# Got some algae



## nswhite (Mar 23, 2005)

I got this green slimy algae growing on the substrate next to the rock in the middle and its not very easy to get up. How should I remove this stuff and what is it called. better pics coming soon

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## rchan11 (May 6, 2004)

It's caused by lack of water flow in that area. Stir the sand once in a while to prevent it from growing.


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## Round Head (Sep 26, 2005)

Or just remove it by hand or tools.
Excell will do the trick too; I learned that trick from Dippy.
Nice looking plants by the way.


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## harrykaa (Jan 10, 2005)

That is actually not algae, it is Cyanophyta (blue-green bacteria) that are also called blue-green algae. These are, however bacteria capable of photosynthesis.
Most commonly they appear when there is too much phosphates compared to nitrates. Some BGA do not even need nitrates as they can fix the atmospheric nitrogen (N2).

Excel may help, because given more carbon, plants may use also phosphates better. But you must also check that nitrates will not become a limiting factor. Keep the level of NO3 around 15-30 ppm.

Current may not help at all. Some BGA grow very well just where the current is strong.
Still, it is important to clean these bacteria off as often as possible to avoid them blooming.
You see when blooming, some species (like Nodularia and Anabaena) produce liver toxins.

Harry


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## nswhite (Mar 23, 2005)

Round Head said:


> That is actually not algae, it is Cyanophyta (blue-green bacteria) that are also called blue-green algae. These are, however bacteria capable of photosynthesis.
> Most commonly they appear when there is too much phosphates compared to nitrates. Some BGA do not even need nitrates as they can fix the atmospheric nitrogen (N2).
> 
> Excel may help, because given more carbon, plants may use also phosphates better. But you must also check that nitrates will not become a limiting factor. Keep the level of NO3 around 15-30 ppm.
> ...


Well my NO3 is always at 20ppm. about the phosphates when I do my weekly water change it starts out at 2.0 right from the tap but the next day it drops to 0.0 so than I add some mono potassium phosphate to get it back up 2.0. Maybe this is to much. Whats the best way to get it out and keep it out. I have co2 injection and have the co2 at 27ppm so I cant raise that any. I dont know what else to do.

And another thing I have some Sagittaria Subulata that has what looks to be BBA has little dark hair's growing off it. How do I get this out also.


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## DiPpY eGgS (Mar 6, 2005)

> Well my NO3 is always at 20ppm. about the phosphates when I do my weekly water change it starts out at 2.0 right from the tap but the next day it drops to 0.0 so than I add some mono potassium phosphate to get it back up 2.0. Maybe this is to much. Whats the best way to get it out and keep it out. I have co2 injection and have the co2 at 27ppm so I cant raise that any. I dont know what else to do.
> .


Your nitrate is at a good level. Adding phosphate is fine, you have it at perfect levels @ 2ppm.
It is best to take it out completely, with a spoon or something. I just recently had a problem with that same stuff in my bathroom sanchezi tank, (pool filter sand substrate) I tried everything, with no results.. I switched out my substrate back to Soilmaster Select, and it is fine now.

Some say it is low nitrates that helps this along, but my tank and yours seem to have plenty of nitrate..
Some use Erythromycin (antibiotic) treatment to eradicate the problem when it gets bad, but I will say the best way to deal with this is to take it out 'immediately' after finding some..
Don't even let an inch form on the substrate, and if it forms on any leaves, wipe it off carefully and get it out of there ASAP.
I hope it goes away for ya.
Stay on top of it!


> And another thing I have some Sagittaria Subulata that has what looks to be BBA has little dark hair's growing off it. How do I get this out also


That is either (1) lack of CO2, or (2) low nitrates. Is your circulation good in there? It is true that circulation is important in a planted tank for the nutrients to be distributed well.
How much light do you have over the tank? --Might be time for DIY CO2, and Excell.. 
I say, remove the leaves (from the very bottom) that have it on there, and deal with the CO2 and/or circulation issues, and see what happens


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## nswhite (Mar 23, 2005)

Well I have co2 injection already. and I added some powerheads in the tank to help with circulation and I also pulled off all the infected leafs and cleaned the sand substrate the best i could but the next day it was all back again. I have a 75gal tank with 2wpg so thats alot of time spent trying to dig out all the green stuff. especially since its growing back so fast. I really dont want to change out the substrate, but what is this soil master stuff you talk about does it have any ill effects? What does it look like? Thanks again Dippy for the help


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## DiPpY eGgS (Mar 6, 2005)

Soilmaster is a substrate found at Lesco stores. It is made for baseball fields. 
Great for a planted tank, no ill effects.

