A good cleaning crew

[Mar23]

I am in need of a better cleaning crew for my tank. Hair algae is spreading and the plants are getting this "dirty appearance". Every time the fish kick up the substrate, there is a bunch of detritus/food getting kicked up. I have been overfeeding lately because I have some fry and was afraid they would starve. Some of the food was pretty messy frozen mysis that I don't even think anyone ate. I have already cut back on the food. Anyway, I already have 6 sterbai cory, 6 ottos, and 4 mystery snails. I vacuum the substrate with a battery operated vacuum, but I don't think it does a very good job. It is also hard to vacuum with all the plants and driftwood in the way. I am thinking about adding shrimp. I know the shrimp would not get rid of the problem, but I'm hoping they will help a little. Any recommendations? Thanks in advance.


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[Mar23]

Here is a picture of the algae.


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[Rianyu]

I'm currently having issue with hair algae as well. Fish don't really go for it unfortunately. Best option for you, in my opinion, is to maybe amp up how often you clean.

I do once a week 30% water change but also spot clean a little every day using a turkey baster or a manual gravel cleaner to suck up any visible debris and hair algae. As a rule, I do around half a gallon only for these small spot clean (otherwise it takes too long and gets to be too much of a hassle that I might as well just do a full clean). It's been helping a lot with the hair algae on top of adjusting how long my light is on for.

One thing that I didn't know when I was starting the hobby is that even if you scrape algae off, if you don't get it out of the tank after, it'll probably reattach and grow somewhere else. Before I do my water changes, I always have a go-over with an algae scraper.

If you still want to add more to your cleaning crew - Shrimps will be a good idea since they will be able to pick up tinier food particles that your cories miss, but make sure you have tons of places for them to hide in. I had some RCS and ghost shrimps in mine and my neons got to them before they had a chance to spawn more.

 

[Mar23]

I'm currently having issue with hair algae as well. Fish don't really go for it unfortunately. Best option for you, in my opinion, is to maybe amp up how often you clean.

I do once a week 30% water change but also spot clean a little every day using a turkey baster or a manual gravel cleaner to suck up any visible debris and hair algae. As a rule, I do around half a gallon only for these small spot clean (otherwise it takes too long and gets to be too much of a hassle that I might as well just do a full clean). It's been helping a lot with the hair algae on top of adjusting how long my light is on for.

One thing that I didn't know when I was starting the hobby is that even if you scrape algae off, if you don't get it out of the tank after, it'll probably reattach and grow somewhere else. Before I do my water changes, I always have a go-over with an algae scraper.

If you still want to add more to your cleaning crew - Shrimps will be a good idea since they will be able to pick up tinier food particles that your cories miss, but make sure you have tons of places for them to hide in. I had some RCS and ghost shrimps in mine and my neons got to them before they had a chance to spawn more.

Thanks for the response. I do a 30% water change weekly as well. I will try to do more vacuuming.


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[brennae]

I have hair algae and honestly you would be better off addressing the cause of it. I've had long discussions about the specific problems in my tank are. If you can figure out why you are getting so much of it you can prevent a lot of the problem and then treat for what is existing in the tank.

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[ScotJudd]

Brennae is quite right, hair algae and BBA grow for a reason and that needs to be addressed.
In the short term though I would remove as much as you can manually and then spot treat with Excel (Glut). Excel and Glut are a carbon source for plants but also contain a mild algaecide. Turn off your filters, airs stones, power heads etc. and let the water movement settle for a couple of minutes. Get the recommended dose of Excel for the tank and put it in a small container. Then use a pipette or syringe and apply directly on the algae. Leave for five minutes and then restart your equipment. The area treated should turn red after 24 hrs and will then dissolve. Repeat daily in areas affected, you can't get it all at once but should clear it in a week. I then daily dose the whole tank which stops the return of the algae. The plants will also benefit from the carbon source.
In the long term, improve tank maintenance, feed correctly and increase your planting. Reducing the lighting period is often advised but I personally have found that unnecessary and that the extended lighting period promotes better plant growth which in turn out feeds the algae.
One warning on Excel and Glut, some plants, Vals especially, don't tolerate the treatment and may melt away.
As for shrimp, I have over 70 mixed tetras and 12 Corys and a huge colony of red cherry shrimp. The key to success is a lot of cover, moss being about the best. The shrimpets do get picked off but many survive. I also swear by Malaysian trumpet snails. They bury themselves during the day, which slowly turns the substrate over keeping it well aerated, and they don't eat live plants. They are live bearers and you will have an explosion in numbers if you're over feeding the tank.
If you can put up a photo of the whole tank then it will easier to give an opinion on the planting for shrimps.


