# BBA and Green Spot algae



## Asteroid (Jul 26, 2018)

I'm not convinced yet that GSA is caused by low phosphate. I am convinced that BBA is caused by organics in the water. Whenever I remove plant mass or slack on water changes (which is rare) is see these algaes start to appear. So for me you need to uptake more nutrients either through plant growth/mass or remove organics via more water changes, carbon, whatever.


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## tegra1027 (Nov 23, 2021)

Asteroid said:


> I'm not convinced yet that GSA is caused by low phosphate. I am convinced that BBA is caused by organics in the water. Whenever I remove plant mass or slack on water changes (which is rare) is see these algaes start to appear. So for me you need to uptake more nutrients either through plant growth/mass or remove organics via more water changes, carbon, whatever.


Are their better plants than others for nutrient uptake? Im having high nitrate issues as well. I want to plant more, but I want to plant something that is going to be more efficient at the task at hand.


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## Asteroid (Jul 26, 2018)

tegra1027 said:


> Are their better plants than others for nutrient uptake? Im having high nitrate issues as well. I want to plant more, but I want to plant something that is going to be more efficient at the task at hand.


Do you have high nitrates from the tank or from dosing? Big difference. I would think fast growing stems will suck up alot of nutrients as well as some floaters. If your tank is hardscape heavy then keeping the tank very low of organics is a must. There simply isn't enough uptake even with co2 maxed out.


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## tegra1027 (Nov 23, 2021)

Asteroid said:


> Do you have high nitrates from the tank or from dosing? Big difference. I would think fast growing stems will suck up alot of nutrients as well as some floaters. If your tank is hardscape heavy then keeping the tank very low of organics is a must. There simply isn't enough uptake even with co2 maxed out.


Im trying to figure that out right now. Im in the process of creating a post in the water parameter section currently. I have a hard time taking information like what you just gave me and using it effectively because I dont know what "alot" of hardscape is. Or what "alot" of stem plants is. Ill post a picture here for your opinion if you dont mind. Why do hardscapes making organics stay low more important?


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## Asteroid (Jul 26, 2018)

tegra1027 said:


> Im trying to figure that out right now. Im in the process of creating a post in the water parameter section currently. I have a hard time taking information like what you just gave me and using it effectively because I dont know what "alot" of hardscape is. Or what "alot" of stem plants is. Ill post a picture here for your opinion if you dont mind. Why do hardscapes making organics stay low more important?


Nice tank. I would say that's alot of hardscape. Having alot of hardscape makes a big difference because where ever there is hardscape you don't have plant mass taking up nutrients. So you probably have half the uptake of someone with no hardscape. I'm not suggesting you get rid of your hardscape, it's just that much harder to maintain under strong light. You could remove some of the stone if you want and put more plants in. That combined with bigger water changes, etc will definitely help.


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## tegra1027 (Nov 23, 2021)

Asteroid said:


> Nice tank. I would say that's alot of hardscape. Having alot of hardscape makes a big difference because where ever there is hardscape you don't have plant mass taking up nutrients. So you probably have half the uptake of someone with no hardscape. I'm not suggesting you get rid of your hardscape, it's just that much harder to maintain under strong light. You could remove some of the stone if you want and put more plants in. That combined with bigger water changes, etc will definitely help.


Thank you. That makes sense. Not that it would make a huge difference, but does the moss and anubias help counter that then, based on that concept? 

I'm trying to find a way to plant more given my set up. I've been propagating the Rotala on the right there, as well as the (I believe its Ludwigia) in the back. I just planted corkscrew Val in the back corner so I'm waiting for that to take off, as well as the dwarf water lettuce I dropped in. I guess one of my main concerns is over crowding it with plants. Im sure some might say thats impossible, but I want there to be room for the fish to swim as well.


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## Fat Guy (Nov 19, 2003)

Just to chime in- I’ve been using microbe lift in all of my tanks for a while now and dose after water changes. Stuff smells awful but adds a lot of beneficial bacteria to help the waste organics battle. I started using it a while back when I was having some staghorn issues after being out of town for work.


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## tegra1027 (Nov 23, 2021)

Fat Guy said:


> Just to chime in- I’ve been using microbe lift in all of my tanks for a while now and dose after water changes. Stuff smells awful but adds a lot of beneficial bacteria to help the waste organics battle. I started using it a while back when I was having some staghorn issues after being out of town for work.