I bought the charcoal color one. Looks good


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## nswhite (Mar 23, 2005)

Oh, We dont have a Lesco where I live is that like a Home Depot ? I was kind of hoping I could get this algae out my tank with out doing a substrate change. Does the Soil master break down over time like does it need to be replaced?


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## nswhite (Mar 23, 2005)

I dont know what to do about this algae. I pulled off lots of leaves and cleaned the subsrate twice then I changed the water and added a some ferts just a little nitrates but the algae just keeps growing back. It would be very difficult for me to change the substrate because I dont have another tank available to put my elong in while I change the substrate.


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## rchan11 (May 6, 2004)

Ferts and nitrates will promote algae growth, they feed off the same nutrients as your plants. Keep stiring up your substrate.


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## Brian5150 (Oct 17, 2006)

Hey nswhite do you feed the cherry shrimp to your piranha?


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## rchan11 (May 6, 2004)

Cherry shrimp are super tiny, I doubt the Ps will bother with them. They're the size of Mysis shrimp.


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## nswhite (Mar 23, 2005)

rchan11 said:


> Cherry shrimp are super tiny, I doubt the Ps will bother with them. They're the size of Mysis shrimp.


 They are super tiny at first but once they fully grow they are about an Inch but most P's love the shrimp. Plus they are a cool red


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## rchan11 (May 6, 2004)

Mine full grown ones are still tiny, no more than 1/2" long and 1/8" high.


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## nswhite (Mar 23, 2005)

Ya they dont get very big. But I still think they look pretty cool with the red and stuff


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## DiPpY eGgS (Mar 6, 2005)

Light penatrates through substrate almost an inch. Stirring your substrate will only worsen the problem, trust me.
I suggest spooning it out, and throwing it away. Did you try the Erythromycin? You can find it at some lfs. 
I suggest changing substrate only if the problem does not go away after a few months, and gains a stronger foothold in the tank.


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## nswhite (Mar 23, 2005)

No I didn't try the Erythromycin yet maybe I should. And about stiring the substrate I only was sucking out the green stuff not really mixing it up but just trying to clean the algae out. I will hold off on the substrate change at least for another month or two like you said. I went to the local hardware store but they didnt have any soil master anyway so it maybe something I have to search for. I was also thinking of using all flourite what do you think about that stuff does it have any ill effects? Thanks again


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## DiPpY eGgS (Mar 6, 2005)

> No I didn't try the Erythromycin yet maybe I should


couldn't hurt to try it, for sure!


> I only was sucking out the green stuff not really mixing it up but just trying to clean the algae out


Excellent.. Good job


> I will hold off on the substrate change at least for another month or two like you said.


I gave mine 3 or 4 months. Everything I tried failed..







I have never seen a problem like that until trying to use pool filter sand as a substrate.
It is in my garbage can now. I guess I should have rinsed it really good before using? I don't know..


> I went to the local hardware store but they didnt have any soil master anyway so it maybe something I have to search for


Try here


> I was also thinking of using all flourite what do you think about that stuff does it have any ill effects?


I have a tank with flourite.. My 75g compressus tank is flourite. I love the stuff. Soilmaster is great, and very cheap. That is the way to go for price, but if you can't get it, I would try to get Shultz Aquatic Plant Soil at any gardening store with a pond section.. Especially if money is an issue.. it really is just as good as flourite, without the price tag.
Same with the Soilmaster.
But if you can't find it, Flourite is always there.


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## nswhite (Mar 23, 2005)

Dippy whats your opinion on the best type of subsrate to use? I dont really care about the money its not an issue. I want the best and one that dosent breakdown so I dont have to replace it. And how much of the Soil master did you use on your 75gal. Thanks for the link that stuff is pretty cheap.


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## DiPpY eGgS (Mar 6, 2005)

> Dippy whats your opinion on the best type of subsrate to use? I dont really care about the money its not an issue. I want the best and one that dosent breakdown so I dont have to replace it.