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[ImACoolguy]

From my experience, saltwater and freshwater, I had hair algae due to excess nutrients.

Where it be nitrates, or high doses of fertilizers, once I got nutrients under control my hair algae has subsided.


Caleb

 

[Mar23]

Brennae is quite right, hair algae and BBA grow for a reason and that needs to be addressed.
In the short term though I would remove as much as you can manually and then spot treat with Excel (Glut). Excel and Glut are a carbon source for plants but also contain a mild algaecide. Turn off your filters, airs stones, power heads etc. and let the water movement settle for a couple of minutes. Get the recommended dose of Excel for the tank and put it in a small container. Then use a pipette or syringe and apply directly on the algae. Leave for five minutes and then restart your equipment. The area treated should turn red after 24 hrs and will then dissolve. Repeat daily in areas affected, you can't get it all at once but should clear it in a week. I then daily dose the whole tank which stops the return of the algae. The plants will also benefit from the carbon source.
In the long term, improve tank maintenance, feed correctly and increase your planting. Reducing the lighting period is often advised but I personally have found that unnecessary and that the extended lighting period promotes better plant growth which in turn out feeds the algae.
One warning on Excel and Glut, some plants, Vals especially, don't tolerate the treatment and may melt away.
As for shrimp, I have over 70 mixed tetras and 12 Corys and a huge colony of red cherry shrimp. The key to success is a lot of cover, moss being about the best. The shrimpets do get picked off but many survive. I also swear by Malaysian trumpet snails. They bury themselves during the day, which slowly turns the substrate over keeping it well aerated, and they don't eat live plants. They are live bearers and you will have an explosion in numbers if you're over feeding the tank.
If you can put up a photo of the whole tank then it will easier to give an opinion on the planting for shrimps.


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Thank you. I have already cut down on the overfeeding, which I think is what caused it. More than overfeeding, what happened is that I tried different frozen foods to feed my fry and some were just not eaten, so they sat on plants and the substrate. Another possible reason is that my MTS are all but gone. I had them by the hundreds weeks ago, and then my husband insisted on keeping a redear in the tank. The redear has eaten every single snail. I am trying to convince him that the redear has to go. This is a sunfish tank, by the way.


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[Mar23]

From my experience, saltwater and freshwater, I had hair algae due to excess nutrients.

Where it be nitrates, or high doses of fertilizers, once I got nutrients under control my hair algae has subsided.


Caleb

Yeah, the nitrates were high a week ago. What causes them to spike? Overfeeding?


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[gilpi]

Best cleaning crew you can get is you doing water changes and manually removing the algae.
As mentioned, a high amount of nutrients, nitrates, overfeeding, lack of maintenance and lighting is just what any type of algae needs to flourish.

 

[ImACoolguy]

Yeah, the nitrates were high a week ago. What causes them to spike? Overfeeding?


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Could be over feeding, dying plants, dying fish, etc it's up to you to figure out why in your tank.


Caleb

 

[Dallascowboys16]

Hair Algae is usually either caused by far too many excess nutrients in the tank (overfeeding/ improper dosing) but it can also be caused by low nitrate levels. I had a recent bout with hair algae that lasted about 3 weeks. As soon as I found out that my nitrates were hovering around 0 I started dosing No3 again and presto, hair algae started to recede and now my tank is completely algae free not coating a little spot algae on the glass I get with scrubbing. I would recommend doing 2 50% water changes a week for a few weeks and usually the problem will fix itself in a low tech tank.