Why would added beneficial bacteria help combat algae? Isn't the bacteria already present in a fully cycled and established tank?


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## Fat Guy (Nov 19, 2003)

There is bacteria present in a cycled tank existing in the filter media, plants, substrate etc. This product will increases the amount of bacteria in an established tank and will help to speed up the breaking down of organic waste. It’s the accumulation of waste organics IME that contribute to the growth of certain red algae in the tank. The more bacteria you have the quicker the waste is broken down. I started using this product a while back after talking with some of the folks at GLA regarding a staghorn bloom. They use this product on their established tanks and put me on to it. I dose it in addition to water changes and I love the stuff. Since using it my nitrates stay in check and the staghorn bloom has subsided almost completely. That was an inexpensive addition to my water column. I also reduced my light. You mentioned that your light is medium. You have a lot of low light plants in your tank so it wouldn’t hurt to reduce your lighting as you try to get a hold of your algae issue. When I get gsa on my Anubias It usually means too much light for that plant. It prefers shaded areas IME. Best of luck.


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## Jagathawise (Dec 31, 2021)

I'm fighting through a bunch of the issues you are having. My anubias is on a piece of Driftwood that is fairly high in the tank. The anubias towards the top has pretty bad gsa, but I'm also trying to grow a carpet. So I went to LFS and got probably 50 water lettuce plants, constructed a ring with airline tubing, tied it to my spray bar and put it over to shade the anubias and help with ammonia spikes I was having. It seems to be helping alot with both ammonia and gsa.


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## tegra1027 (Nov 23, 2021)

Fat Guy said:


> There is bacteria present in a cycled tank existing in the filter media, plants, substrate etc. This product will increases the amount of bacteria in an established tank and will help to speed up the breaking down of organic waste. It’s the accumulation of waste organics IME that contribute to the growth of certain red algae in the tank. The more bacteria you have the quicker the waste is broken down. I started using this product a while back after talking with some of the folks at GLA regarding a staghorn bloom. They use this product on their established tanks and put me on to it. I dose it in addition to water changes and I love the stuff. Since using it my nitrates stay in check and the staghorn bloom has subsided almost completely. That was an inexpensive addition to my water column. I also reduced my light. You mentioned that your light is medium. You have a lot of low light plants in your tank so it wouldn’t hurt to reduce your lighting as you try to get a hold of your algae issue. When I get gsa on my Anubias It usually means too much light for that plant. It prefers shaded areas IME. Best of luck.


 Maybe Ill give it a shot.. Cant hurt I suppose. Thank you for the tip.



Jagathawise said:


> I'm fighting through a bunch of the issues you are having. My anubias is on a piece of Driftwood that is fairly high in the tank. The anubias towards the top has pretty bad gsa, but I'm also trying to grow a carpet. So I went to LFS and got probably 50 water lettuce plants, constructed a ring with airline tubing, tied it to my spray bar and put it over to shade the anubias and help with ammonia spikes I was having. It seems to be helping alot with both ammonia and gsa.


I like this idea. Issue is that my anubias are pretty well spread out. I dont know how I would cover them all without covering the plants that like the light. I have been thinking about finding a way to add in some height with drift wood or something. Maybe I can find a way to use that to cover them. The stems and crypts are all mostly along the back so as long as I keep the drift wood forward, it should be ok I suppose. Now, how to do this without disturbing the eco system...


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## LidijaPN (Jan 15, 2022)

Yeah basically anything that grows fast (stems) and anything that sticks out of the surface (emersed plants with roots in the tank but leaves outside or surface floaters). 

And maybe lower intensity and shorter period for lights?

You can have things that grow crazy fast and just keep throwing them out... like pearlweed etc. Surface floaters you can also throw out weekly by the fistful...


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## tegra1027 (Nov 23, 2021)

LidijaPN said:


> Yeah basically anything that grows fast (stems) and anything that sticks out of the surface (emersed plants with roots in the tank but leaves outside or surface floaters).
> 
> And maybe lower intensity and shorter period for lights?
> 
> You can have things that grow crazy fast and just keep throwing them out... like pearlweed etc. Surface floaters you can also throw out weekly by the fistful...


My light isnt on very long as it is, compared to most people recommendations anyway. I was thinking pennywort maybe... I would like some plants that grow out of the tank, but Not too sure about that yet. I have a cat, so I have to be careful what I plant.


