Black slime on my plastic plants - EEk !

[rich311k]

Makes sense I guess. That fixture looks good. How many watts is it? Planting heavily is a good idea. Get fast growing stems that will out compete the algae.

[dimmy32]

"18 W colormax full spectrum T5 lamp"
" 18 W 6700K plant lamp "
one of each.

whatever that means....

[rich311k]

That works. It gives you a solid low light tank. You will not require CO2. Stick with low light plants and you should be good to go.

[dimmy32]

thanks man !
You know,I've been doing freshwater aquariums since I was 12, I'm 41 now.
ive had saltwater tanks for 4-5 years.

I guess you can teach an old dog new tricks !

[jsoong]

One warning in using antibiotics for BGA, it may kill your cycling bacteria too!!! You will likely end up with a mini-cycle (or even a full blown one). <That's the reason I did not list erythromycin as treatmetn for BGA before....>

If you have already treated the tank <assuming that "red slime remover" is erythromycin>, you would need to monitor your tank parameters for the next few weeks & do pwc's as needed if the tank goes through a new cycle.

It is possible to avoid the cycle if you immediately pack the tank with plants. If your bio-load is low enough, the plants will use up all the ammonia .... This would then be "silent cycling". However, I'd still monitor levels just in case.

Last point, don't use plexi under your lights. It'll melt & sag. Use glass instead <as others had noted>.

[dimmy32]

thanks, thats sound advice. I'll keep an eye on the ammonia and nitrates.

It's a 48 hr treatment, with lights off. I took the plastic plants out and treated them to a double dose, in a steel bowl. I also ordered a piece of glass cut to fit my top, so i can rest the light fixture directly on the glass.
I ordered 4 mm thick glass, strong enough to support the light fixture, yet thick enough to pass most of the light through. I hope the glass wont block too much of the necessary wavelengths of light for growing plants.

On tuesday night, I'll buy a bunch of plants and install the light fixture.

Which plants would guys recommend I start with ?

In the tank now, I have 5-6 black tetras, 5-6 neons, 2 khuli loaches, one rainbow and an algea eater.

[jsoong]

That is low to med light .... for starters I'd go for lots of fast growers, so they can out-compete the algae. After the tank stabalizes, you can then add slower growers as desired, and remove/trim the fast growers to fit.

For fast growing easy plants, I'd suggest: green hygrophilia, hornwort, Egeria densa.

Slower growing plants that are easy: Java fern, Java moss, Vals, Anubias, crypts. <These are plants that I have not managed to kill, so must be easy!!>

[dimmy32]

any idea how long I should use charcoal , to get rid of the remaining medication ? How long should I wait before I buy some plants ?
Will the "red slime remover" affect plants ?

[Purrbox]

I'd probably give the charcoal a week to be on the safe side. Probably much longer than necessary, but when in doubt I like to shoot for a safe estimate.

Unless you can give us an actual name for the red slime remover, it will be nearly impossible for us to research it and give you any advice on its side effects. Even a manufacturer name would be helpful.

[dimmy32]

UltraLife Red Slime Algae Remover

They do not list the ingredients. Some people say it's an antibiotic, some say it isnt . No one seems to know how it will affect plants.

I've been looking around for some info on this product, most people use it on saltwater tanks.

Red Slime Remover