis water. You can buy a gallon at the store for about $1.50 and this should last several months.

6. When you are doing water changes avoid cleaning the gravel/dirt. Leave the bacteria in peace and they will help you create your masterpiece.

Unfortunately, right now, you are making it hard for your aquarium plants to grow and easy for algae to thrive.

If you decide to follow these ideas you will spend less time working on your tank and more time enjoying it. 

Don


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