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## Asteroid (Jul 26, 2018)

Honestly don't try to figure it out exactly. Hit it from all ends. Up water changes, reduce light if you can. If you have a programmable light, high light plants only need a few hours at peak to grow well. How much do you feed. Frozen food? Makes a big mess, always remove right away. Put carbon in your filter.


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## tegra1027 (Nov 23, 2021)

Asteroid said:


> Honestly don't try to figure it out exactly. Hit it from all ends. Up water changes, reduce light if you can. If you have a programmable light, high light plants only need a few hours at peak to grow well. How much do you feed. Frozen food? Makes a big mess, always remove right away. Put carbon in your filter.


How long should I keep my light on? Its not programmable, but I have it on a timer. I feed once a day, flakes generally. Takes them about 20 seconds to eat it all up most days. Some times Ill drop in some bug bites for my rams and my pleco. I dont use carbon, but I do use purigen.


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## Fat Guy (Nov 19, 2003)

It’s the light intensity which can drive the issue. The duration depends on a lot of things. If it doesn’t have a programmable dimmer you can raise it up. You can run low light intensity for a much longer period of time and your slow growing plants will benefit. Your fast growing stems will still grow but not at such a fast rate. When you mix fast and slow growing plants you need to account for their requirements and find the best places in the tank for them to thrive. Relocating an Anubias isn’t going to mess with your water unless you kick up a bunch of debris while doing it. Your tank is not heavily planted so I think if you address the light and find a way to lower the intensity you will benefit a great deal in the algae war. That’s the one thing a lot of hobbyist want to resist (tweaking their light intensity). Yours sits right on the rim so it’s pretty direct. Your slow growing plants can only grow so fast and when you push them too far problems can occur especially on older growth. Not so much of an issue with stems. Do a search on how to lower the light intensity with the light you have. Maybe it is compatible with an aftermarket dimmer. Maybe not but there are other ways to reduce the intensity. I run my light over my tanks at much lower intensity. My main tank runs for 9 hours and has a three hour ramp with a maximum of 5-10% intensity. Now I have a pretty powerful light. But if I were to run it wide open I’d be in a world of trouble. Take the bacteria advice or don’t but waste organics are a big issue with algae. A cycled tank doesn’t mean that fish waste is immediately converted to nitrate. It takes time for waste to break down. And time and patience will pay dividends in the end. Hope that helps. Tons of info out there on ways to combat red algae and gsa. You will learn from experience what works. But take a look at some of the journals here and see what has worked for others and how they have kept successful tanks. Read and repeat. Good luck


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## CoveBeach (11 mo ago)

I had similar problems when starting my tank. I reduced the lighting period down to 8 hrs, and made a big increase in water change volume. And lastly added some Siamese algae eaters. This eliminated 90% in about a month. I think the biggest player was the water changes, as my plants were still filling in.


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## tegra1027 (Nov 23, 2021)

Fat Guy said:


> It’s the light intensity which can drive the issue. The duration depends on a lot of things. If it doesn’t have a programmable dimmer you can raise it up. You can run low light intensity for a much longer period of time and your slow growing plants will benefit. Your fast growing stems will still grow but not at such a fast rate. When you mix fast and slow growing plants you need to account for their requirements and find the best places in the tank for them to thrive. Relocating an Anubias isn’t going to mess with your water unless you kick up a bunch of debris while doing it. Your tank is not heavily planted so I think if you address the light and find a way to lower the intensity you will benefit a great deal in the algae war. That’s the one thing a lot of hobbyist want to resist (tweaking their light intensity). Yours sits right on the rim so it’s pretty direct. Your slow growing plants can only grow so fast and when you push them too far problems can occur especially on older growth. Not so much of an issue with stems. Do a search on how to lower the light intensity with the light you have. Maybe it is compatible with an aftermarket dimmer. Maybe not but there are other ways to reduce the intensity. I run my light over my tanks at much lower intensity. My main tank runs for 9 hours and has a three hour ramp with a maximum of 5-10% intensity. Now I have a pretty powerful light. But if I were to run it wide open I’d be in a world of trouble. Take the bacteria advice or don’t but waste organics are a big issue with algae. A cycled tank doesn’t mean that fish waste is immediately converted to nitrate. It takes time for waste to break down. And time and patience will pay dividends in the end. Hope that helps. Tons of info out there on ways to combat red algae and gsa. You will learn from experience what works. But take a look at some of the journals here and see what has worked for others and how they have kept successful tanks. Read and repeat. Good luck


Id like to get a better light with programming options. I guess for now Ill raise up the light and keep it on a bit longer, and keep my CO2 on longer as well. One of my biggest challenges has been a lack of knowledge with the plants. When I ordered them, they weren't labeled so I had to figure out what was what, and I didn't know much about their requirements. To be honest, I planted my amazon ferns in the substrate even. Now that I know a bit more, rearranging the tank could be helpful. Just not sure how to do it yet. Placement wise, as well as not disturbing too much.


