# Algae ID and how to get rid of it?



## Mattb126 (Nov 13, 2016)

Can someone Is this algae for me and tell me why it's growing and how I can get rid of it, thanks?































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## dukydaf (Dec 27, 2004)

It would help to know more about your aquarium. Algae are rarely caused by one single thing for every aquarium. 
If it is slimy ?
Is it easy to remove from the leaf or does not scrape easily ?
Color of the algae ? (kinda hard to judge from the pics) 

When was the aquarium setup ?
How big is the aquarium?
Light(duration intensity, type) ?
CO2 ?
Fertilization (what, how much, how often)
Water changes ?
Fish load ?
Plants in the aquarium?
Any water tests/values you know 
An overall photo would also help.


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## MtAnimals (May 17, 2015)

As said before,the color is kind of hard to see in the pics.If it's brown,then it'd be diatoms,ans mini ramshorn snails ( not the big ones) will eat it down pretty quickly.


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## Mattb126 (Nov 13, 2016)

dukydaf said:


> It would help to know more about your aquarium. Algae are rarely caused by one single thing for every aquarium.
> If it is slimy ?
> Is it easy to remove from the leaf or does not scrape easily ?
> Color of the algae ? (kinda hard to judge from the pics)
> ...


If it is slimy ? Not slimy as far as I can tell. 
Is it easy to remove from the leaf or does not scrape easily ? Doesn't come off the leaves with scrubbing. 
Color of the algae ? (kinda hard to judge from the pics) Kind of a grayish red color. 

When was the aquarium setup ? 7 months
How big is the aquarium? 55 gallons
Light(duration intensity, type) ? LED light, on from 11:00 am to 8:30 pm. 
CO2 ? No
Fertilization (what, how much, how often) EI, Macros: 16 1/4 tsp KN03, KH2P04, 2 1/4 tsp, KS204 5 1/4 tsp dissolved into 500 ml, dose 10 mL 3 times a week. Micros: CSM+B 12 1/4 tsp dissolved into 500 mL water also dosed 3 times a week. 
Water changes ? 50% weekly. 
Fish load ? 3 mature angelfish, blue gourami, 5 black skirt tetras, 2 small kribensis, 3 neons, 2 SAE
Plants in the aquarium? 3 Amazon swords, crpyt wendtii, Java fern, anubias, s. Repens, water sprite, flame moss
Any water tests/values you know Don't test my water. 
An overall photo would also help























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## Mattb126 (Nov 13, 2016)

MtAnimals said:


> As said before,the color is kind of hard to see in the pics.If it's brown,then it'd be diatoms,ans mini ramshorn snails ( not the big ones) will eat it down pretty quickly.


Check newest post. 

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## Mattb126 (Nov 13, 2016)

Bump, need help

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## Nlewis (Dec 1, 2015)

How did you calculate your solutions and dosage? If you're dosing full EI I'd back it off a bit for a couple reasons. First, EI is really designed for co2 injected tanks and second, you don't have a large plant mass. Judging by the full tank shot, it looks like a lot of your algae is diatoms.


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## MtAnimals (May 17, 2015)

Still looks like diatoms to me.Ramshorn snails will take care of it,as well as patience.Often occurs in newer setups.Some say it's from a high silicate content in the water.

I just got it in a tank that's like a month or so old,dropped in a small handful of ramshorn snails,one rock is now entirely clean,and so is a patch of driftwood,and some of the plants.

Otos will eat it as well,but then you have to feed the otos something when it's gone,and otos can be fragile.


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## Mattb126 (Nov 13, 2016)

MtAnimals said:


> Still looks like diatoms to me.Ramshorn snails will take care of it,as well as patience.Often occurs in newer setups.Some say it's from a high silicate content in the water.
> 
> I just got it in a tank that's like a month or so old,dropped in a small handful of ramshorn snails,one rock is now entirely clean,and so is a patch of driftwood,and some of the plants.
> 
> Otos will eat it as well,but then you have to feed the otos something when it's gone,and otos can be fragile.


I was going to pick up some otos last weekend, but the LFS was sold out. Can't find Ramshorn snails anywhere. 

