# Algaecide "reset"?



## lee739 (Oct 12, 2014)

Have you considered the 'one-two punch' method?


----------



## Skillet (Mar 10, 2015)

I just read that post right after I dosed my aquarium [emoji53]. I had thought about the h2o2 method but just like the poster mentioned, many people have had terrible results so I have shied away from that. However that post was very informative and if this doesn't work then I'll try that method. Just for reference, I here is just how bad my tank is. It's so bad that I turned my 30 gal into an emersed setup to grow plants just in case I have to start over on the 6. 









Here is all of it dying after checking it just now


----------



## Skillet (Mar 10, 2015)

Just to update what is going on, my algae is all dead. My whole aquarium looks like cotton candy- its just full of pink, dead hair algae. The green algae covering my rocks is still kicking strong, and my beard algae is still there (unsurprisingly). I am overdue on a trim in my tank, so I'll be removing a ton of the dead algae, but there is no way on earth I can get every bit of it manually. Will the dead stuff eventually fall off of surfaces, or will it need to be manually removed? I have never dealt with such an outbreak before so I'm not sure what to expect. What I do expect is a lot of WC's in the next few weeks.


----------



## mattinmd (Aug 16, 2014)

I'm not sure.. when I killed BBA in the past it wasn't nearly that bad, but my snails and/or mollies rapidly devoured it once it was dead.

Regardless, I would expect it to start rotting and falling off eventually.. If you still have a lot in-tank after trimming, be on the watch for ammonia/nitrite/nitrate spikes, and be ready to do water changes and prime doses to control it for a while.

Als, now that you've got it dead... Work on keeping it from coming back and get your light level down (you've already maxed out CO2).... Light/Co2 imbalance is a major factor in controlling BBA.

Window screen does a nice job of cutting par back quite a bit, or if you're running more than 6-8 hours you could cut back on runtime to help out some.


----------



## lee739 (Oct 12, 2014)

I would physically remove as much as I could, trim out the worst leaves too. Have you got any Excel on hand to spot treat any re-flares??


----------



## dmagerl (Feb 2, 2010)

What did you do to kill it? Just up the CO2 and cut lights like you mentioned?

I wish it worked like that when I do it.


----------



## mattinmd (Aug 16, 2014)

Skillet dosed with an algecide, but did not say which one.


----------



## Skillet (Mar 10, 2015)

Sorry for the delay. My jobs decided to book me the whole weekend. I've been beat! All of the algae is white except for some spots in the aquarium where the current is so good. It's still pink there. It's also starting to rot off but is still attached in most places.



> I'm not sure.. when I killed BBA in the past it wasn't nearly that bad, but my snails and/or mollies rapidly devoured it once it was dead.
> 
> Regardless, I would expect it to start rotting and falling off eventually.. If you still have a lot in-tank after trimming, be on the watch for ammonia/nitrite/nitrate spikes, and be ready to do water changes and prime doses to control it for a while.
> 
> ...


Oddly the BBA is still here and going strong. Also, the green algae covering my rocks and parts of the glass is still hanging in there. I think its due to the fact that I have so much green hair algae in the aquarium that my doses aren't strong enough to get everything. I have my light cut back to six hours a day. Originally I was running ten in the evening and I think the reason the algae took hold was because of how bright the room is. I have blinds, but the light is still so intense that you can't see the lighting from my LED's in the afternoon. I may have to move the aquarium somewhere else. 



> I would physically remove as much as I could, trim out the worst leaves too. Have you got any Excel on hand to spot treat any re-flares??


Ditto on that. I'm about to do a huge trim. It was past due but with the algae living it felt futile. Now that I have the upper hand, I hope that I can remove enough of the dead stuff and clean off enough leaves that the plants can really start winning the battle. I do not have any excel. I can't seem to find any on hand. I have read about success using it to kill algae, but how does it work against beard algae?



> What did you do to kill it? Just up the CO2 and cut lights like you mentioned?
> 
> I wish it worked like that when I do it.





> Skillet dosed with an algecide, but did not say which one.


I'm sorry I didn't state which algaecide I used. I don't know why I forgot to mention it. I used Tetra Algae Control. It has worked very well. My snails are still alive in my tank which surprised me. I'm not sure if its just a weak algaecide or if I had so much growth in my tank that the active ingredient just wasn't enough to affect everything, but I ended up having to dose about 3x the amount stated to get an effect. The reviews I read on the product said that it nailed green water but never really affected hair algae and I can attest to this at the recommended dosing levels.

Hopefully I can get some pics today after my cleanup and I can move forward from there. I'm just glad I got an emersed setup in case everything falls into chaos.


----------

