# Hair algae in my java moss.



## livingword26

Your lighting is way to high for a 20 long:

http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/lighting/105774-par-vs-distance-t5-t12-pc.html










With no co2 or fertilizers, all you can grow in there will be algae. 

http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/fertilizers-water-parameters/21944-_dosing-regimes_.html


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## freph

Well yes, I understand there's too much light but what's the algae even got to grow off of? There's no other nutrients in the water...can it literally just grow off of light and no other food source?

Also, what about the fissidens, java moss and HC mat?


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## livingword26

If the shrimp are surviving, there are nutrients in there. They have to be eating and excreting something. The algae can survive on much less than your other plants can. Is this tank cycled? How long has it been set up?


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## freph

Been setup since Tuesday. It's not cycled as far as I know, I just couldn't keep juvie FRCS in my 20g tall with my striped raphael....he'd be eating too well.  I preform small water changes every couple of days on the shrimp tank and it has a HOB filter hooked up to it right now with some fissidens for the shrimp to graze on. They also very much enjoy that patch of HC. It's more or less just a very spacious holding tank for right now. It'll have powersand+aquasoil and get planted this coming up Tuesday as well as a much better filtration system.


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## livingword26

Whats your ammonia reading? I doubt your shrimp will survive a new tank cycle. Have you have put some filter media from your other tank into this one?


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## freph

Ammonia right now is 0 or so low that I can't distinguish it with the test kit (using API master test kit, liqiud). The current HOB has some filter gunk from my other eheim 2215 in it...mainly just stirred up the ehfisubstrat and poured it behind the filter. The shrimp are the only critters in there. I plan to move them to a large tupperware container or something with an airstone and moss while the tank cycles.


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## DarkCobra

freph said:


> There's no other nutrients in the water...can it literally just grow off of light and no other food source?


There are always some nutrients. But when they're limited and light is excessive, algae copes far better than plants.

Starving the algae out is not an option. The plants starve too, so they sacrifice older growth and partially strip it of nutrients to support new growth. The old growth then decomposes. Decomposing organic material just happens to be algae's *favorite* food, attracting algae to your plants like a magnet. Parasitic algae makes the plant even more unhealthy, giving the algae even more food; in what quickly becomes a self-sustaining and hard to break cycle. 

You'll have to reduce the light to eliminate algae's initial primary advantage. Ideally, you should add some ferts and CO2 with the goal of making the plants/mosses as healthy as possible, rather than a preferred food source for algae.

But like I said, once this cycle starts, it's harder to stop than to prevent from starting in the first place. If light/CO2/ferts are kept perfect and you're lucky, the hair algae will slow, stop, or maybe even shrink back, while the moss grows rapidly; allowing you to eventually discard the old infested growth. For most plants it's advisable to first trim away unhealthy growth and algae, but good luck doing that with java moss and hair algae.  So instead, I deal the algae an initial blow by another means:

1) Add 1ml Algaefix to 9ml water. Shake well.
2) Discard 9ml of the solution.
3) Add the remaining 1ml to 1G dechlorinated water in a Rubbermaid container. Stir.
4) Add java moss.
5) Set aside in a dark closet for three days.
6) Discard water. Rinse container and moss thoroughly. Soak moss in a copious amount of dechlorinated fresh water for a few hours to remove any lingering traces of Algaefix (it's very bad for shrimp).
7) Put moss back in an aquarium with good parameters for its growth that will lead to rapid recovery.

If all goes well, both moss and algae will appear to be completely unaffected. But the moss will be alive and the algae dead. The algae will decompose slowly over a week or more.


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## freph

I do have some AlgaeFix laying around. Would it be fine to take the natural approach and just let the algae die down in my main tank? It's running on a single T8 right above the water with ferts and CO2...algae free in all forms.


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## DarkCobra

freph said:


> I do have some AlgaeFix laying around. Would it be fine to take the natural approach and just let the algae die down in my main tank? It's running on a single T8 right above the water with ferts and CO2...algae free in all forms.


There is nothing wrong with the natural approach. With patience, good tank parameters, and a little luck, it usually works. The worst that can happen is that it doesn't, and that's not necessarily a loss; because everything is an experiment that teaches you more about your tanks.

I just like exploring more experimental and aggressive approaches, and sharing those that I find useful.


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## freph

Alrighty, thanks. If it doesn't improve after a few days I'll just nuke it with your suggested method.


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## HD Blazingwolf

Just like most aquatic plants can grow without one fertilizer or the other. Rather poorly. Algae is a simple organism it can survive with almost nothing. It can grow even when nitrrates and ammonia are at undetecable levels.. keep that in mind. Healthy plants means no algae! So fertilize properly and let the plants duke it out. They dont out compete for nutreints. My tank now stays at 20ppm of nitrates and 5ppm phosphates.. no alage but i have healthy plants. 
Well my ssword actually has hair algae but it was unhealthy i had to fix an imbalance. Its getting better now


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