The algae is a red color, would that still be diatoms?

Thankful for all the help btw

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## MtAnimals (May 17, 2015)

Mattb126 said:


> I was going to pick up some otos last weekend, but the LFS was sold out. Can't find Ramshorn snails anywhere.
> 
> The algae is a red color, would that still be diatoms?
> 
> ...


well,the fact the tank has been set up for 7 months,Diatoms usually shows up after a month or so,would point away from diatoms,and the reddish color....have you tried a 5 day blackout?


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## Mattb126 (Nov 13, 2016)

MtAnimals said:


> well,the fact the tank has been set up for 7 months,Diatoms usually shows up after a month or so,would point away from diatoms,and the reddish color....have you tried a 5 day blackout?


I haven't tried a blackout, wouldn't that be terrible for the plants?

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## MtAnimals (May 17, 2015)

Mattb126 said:


> I haven't tried a blackout, wouldn't that be terrible for the plants?
> 
> Sent from my Moto Z using Tapatalk


you would think,but they seem to survive it...really,it's no worse then getting plants priority or first class mail.I've gotten plants first class mail and I know they spent 5 days in a dark package.


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## Mattb126 (Nov 13, 2016)

MtAnimals said:


> you would think,but they seem to survive it...really,it's no worse then getting plants priority or first class mail.I've gotten plants first class mail and I know they spent 5 days in a dark package.


Would a shorter black out work? Such as 3 days, I don't want to have my tank off for so long. Also, I think there is some diatoms, would that get rid of diatoms too?

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## Mattb126 (Nov 13, 2016)

Nlewis said:


> How did you calculate your solutions and dosage? If you're dosing full EI I'd back it off a bit for a couple reasons. First, EI is really designed for co2 injected tanks and second, you don't have a large plant mass. Judging by the full tank shot, it looks like a lot of your algae is diatoms.


About EI, would I have to make weaker solutions, or could I just dose less amount daily? I just made a new solution and don't want to waste it. 

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## MtAnimals (May 17, 2015)

Mattb126 said:


> Would a shorter black out work? Such as 3 days, I don't want to have my tank off for so long. Also, I think there is some diatoms, would that get rid of diatoms too?
> 
> Sent from my Moto Z using Tapatalk


do a 3 day blackout...if you still need ramshorn,oftentimes petco or petsmart will just give them away.I got my originals off ebay,I got the "pink" ones cause they breed true.


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## Mattb126 (Nov 13, 2016)

MtAnimals said:


> do a 3 day blackout...if you still need ramshorn,oftentimes petco or petsmart will just give them away.I got my originals off ebay,I got the "pink" ones cause they breed true.


Thanks I'll do it! Would it get rid of diatoms as well?

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## MtAnimals (May 17, 2015)

Mattb126 said:


> Thanks I'll do it! Would it get rid of diatoms as well?
> 
> Sent from my Moto Z using Tapatalk


that I don't know,it might.


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## Mattb126 (Nov 13, 2016)

MtAnimals said:


> that I don't know,it might.


I'll give it a shot, thanks for all the help!

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## Nlewis (Dec 1, 2015)

Mattb126 said:


> About EI, would I have to make weaker solutions, or could I just dose less amount daily? I just made a new solution and don't want to waste it.
> 
> Sent from my Moto Z using Tapatalk


Yes, just use less like half. It's better IMO to use a syringe that measures in ml. You can pick them up at a drug or dollar store for cheap.


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## Mattb126 (Nov 13, 2016)

Nlewis said:


> Yes, just use less like half. It's better IMO to use a syringe that measures in ml. You can pick them up at a drug or dollar store for cheap.


How many mL would you recommend?

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## dukydaf (Dec 27, 2004)

Hey Mattb126, thanks for answering the questions and for the full tank pic. You have some very beautiful angels in there. Sorry for the delay, we operate in different timezones I am afraid. 

Some of the algae do look like diatoms while the other, especially on the Echinodorus leaves look like a type of red algae related to BBA. I say related in that it behaves similarly but does not get the bushy aspect. It typically forms a rather heterogeneous layer on top of plant leaves and hardscape with the occasional small bumps. Colours range from dark blue, to purple, to dark green. It is very hard to remove from the hardscape unlike BGA. It also seems to be less invasive. Does this fit what you see ?

