# HELP! Black hair algae bloom in planted shrimp tank!!



## yen1818 (Oct 15, 2013)

I have a small 6 gallon planted shrimp tank and black hair algae has taken over. Previously, I had taken out all the rocks and driftwood and let that dry out in the dark. Got rid of the plants, then blacked out my tank for 3 days. Everything was fine but in a couple weeks the black hair algae came back!

The chemical solutions don't seem to be shrimp safe, not sure if peroxide is either. I've also tried daily doses of Excel but that's not working. Anyone with a shrimp tank that have successfully gotten rid of black hair algae?


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## mgeorges (Feb 1, 2017)

I can't tell if that staghorn or BBA, I lean towards staghorn. You could have several things going on - too much light, a nutrient imbalance, a "dirty tank". 

We need to know what you're dosing from ferts, how often and how much water you're changing, and light type and how long it's on.


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## yen1818 (Oct 15, 2013)

I have the standard like that comes with the Fluval Spec V, I only have the lights on for 6.5 hours.
I do a 1/3 water change every 3 weeks, and I've only been dosing it for Flourish Excel once a day. I feel like the algae bloomed from the dosing! 
Right when the algae started, I tested the tank and all the levels were normal, no nitrites/nitrates/ammonia. It's been 2 weeks and I haven't tested it again - will do another test tonight.


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## mgeorges (Feb 1, 2017)

You need to be dosing fertilizers, otherwise your plants are going to suffer which allows algae to kick in. Excel will not cause algae, it will help reduce though. It is also not a fertilizer, it is a "liquid carbon" source. No nitrates is a negative, I'm not sure what type of shrimp you're keeping, but you need to maintain some nitrates for your plants. I wouldn't go below 10 ppm NO3. You also need to dose some phosphates and potassium, as well as traces. You could look into a good all-in-one like Thrive from nilocg.com, probably the easiest for you in a low tech setup. He also has a shrimp specific one I believe. If you have questions on the fertilizer, Colin (nilocG) is very responsive to e-mails and happy to help. We can answer most questions you may have here though.


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## jeffkrol (Jun 5, 2013)

no nitrates is not good...can't tell well from the photo but the plant look a little chlorotic..
Need to get your plants growing better..
mgeorges beat me to it.


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## Orichid123 (Feb 25, 2018)

get your self a siamese algae eater i just got a coulple and they are doing a great job already eating the beard alage i got them from live aquaria .com


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## yen1818 (Oct 15, 2013)

Novice here and just getting into it...but I read that adding nutrients would feed algae and cause a bloom?
I use fluval shrimp substrate, I also thought since the substrate is made from soil that I didn't need to add nutrients.
I appreciate the help everyone!


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## Quagulator (May 4, 2015)

Orichid123 said:


> get your self a siamese algae eater i just got a coulple and they are doing a great job already eating the beard alage i got them from live aquaria .com


= dead shrimp, so maybe not :wink2:


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## yen1818 (Oct 15, 2013)

I have an ottocat but he hasn't been eating this kind of algae. The siamese algae eater will eat baby shrimp, I thought of getting amano shrimps but they get too big and will eat my cherry babies.


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## Quagulator (May 4, 2015)

yen1818 said:


> I have an ottocat but he hasn't been eating this kind of algae. The siamese algae eater will eat baby shrimp, I thought of getting amano shrimps but they get too big and will eat my cherry babies.


amano won't eat it either. Less light is how I got rid of mine....


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## jeffkrol (Jun 5, 2013)

yen1818 said:


> Novice here and just getting into it...but I read that adding nutrients would feed algae and cause a bloom?
> I use fluval shrimp substrate, I also thought since the substrate is made from soil that I didn't need to add nutrients.
> I appreciate the help everyone!


A more correct way to say it is nutrients feed algae already present.. not a cause..

Ammonia has been implicated in spore germination. Excess ammonia can come from various sources and localities and not always "detected". 
Dirty tanks, dying leaves ect release ammonia. Rich soils as well.

