algae problems starting also..test kits what ad where to buy

[happygirl65]

Hello,
I purchased the AP master test kit so I have tests for ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, PH (ammonia 0, nitrite 0, nitrate 10, PH 8.0, Hard water dont kow specific GH or KH)

But I could not find any Phosphate or Potassium test kits at Petsmart or any of the LFS within 100 miles from me.

I have recently added a bunch of plants to my tank but according to the other thread I posted about EI dosing, and the response from Plant Brain, I do not have nearly enough plants in there to avoid algae issues.

I have learned that my lighting is 1.7 WPG I do not use CO2 and was also usuccessful at finding Excel.

Everything was going great for the first few days after increasing my plants from two up to about 20 plants....this is not counting individual stems as idividuals but rather one plant equaling a group of 5 or so stems. Not all are stem plants two are crypts, one java fern several swords of some kind etc.

Now I am finding more and more algaie. At first there was just thread algae...now there is a lot of diatoms covering just about every rock, and today I am noticing a small spot that looks like BGA, as well as some BBA just starting on my melon sword.

I have dosed according to the EI light...for amounts but less frequency as suggested in my previous thread. So far I have dosed macros and micro ferts in dry form twice once each (waiting 2 days between each and alternating) then a 50% PWC then I dosed macros again today.

I realize that this is probably not enough time to see what is going to happen with this fert level, but the algaie is getting quite ugly. The brown stuff bothers me the most but the 3 BN plecos do seem to eat it some.

I am running a Magum 350 canister filter in this 55 gallon...do you think I need a power head or additional filtration? My husband is wanting to do a small sump system in order to have it auto fill for evaporation and to make it easier to fill back up at PWC time. Will this help things? Also it has carbon in the filter which I think I should remove but need to know what to replace it with.

I am trying not to get discouraged because I love the look of the real plants. Will the Excel help? Do I need CO2 after all? I do however see new beautiful gree sprouts on the stem plants.

Any recommedations of where to buy excel, and the other necessary test kits and the filter media?

 

[7Enigma]

You can order a phosphate test kit and the Excel from bigal's. Google for it. Good prices and fast shipping. Seachem apparently makes the best cheap phosphate kit. I have the AP kit and its not bad, but go with what is the best IMO. I would get the 500ml Excel at the minimum due to the size of your tank.

Excel will always help, even if your using less than the recommended dosing.

Sumps are great DIY projects, but they are not a simple thing to do effectively. I would stick to the canister and if the circulation in the tank is not enough, a power head is a great way to keep the nutrients even in the tank. I think an AC20 PH from BigAl's would be perfect. It has a slide setting for flow rate, I have one in my 20gallon and need it at the lowest flow setting, so it can be adjusted for your tank.

Brown algae, if they wipe right off easily, are probably diatoms, they are not algae at all. They feed off the silicates from your tank glass, substrate, and other decorations. They will go away on your own, and I would recommend NOT cleaning them unless they are on the leaves of the plants (then wipe them off). The less you clean the faster they will deplete their food and disappear.

BGA is generally found in tanks with very low to no nitrAtes, and/or in stagnant spots with no flow (PH's are perfect for this).

BBA is a nightmare and generally caused by fluctuating CO2 levels or low CO2 in your case with moderate light.

 

[happygirl65]

Thanks so much 7, you are always so fast and informative. I really appreciate your assistance. I will order the PH and the Excel and phosphate kit from big als.

Hopefully that will help me get a better handle on all of this.

Do you think I should add more plants at this point? I would really value your opinion on this.

TIA

 

[rich311k]

I would add as many plants as you can. The more plants you have the easier it is to beat the algae.

 

[Lonewolfblue]

I agree, more plant mass. Also, what all are you dosing? If you are deficient on something, you can add all the plant mass you want, and you'll still get algae. I would recommend dosing EI, and have lots of plant mass. And being under 2w/g, CO2 shouldn't be too much a factor, but will greatly help if added.

For plant mass, you can have a few slow growers like swords and crypts, but what you really need is to have more stem plants. More fast growers. You will need to outcompete the algae. Great plants for this is plants like hygro, cabomba, asian ambulia, witeria (can take over a tank), L. repens, and several others.

 

[rkilling1]

I agree, more plant mass. Also, what all are you dosing? If you are deficient on something, you can add all the plant mass you want, and you'll still get algae. I would recommend dosing EI, and have lots of plant mass. And being under 2w/g, CO2 shouldn't be too much a factor, but will greatly help if added.

I have dosed according to the EI light...for amounts but less frequency as suggested in my previous thread. So far I have dosed macros and micro ferts in dry form twice once each (waiting 2 days between each and alternating) then a 50% PWC then I dosed macros again today.

 

[MarkP]

As mentioned, Diatoms are normal with a new tank and will go away. If they really bother you, a variety of fish will eat them. Probably most recommended is the "Otto" catfish, sold in my area as a dwarf suckermouth catfish.