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## #DizzyIzzy1 (Sep 24, 2020)

Fat Guy said:


> Just to chime in- I’ve been using microbe lift in all of my tanks for a while now and dose after water changes. Stuff smells awful but adds a lot of beneficial bacteria to help the waste organics battle. I started using it a while back when I was having some staghorn issues after being out of town for work.


Is it the Bio Carbon product you are using? Trying to figure out if this is the same as Aquavitro Envy. I think it is.


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## Fat Guy (Nov 19, 2003)

#DizzyIzzy1 said:


> Is it the Bio Carbon product you are using? Trying to figure out if this is the same as Aquavitro Envy. I think it is.


no it’s called “microbe lift special blend aquarium bacteria”.


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## crystalpalacebadger5 (12 mo ago)

tegra1027 said:


> Are their better plants than others for nutrient uptake? Im having high nitrate issues as well. I want to plant more, but I want to plant something that is going to be more efficient at the task at hand.


I've recently put some Hornwort in my tank.....and the difference has been remarkable! All my other plants have less, in some cases much less, algae on their leaves. The entire tank looks greener and healthier..and plants that haven't shown any signs of growth for years are actually growing again. And an Amazon Sword I'd given up for dead has started growing again. Now the caveat. A mate had to get rid of the Hornwort in his tank as it was taking over. Some people online have reported an adverse effect from the introduction of this plant, to other plants. Also I've made other changes that may have made a difference; fewer light hours, and removal (to the local curry house tank) of my lovely Firemouth cichlids...non aggressive but insisted on doing unwanted civil engineering.


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## tegra1027 (Nov 23, 2021)

crystalpalacebadger5 said:


> I've recently put some Hornwort in my tank.....and the difference has been remarkable! All my other plants have less, in some cases much less, algae on their leaves. The entire tank looks greener and healthier..and plants that haven't shown any signs of growth for years are actually growing again. And an Amazon Sword I'd given up for dead has started growing again. Now the caveat. A mate had to get rid of the Hornwort in his tank as it was taking over. Some people online have reported an adverse effect from the introduction of this plant, to other plants. Also I've made other changes that may have made a difference; fewer light hours, and removal (to the local curry house tank) of my lovely Firemouth cichlids...non aggressive but insisted on doing unwanted civil engineering.


Than you for the suggestion. Ill look into that! I just had to rehome my GBR,. I am going to find a female but also looking into other species that I can put in with them.


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## Anon (Mar 16, 2014)

Fat Guy said:


> I’ve been using microbe lift in all of my tanks for a while now and dose after water changes. Stuff smells awful but adds a lot of beneficial bacteria to help the waste organics battle.


Hi @Fat Guy 

Very interesting. Which of the Microbe Lift products do you use for dealing with the organic waste?

Thanks in advance.

Anon

I see that my question has already been answered!

Anon


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## Anon (Mar 16, 2014)

Fat Guy said:


> Just to chime in- I’ve been using microbe lift in all of my tanks for a while now and dose after water changes. Stuff smells awful but adds a lot of beneficial bacteria to help the waste organics battle. I started using it a while back when I was having some staghorn issues after being out of town for work.


Hi @Fat Guy

I realize it's only two weeks since you wrote the above. But, is the _Microbe-Lift Special Blend_ still helping to suppress Staghorn algae? And did you also have BBA?

Thanks in advance.

Anon


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## Fat Guy (Nov 19, 2003)

Anon said:


> Hi @Fat Guy
> 
> I realize it's only two weeks since you wrote the above. But, is the _Microbe-Lift Special Blend_ still helping to suppress Staghorn algae? And did you also have BBA?
> 
> ...