After germination then they can more readily use other sources of N.

Secondly if fully cycled some Nitrate should appear in the water.
If not it is either being removed by water changes or fully utilized by plants and therefore possibly deficient..
As the plants weaken and reallocate N to new growth old growth gets "leaky" and provides the ammonia for algae to germinate. 

Of course your tank looks dark so no idea of the lighting as well. Low light could be hindering plant growth as well..

Point is the healthier the plants the less likely algae can compete regardless of nutrient and light levels for that matter..


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## sdwindansea (Oct 28, 2016)

You should be able to spot treat with H2O2. This will help kill BBA or staghorn. Another option is to pull the plants and do a H2O2 dip. 

However, like others have said, this will help with the current algae but doesn't solve the underlying problem.


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## ursamajor (Oct 6, 2015)

yen1818 said:


> Novice here and just getting into it...but I read that adding nutrients would feed algae and cause a bloom?


No worries, this is a super common misconception. The nutrients that plants need to thrive do not necessarily cause algae outbreaks. You'll hear about people dosing "EI" levels of nutrients - they can dose high levels of nutrients into the water column, have healthy plant growth, and not have a spec of algae. There are other variables for sure (tank cleanliness, light, CO2, stocking levels, etc.) but generally speaking appropriate fertilization shouldn't cause an algae bloom. If anything, having healthier plants should reduce the algae that grows on them.

There's a lot of resources out there regarding fertilization techniques and products. An all-in-one liquid fertilizer might be a good place to start. I hear good things about Thrive by NilocG, but I haven't tried it myself. Looks like @mgeorges recommends it as well.


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## yen1818 (Oct 15, 2013)

Thanks will definitely start with dosing with Thrive.
I only took another look at my algae and conclude that its staghorn! Learned a lot today!

Is H1O2 shrimp safe? Even if I treat the plants and driftwood outside of the tank.


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## mgeorges (Feb 1, 2017)

H2O2 is one of those things where if you dose a little too much, things can start dying in the tank. I've never dosed H2O2 in my tank while shrimp were present, but shrimp will get curious about all the little bubbles and swim into it. When my fish do this, they're fine, but shrimp tend to be more sensitive. If you want to try H2O2, I would start off with a VERY small amount, no more than 1 ml. You'll need to turn off the filter so there's no water movement and the H2O2 gets delivered where you want it by either a syringe or a pipette. You'll let it sit for 20 minutes at most and then do a water change, then turn the filter back on.


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## houseofcards (Mar 21, 2009)

First thing you want to do is pull the java fern out of the substrate. The rhizome needs to be above the substrate or it will rot. They usually do best attached to a rock or a piece of wood.


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## Orichid123 (Feb 25, 2018)

well never heard of them eating shrimp they are algae eaters and the otto will not eat the alage you can also try banded garra they are smaller and will only eat the bba


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## Quagulator (May 4, 2015)

Orichid123 said:


> well never heard of them eating shrimp they are algae eaters and the otto will not eat the alage you can also try banded garra they are smaller and will only eat the bba


Amano's will eat anything, I had one go after an injured cory catfish.... The shrimp won.


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## mgeorges (Feb 1, 2017)

Quagulator said:


> Amano's will eat anything, I had one go after an injured cory catfish.... The shrimp won.


Yikes....that's terrifying. 
@Orichid123 SAE's are not strictly algae eaters. They can be very opportunistic, baby shrimp would definitely be on their menu, probably adults too for a larger SAE. They do get 6" after all...


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## yen1818 (Oct 15, 2013)

Thanks for the info! Java fern SAVED!

Bump:


Quagulator said:


> Amano's will eat anything, I had one go after an injured cory catfish.... The shrimp won.


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## TheSteels (Jul 21, 2014)

Professional aquascaper George Farmer has a great video on how to get rid of algae (including bba) without chemicals: 



 Also a weekly maintenance with 50% water change, daily dosing of ferts will keep the algae at bay! Hope this helps.


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