The sump is a great project for people who like to build things. If your husband has the "tinkerer" gene like I do, let him build it- It'll let you get a favor back from him. But it won't help with the algae. If it is indeed primarily diatoms, no filtration method will- Active Carbon, mechenical, etc.

If I understand you correctly, you are running the magnum 350 with the media basket full of active carbon? I personally filled that media basket with somewhat-tightly packed filter floss. With you dosing EI, you do a lot of water changes, and have little need for any chemical filtration. You've got a lot of plants, and so don't really need extra bio filtration. Might as well use it for mechenical filtration. I pack the filter floss as tightly as I can without major water flow restriction.

And yes, you should always add more plants as long as you have room for them. And if your tank runs out of room, you can always get rid of those useless fish and have more room for plants.

 

[happygirl65]

Well, It is defiinitely diatoms and we went away all day yesterday and fed minimal flakes yesterday, and low and behold most of the diatoms and other unknown algae that I saw i there yesterday seems to be dissapearing. So I guess my BN plecos are eating the stuff along with the ghost shrimp, cories and cherry barbs eating the other various algaes present.

I just made an order online with Big Al's for filter floss, and a Power Head, and Excel.

Also the few hygro plants I have in there are showing incredible improvements and new growth. I will try and get some more of the really fast growing plants you mentioned. I would love to find some Wisteria and Asian Ambulia.

Anyone know of a good place online to get these? I have tried to watch the trade forum but am never fast enough.

 

[happygirl65]

Well, I have added more plants now (Thank you rich311k! They are beauties.)

All the diatoms seem to be fading now though there are still traces here and there but it is no longer covering all the plants (yeah!)

Also the rest of the algae...what appeared to be hair algae is gone now as well as the other fuzzy one that I could not really identify.

I am keeping up with my dosing and pwc scedule and things are really starting to look good now.

I just wanted to thank all of you. Your assistance is helping me to achieve that which I would never have tried otherwise.

Thank you!

 

[Plantbrain]

You mention no CO2.........

EI is not good for such tanks, I have another article that addresses a non CO2 method on my site that you should read.

If you go with CO2, then use EI, otherwise no.
Any planted tank should be packed with plants from day one.

That is the best way to ensure no algae issues during the start up phase.
If you limit yourself by having very little biomass/no biomass, something else will grow in it's place, algae.

At least 50% of the tank needs to be planted for it to work well.
Does not matter which method but the more the better in either method(CO2 or not)

Regards,
Tom Barr

 

[happygirl65]

Well, I just searched your site and I think I found and read the article you are talking about. (non co2 methods)

So am I right to sum up that in my case I need to reduce to once a week dosing and no water changes for a while? I did purchase some Excel that is due to arrive any day now.

Obviously I need to add a lot more plants and I did just add a bunch courtesy of a fellow member here. This has been something that has been harder for me to come by than I origianally thought. Living 100 miles from a LFS does not help matters and I did not realize how many plants it would take to "plant my tank" properly.

Since this is the first time I have ever tried live plants the few I started with seemed like a lot to me. But I now know better. I am now considering redoing the aquascape to remove some of the large rocks to make room for plants.

My husband still wants to do a sump type system....will this have any negative effect? The reason he wants to do the sump is so it can auto fill continually to account for evaporation. We already have plumbing built in to the area and the tank is acrylic so drilling is not a problem.

 

[rkilling1]

Well, I just searched your site and I think I found and read the article you are talking about. (non co2 methods)

So am I right to sum up that in my case I need to reduce to once a week dosing and no water changes for a while? I did purchase some Excel that is due to arrive any day now.

I would be careful about dosing once a week and adding Excel. Excel is another form of carbon just like CO2. In other words, if you are going to Excel dose, your plants are going to grow faster and consume more nutrients. ie you may have to dose more often.

 

[Purrbox]

You could use a sump with a planted tank as long as you aren't injecting CO2. Even if you are injecting CO2 there are ways to design the sump to minimize CO2 loss, so it can still be done if you really want to. Since it sounds like you will be going with either Excel or no CO2 injection, then you should be fine. If later down the line you decide that you want to start injecting CO2, then ask around here and some of the others that have gone that route can give you some pointers one what modifications you'll need to make to conserve CO2.

 

[happygirl65]

So perhaps I should bump it up to 2x a week if I am using excel? I have all the dry ferts so it is no problem. And how often should I dose excel? every other day? Or once a week?

I have not added any yet but will probably do so today. (I had to let it thaw out, it was frozen when I got it...I hope that wont hurt it.)

Everything looks healthy without it but there is a little more green algae now, nothing major, just some patches in a couple of spots...the diatoms are nearly all gone now and other algaes as well, but the green patches are getting bigger. I just added a power head to increase water flow and am still playing around with placement of it.

Still trying to increase my plant biomass it is just taking me a while. I did not like how the plants at petsmart looked when we were in town, pretty straggly and hole ridden plus the employee did not know anything about them and could not even tell them apart from each other

So I think I will stick with online ordering and getting some from members here. I have had better results that way.

 

[Purrbox]

Excel is only available to plant for about 24hrs, so daily dosing according to the instructions on the bottle is best.