Hey Anon,

I do believe that it is helping. It is not a cure all product though. I think over feeding and the increase of waste organics and excessive light has a lot to do with the staghorn presence. I don’t have any bba at the moment. I see the staghorn pop up mainly on old growth on my Juncus Repens. I run two tanks currently (one primary being a shrimp tank) and when I introduced fish to the shrimp tank and fed more, the staghorn would appear on the Juncus Repens in that tank. I think the issue may in fact be the Juncus Repens. I may not be providing the optimal environment for it. I see it described a lot as an immersed plant that can be grown submerged. I don’t know enough about it though and maybe that is why the staghorn appears as the plant is not thriving. It grows fine in my tank but something is amiss with it. But I do feel pretty strongly that the microbe lift helps with the ammonia spikes but again it is not the key to an algae free tank. But the more beneficial bacteria the better IMHO.


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## Anon (Mar 16, 2014)

Fat Guy said:


> But I do feel pretty strongly that the microbe lift helps with the ammonia spikes...


Hi @Fat Guy 

Thanks for your reply.

I'm intrigued. I wonder why you are seeing ammonia spikes. Any thoughts?

Anon


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## Fat Guy (Nov 19, 2003)

Anon said:


> Hi @Fat Guy
> 
> Thanks for your reply.
> 
> ...


I’m not so to speak. If you were to test my water you wouldn’t see it’s presence on the standard API liquid test. However ammonia is always present in the tank…if there wasn’t ammonia there wouldn’t be nitrifying bacteria…so let’s say I lose some livestock in the tank which is heavily planted than there can be ammonia spikes if the livestock is not removed (or if I don’t see it). The decomposition of uneaten fish food, fish waste etc through nitrification is not instantaneous so with high levels of waste organics there will be the presence of ammonia which imho are significant contributors to the presence of staghorn…that and the amount of light you are providing accelerates the red algae…after all algae photosynthesizes…so…adding more bacteria as well as making sure there is gaseous exchange and there is o2 available for the bacteria to thrive, products like microbe lift (IME) can help in the war against waste organics and the presence of excessive ammonia from the decomposition of uneaten fish food, a high bio load, decomposition of fish…plants…respiration…excretion…etc. 

That’s my take on it and why I use the product now and it’s role in the reduction of red algae in my aquariums.

What are your thoughts?


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## Anon (Mar 16, 2014)

Fat Guy said:


> What are your thoughts?


Hi @Fat Guy

I suspect that the author(s) of what you see below have got their fingers on the button, so-to-speak. It's possibly the most detailed, scientific investigation into aquarium algae that I have yet to find. Hope you also find it useful.






Aquarium







www.golias.net





The outcome of this research is summarised in the last few words of the work carried out, i.e:

"The imperfect activity of mineralizing bacteria and the consequent accumulation of toxic organic substances in the water is therefore, in our opinion, the main reason for the appearance of algae in the aquarium!"

Anon


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## Fat Guy (Nov 19, 2003)

Anon said:


> Hi @Fat Guy
> 
> I suspect that the author(s) of what you see below have got their fingers on the button, so-to-speak. It's possibly the most detailed, scientific investigation into aquarium algae that I have yet to find. Hope you also find it useful.
> 
> ...


Yes, this is an excellent article! Thanks for sharing this with me. The one part where I’d like to see more research/info gathered would be algae and its relationship to light (especially with todays LEDS) which to me, combined with an increasing amount of what the author calls COD (the waste organics) is a one two combo for algae proliferation. So much has changed in regards to how we light our tanks when a lot of this research was gathered (some of the source work here goes back to 1990 which is awesome) But I’d like to see more discussion regarding algae and the way it photosynthesizes. 

_“And if we want to reduce the amount of nutrients without asking for trouble, we also need to reduce the lighting. These three factors are closely linked, and if people do not understand it, they get into trouble. Therefore, as long as the aquarists keep the tank clean, they can safely dose virtually any amount of [inorganic] nutrients."_

I know that if I overdose KNO3 combined with intense lighting in my tank I will get staghorn pretty rapidly. I think beneficial bacteria is a huge component to reducing the waste organics as well as the author of that article also alludes to. That’s why I add an extra dose to my tanks after water changes. I also think that a lot of hobbyists forget about the need for gaseous exchange and o2 in the water to allow for good bacteria growth. That and the case that many aquarists crank too much light over their tanks... When you browse a lot of the algae posts on many forums lighting is usually left out of the OP‘s post until somebody asks about it. 

