algae and gh problem

[Oliver]

Hello i have got a problem with both Gh and algae.
the first one , how can i reduce my Gh without using any chemicals?
and how will i eliminate algae, is it affected by the for Co2 or they are completely different things?

 

[astroguy]

Hi, and welcome to AA.

First off, why do you want to modify your GH? Why is it a problem?
Second, which kind of algae is this? If it is the green, floating algae, it
can be reduced dramatically by i) diminishing the amount of light per
day (e.g., max 12h for heavily planted, 10h for less plants), ii) give
less food. Often the latter is the solution.

 

[TankGirl]

CO2 will often remedy algae problems, and will reduce your pH but when it comes to CO2 it is more important to know your KH.

If you have hard water the best thing to do is to mix it with RO water, as I think that is what most people do. Otherwise, keep fish that don't mind it

 

[malkore]

R/O water is the only way to lower Gh safely. Most fish acclimate to a higher Gh just fine. It's a high pH/Kh that soem fish can't tolerate.

 

[Oliver]

The algae i have are like little things on plant leaves, bogwood and even on the gravel.
i need to lower the Gh because i have angel fish and would like to breed them, however i think i resolved the problem by bringing water that is softer from that i used. do you think that 10% water change of 200 litres each week will affect my fish? if yes what volume do you suggest to change each week

 

[TankGirl]

I do about a 15-20% water change on all of my tanks about twice a week, so I would say that 10% weekly is a little on the shy side just in terms of water changes, but that is just me and the way I do things. If you are using reverse osmosis filtered water (RO water) to dilute your tap water for water changes that is a great way to reduce the hardness of your water, and many, many aquarists use this method. That should do the trick for you.

 

[lcmwest]

I am new to this forum. Can someone explain the procedure for using co2 to eliminate algae? Are you suggesting that more plants are the answer?

 

[TankGirl]

Basically algae spores are present everywhere, and in the presence of adequate light, they are able to extract nutrients (nitrate being a biggie) from the water very efficiently, and that is why when you upgrade your lighting you will almost always get new algae growth - sometimes taking over the tank.

Plants use the same nutrients, but lacking other micro and macronutrients they are less efficient at getting at it, and they get covered in algae too. You need to provide these nutrients to the plants so they become more efficient at getting them from the water, and the algae will starve. There are many factors at play, but the primary nutrient that plants need is CO2. In high light they can't photosynthesize properly without CO2. More plants are not necessarily the answer, but providing more nutrients to the plants you have are necessary. Sometimes if you don't have particularly high light but have algae, getting some fast growing easy plants will solve an algae problem, since they grow so fast they suck all the nutrients up instead of the algae. They will often be listed with online retailers as "algae buster" plants.

Hope that was not too much info, and I hope you aren't sorry you asked...