Why it grows ? High organics, intensive light, damaged plant leaves... the usual suspects. How to get rid of it ? Take the hardscape out and use some H2O2 on it. Cut old leaves that are colonized by it. Turn off the filters and "spray" with a syringe some Excel or EasyCarbo the affected leaves. Restart the filter after aprox. 10min. 

I'll calculate the dosing for you shortly.

EDIT: a rough calculation would give at 10ml of your current solution 5ppm NO3, 4,5ppm K, 0,7ppm PO4. Dosing 5ml of this 3x /week should be enough given the current setup. Do the same for the micro mix.

I would also suggest adding some floating plants like Pistia and some giant vallisneria. This will provide good cover for your angels and they like to hide behind the leaves/roots.



Regards, 
duky


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## Mattb126 (Nov 13, 2016)

dukydaf said:


> Hey Mattb126, thanks for answering the questions and for the full tank pic. You have some very beautiful angels in there. Sorry for the delay, we operate in different timezones I am afraid.
> 
> Some of the algae do look like diatoms while the other, especially on the Echinodorus leaves look like a type of red algae related to BBA. I say related in that it behaves similarly but does not get the bushy aspect. It typically forms a rather heterogeneous layer on top of plant leaves and hardscape with the occasional small bumps. Colours range from dark blue, to purple, to dark green. It is very hard to remove from the hardscape unlike BGA. It also seems to be less invasive. Does this fit what you see ?
> 
> ...


My hardscapes worked around my plants and would be a pain in the ass to remove. And I would end up rescaping. Any other suggestions? 

Thanks for help

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## dukydaf (Dec 27, 2004)

You could lower your water level and expose parts of the hardscape and treat in place. However I doubt your angels would like such a low water level and you need to move them out as well.


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## Mattb126 (Nov 13, 2016)

dukydaf said:


> You could lower your water level and expose parts of the hardscape and treat in place. However I doubt your angels would like such a low water level and you need to move them out as well.


To get rid of it, instead of just manually removing, should I decrease my lighting period and decrease frets? If so how many hours photoperiod?


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## Mattb126 (Nov 13, 2016)

Bump my previous question ^

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## Nlewis (Dec 1, 2015)

Mattb126 said:


> How many mL would you recommend?
> 
> Sent from my Moto Z using Tapatalk


1tsp = 5ml so try something like 2.5 or 3


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## Mattb126 (Nov 13, 2016)

Nlewis said:


> 1tsp = 5ml so try something like 2.5 or 3


Thanks, I've been way overdosing!

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## Redneck tenner (Aug 21, 2016)

Glut won't help with diatoms 

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## Mattb126 (Nov 13, 2016)

Should I decrease my photoperiod? It's coming close to time I turn my tank off for the day, so would like to know asap. 

Appreciate all the input so far. 

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## dukydaf (Dec 27, 2004)

Mattb126 said:


> To get rid of it, instead of just manually removing, should I decrease my lighting period and decrease frets? If so how many hours photoperiod?


Decrease light period to 6h. Do not decrease ferts below 50% of what you said on the first page... Echinodorus really like their macros even in non CO2 fertilized tanks. With 50% weekly wc you will not run into troubled because of the fertilizers. 

It is harder to kill algae that is already grown that to prevent it from appearing or from spreading. This is why manual removal is the fastest way.

Also it takes time to observe changes to a tank. Give it at least 2 weeks.


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## Mattb126 (Nov 13, 2016)

dukydaf said:


> Decrease light period to 6h. Do not decrease ferts below 50% of what you said on the first page... Echinodorus really like their macros even in non CO2 fertilized tanks. With 50% weekly wc you will not run into troubled because of the fertilizers.
> 
> It is harder to kill algae that is already grown that to prevent it from appearing or from spreading. This is why manual removal is the fastest way.
> 
> Also it takes time to observe changes to a tank. Give it at least 2 weeks.


Thanks!

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## Mattb126 (Nov 13, 2016)

If this helps, here's a picture out of water.
















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