By far, the best has to be the ADA Amozonia Aquasoil/Powersand combo.
The stuff is simply incredible. But it is expensive, and it breaks down a bit after a few years, but it still does the job, even though it might look broken down a bit. 
You will have to learn about fertilizing after a few months, because the substrate takes care of that for the first 12-16 weeks. (but you will have to lightly dose during that period.)


> And how much of the Soil master did you use on your 75gal. Thanks for the link that stuff is pretty cheap.


1 50lb bag did great in a 75. That is all you need. IMO, the Soilmaster is perfect for you.. Cheap, good for plants, and should never break down. The Aquasoil is for ppl that are sure they are into the hobby for the long haul, that want to grow sensitive plants well easily. Oh, and have that kind of dough to spend on substrate.. lol
I have a 10g with it in there.. it costed like 75$ or so for that.. a 75 would cost over 200


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## nswhite (Mar 23, 2005)

Wow, That stuffs expensive. Ok I am going to take your advice again and get a bag of Soilmaster from lesco.com I will order today and hopefully have it soon. I have no idea what this stuff looks like I'm sure I've seen it before in one of the pics that you posted but you think you could link me to a pic of what it looks like in a tank. Thanks Dippy.


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## DiPpY eGgS (Mar 6, 2005)

I don't know how good of an idea you can get from this pic, but it is the best shot I have of the soilmaster.. I know some others here have better pics of it though..


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## nswhite (Mar 23, 2005)

Ya, thats perfect I just wanted to get an idea of what it looked like. I like the look of the Soil Master better anyway. Cool And I also found a local Lesco there are only two in the whole state. But they said they would need to order one in and they will call me when it gets there. I hope it dosent take to long. Thanks again


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## BlackSunshine (Mar 28, 2006)

Erythromycin is going to be your saviour. Trust me. I've had to kill this sh*t in two tanks so far. 
What i did to destroy it in the 20 gal is this.
Do a good gravel vac as well as running the vac over the plants to get the stuff off them and the soil. After you have gone thru and manually removed as much of it as possible. Kill the tank lights for a day or two. ALL LIGHT. that means if any ambiant sunlight gets into the room with the tank you will need to cover the tank. 
While doing this black out start your erythromycin treatment. Take the tablets and crush them up into a powder and tdelute that in a cup of tank water. Then pour it into the tank. focus on pouring it over the real problem areas. at this point if you notice that it is growing below the soil line you will need to expose that stuff under the soil to the treated tank water.
a 4-5 days of treatment and at least 1-2 days (maybe longer) of the black out should rid your tank of this nasty stuff.

then to keep it away. Make sure you have full circulation in the tank. and that you're not leaving scraps of organic waste to pile up on the tank floor. And most importantly make sure to keep those fert levels in check. low nitrate is supose to be a cause for the BGA. But there are times that my trates get down to 0 these days and I haven't had an out break since the original one a few months back.

the second tank I had the outbreak in was not even a planted. (at the time) My convict tank broke out with BGA and I used only the erythromycin and only for 2 days. cleared up. 
Nitrate levels are always high in that tank because most the time I am and I slack on its maintance.


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## nswhite (Mar 23, 2005)

BlackSunshine said:


> Erythromycin is going to be your saviour. Trust me. I've had to kill this sh*t in two tanks so far.
> What i did to destroy it in the 20 gal is this.
> Do a good gravel vac as well as running the vac over the plants to get the stuff off them and the soil. After you have gone thru and manually removed as much of it as possible. Kill the tank lights for a day or two. ALL LIGHT. that means if any ambiant sunlight gets into the room with the tank you will need to cover the tank.
> While doing this black out start your erythromycin treatment. Take the tablets and crush them up into a powder and tdelute that in a cup of tank water. Then pour it into the tank. focus on pouring it over the real problem areas. at this point if you notice that it is growing below the soil line you will need to expose that stuff under the soil to the treated tank water.
> ...


OK I have a couple questions for you BlackSunshine so start the erythromycin treatment when I start the black out and continue to use the erythromycin for another three days after the black out. Right? And when dosing the erythromycin do I dose according to the directions? Also When I'm doing the black out do I dose my ferts I'm guessing no. And last will I need to turn off my co2 injection? My co2 is on a timer with the lights so I'm guessing leave everything off. I was under the impression that erythromycin was last resort.


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