 

[Mar23]

Ok, I'm at a loss. So, I tested the nitrates and it was 80 ppm. I did a water change that was about 40-50%. I test again and it still looks like 80ppm. Granted I really cannot read the chart well and I see no difference between the color for 40 ppm and for 80ppm. Either way, it's still high. I am thinking about doing another 50% change in a couple of days and see what it is then. I have no dead fish and no decaying plants. The only thing I see wrong is the food residue that I mentioned. I have vacuumed again, but my vacuum doesn't go in the little crevices, and it doesn't seem very powerful in general.

Any recommendations for a vacuum that is good for spot cleaning?


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[coralbandit]

I have 3 different syphons/vacuums!
It is in the hose size that flow is determined.
You need to change 50% again today IMO.
Nothing you add to your tank will do anything but create more for YOU to remove later!
There are no cleaners more effective then US IMO.
Get your nitrates down to 20(max) ,keep them under control(change more water man!),and see how this goes.
I change a lot of water and the sad truth is if your nitrates are high you have no clue about your dissolved solids .
Even with low nitrates there are still nutrient issues that most of us just can't test for.
Waterchanges are never a bad thing done correctly(ask discus keepers what they think!).

 

[ImACoolguy]

I have 3 different syphons/vacuums!

It is in the hose size that flow is determined.

You need to change 50% again today IMO.

Nothing you add to your tank will do anything but create more for YOU to remove later!

There are no cleaners more effective then US IMO.

Get your nitrates down to 20(max) ,keep them under control(change more water man!),and see how this goes.

I change a lot of water and the sad truth is if your nitrates are high you have no clue about your dissolved solids .

Even with low nitrates there are still nutrient issues that most of us just can't test for.

Waterchanges are never a bad thing done correctly(ask discus keepers what they think!).

Hehe where's Poppa?

When I first got mine I did 70% twice a week.

Breeders will do daily 80-90% on very young discus under 2 inches.


Caleb

 

[fish wrangler]

How long are your lights on for? Hair algae can be attributed to excess nutrients, but IME a long photoperiod will make it worse.

How large of a tank is this?

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[Mar23]

How long are your lights on for? Hair algae can be attributed to excess nutrients, but IME a long photoperiod will make it worse.

How large of a tank is this?

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My lights are on for a long time, I admit. I turn them on at 7:00 am and they stay on until 9:00pm. We are busy. The tank also gets a good amount of indirect daylight. It's been like this for months, though, and the algae just showed up about a week ago, when the MTS were eaten. It is 60 gallons.


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[brennae]

A timer would be a good investment for your tank. You can set the lights for the morning when. People are home and then off until someone comes home again in the afternoon. My algae tanks are the ones getting a lot of natural light.

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[Mar23]

I have 3 different syphons/vacuums!

It is in the hose size that flow is determined.

You need to change 50% again today IMO.

Nothing you add to your tank will do anything but create more for YOU to remove later!

There are no cleaners more effective then US IMO.

Get your nitrates down to 20(max) ,keep them under control(change more water man!),and see how this goes.

I change a lot of water and the sad truth is if your nitrates are high you have no clue about your dissolved solids .

Even with low nitrates there are still nutrient issues that most of us just can't test for.

Waterchanges are never a bad thing done correctly(ask discus keepers what they think!).

Ok, I'll do another 50% change today! The shrimp idea was to have something that eats the tiny food particles that I don't see. And what vacuum do you recommend for good, strong suction and crevice cleaning? I have a Eheim vacuum. Not too happy with it.


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[ImACoolguy]

A timer would be a good investment for your tank. You can set the lights for the morning when. People are home and then off until someone comes home again in the afternoon. My algae tanks are the ones getting a lot of natural light.

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+1 when I worked lots of hours timers were my friend.

the vast amount of light per day is undoubtedly the issue here. Along with that 80ppm nitrates.


Caleb