Also I thought this part was super on point too-

_“Sugars and other carbohydrates as well as the nutrients that are released from the plants serve as food to the bacteria, which in turn serve the plants – for example, they transform minerals (salts) into plant-usable forms. Plants, therefore, in a sense, care for their own zoological garden. In nature, these products have a very low concentration, mainly due to the huge mass of water, but in our aquariums (which are really tiny compared to ponds or lakes), the released products of photosynthesis (i.e. photosynthates) easily accumulate and "clutter" the surface of the plants. The accumulated material then acts as a barrier that prevents the effective absorption of nutrients and CO2, but when these *organic products* start to decompose they attract algae and encourage their growth, Therefore, it is also unreasonable to dose large amounts of nutrients while neglecting maintenance.”_

Thanks again for sharing this. 

What do you think?


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## Anon (Mar 16, 2014)

Fat Guy said:


> Thanks again for sharing this.
> 
> What do you think?


Hi @Fat Guy 

I'm so pleased that you found the article useful.

I'm currently doing experiments to see if it's possible to monitor dissolved organics. And I'm having some success by measuring ORP/Redox of the water column. More details to follow on this tomorrow.

I'd just like to also add that I'm grateful to be having this discussion with you. I've only recently returned to _PlantedTank_ after a long break. So, this is a great start!

Anon



Anon said:


> More details to follow on this tomorrow.


Hi @Fat Guy 

I was a bit optimistic thinking that I could provide more details today! I really should have said 'within the next few days'.

Anon


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## rzn7z7 (Aug 17, 2013)

Anon said:


> Hi @Fat Guy
> 
> I suspect that the author(s) of what you see below have got their fingers on the button, so-to-speak. It's possibly the most detailed, scientific investigation into aquarium algae that I have yet to find. Hope you also find it useful.
> 
> ...


Hi @Anon, this is a great study and thanks for sharing! These 2 statements immediately stood out for me

"_Plants, therefore, in a sense, care for their own zoological garden._"

....and....

"_As I have found, "nutrients" that are directly related to algal overgrowth are the ones we associate with "decay". Thus, algae proliferation usually occurs due to metabolic waste (fish excrements), decomposing unused feed, dead animals, dead bacterial colonies, etc., the amount of which exceeds the ability of the system to directly utilize them or at least convert them to nitrates_"

Meaning, as has been said before, that thriving plants will keep algae in check and that's where we should place our focus (not on algae control), and we can aid our tank's ability to regulate all of the biological processes underway thru good maintenance (water changes, filter cleaning, vacuuming, etc.)


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## Anon (Mar 16, 2014)

rzn7z7 said:


> Hi @Anon, this is a great study and thanks for sharing!


Hi @rzn7z7

I'm delighted that you also find the study useful.



rzn7z7 said:


> Meaning, as has been said before, that thriving plants will keep algae in check and that's where we should place our focus (not on algae control), and we can aid our tank's ability to regulate all of the biological processes underway thru good maintenance (water changes, filter cleaning, vacuuming, etc.)


Whilst _undoubtedly necessary_, my hunch is that relying on water changes, filter cleaning and vacuuming may not be sufficient. I suspect that dissolved organic matter (DOM) and some ionics (e.g. phosphate) may accumulate more rapidly than basic maintenance can remove them. But, that's where measurement of water parameters can greatly help in my view.

Anon



Fat Guy said:


> The one part where I’d like to see more research/info gathered would be algae and its relationship to light (especially with todays LEDS) which to me, combined with an increasing amount of what the author calls COD (the waste organics) is a one two combo for algae proliferation.


Hi @Fat Guy 

This is a topic that interests me greatly. In my view, manufacturers of LED lighting know that what the customers want is lighting that make the plants' colours 'pop'. But, I suspect that there may be a downside to this.

I have accumulated a few research papers that investigate the effects of lighting on the aquatic ecosystem. Of particular interest is something known as the _photoreduction of iron._ Check it out!

Anon


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## Actionbastard (9 mo ago)

Hey I know this is an older post but I've had a ton of luck with Seachem Exel on BBA. I do aquarium maintenance as my job and we've had a couple tanks get completely taken over. Tried so many different things and finally Exel wiped it out. We set up a dosing pump near the return and dosed about 1ml per 10g daily. I've done as much as 3x that though with no noticeable effect to livestock. 

Cool tank!


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