Hair-like algae?

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SeverumGuy

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I have a 55g planted tank. All my parameters are fine. I use liquid ferts, run my light between 7-8 hours a day, and I do not inject CO2. I have normal green algae that grows on my glass and plant leaves. There's also a lot of furry algae growning all over my plants. What can I do about this? Do I need more plants? Part of the reason I went to live plants was to help prevent algae.
 
Sounds like a nutrient imbalance. What kind of lighting are you using and how many watts? Color temp of bulbs?

Are you adding any ferts? What are your Nitrates testing at? Do you have a PO4 test kit?

Live plants will not necessarily help prevent algae... they can be good at sucking up excess nutrients, but as soon as there is an imbalance, algae will capitalize. The things that makes plants grow also makes algae grow, and a lot of the prophylaxis for preventing algae would not be good for plants, so it is a double edged sword.
 
Sounds like a nutrient imbalance. What kind of lighting are you using and how many watts? Color temp of bulbs?

Are you adding any ferts? What are your Nitrates testing at? Do you have a PO4 test kit?

Live plants will not necessarily help prevent algae... they can be good at sucking up excess nutrients, but as soon as there is an imbalance, algae will capitalize. The things that makes plants grow also makes algae grow, and a lot of the prophylaxis for preventing algae would not be good for plants, so it is a double edged sword.


I don't have anything to test my nitrates. I ran out a couple weeks ago and haven't picked anymore up. I'm running T8 lighting with an Aquaglo and a Powerglo bulb equalling out to 80 watts. I'm using Tetra liquid fertilizer.
 
Is it the tetra flora-pride? That is a good source of Fe and K, but with that much lighting there is a good chance that either N or P is bottoming out, causing the plants to stall and algae to be able to grow.

I would check N first, and maybe consider a P test kit as well. You are right about at the lighting level where injecting CO2 could really help with algae control and jump start your plants (not that it is required, but you have a good amount of lighting over the tank).

How many bulbs are in the fixture?
 
My plants are growing very well given the current conditions. I'm still pretty new to the whole live plant thing. I've only had live plants for maybe two months if that. I may sound like an idiot, but can someone explain the N, P, Fe, K abbreviations for me? I've got a good idea on them, but I just want to double check. Also if you could tell me how to go about checking those levels as far as what kit to use.
 
N,P,K - Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Potassium, the 3 main elements required for plant growth. If your tank is limited or bottoming out in either N, P, or K, it can cause algae growth. Also, if there is too much of either N or P, it can cause algae growth, and also harm your fish. K is not really dangerous even in great concentrations, so there is really no need to test for K. I doubt it is the problem in your tank because it is not really associated with algae growth (unless you have 0, but since you are dosing it, we know you shouldn't be bottoming out on K). You test for N by testing for Nitrates... a standard aquarium test kit. You test for P by testing for phosphates, PO4. You can find a PO4 test kit at most aquarium stores, and definitely at any stores that sell salt water/reef stuff.

Fe - Iron. One of the many trace elements required for healthy plants. You can test for chelated iron by buying a test kit for it at most decent aquarium stores (probably not petsmart or petco), but it is a pricier test kit, and really not required. We know you are dosing it along with K in your tetra florapride. There are more trace elements that planted tanks benefit from, but dosing them is probably not required in your tank unless you move into higher light and CO2 injection.
 
So how do I go about dosing CO2? I want my plants to thrive in my tank. I have a very large amount of fish in my tank if that matters or not. Also, I'm running my air-aider. Does that effect anything?
 
There are basically 2 ways to inject CO2 - Do It Yourself, DIY, involving mixing up yeast and sugar in a pressure vessel and injecting the resulting co2 that comes from the yeast, or using a pressurized system involving an aluminum or steel co2 tank and a regulator. Check out these 2 threads for some pics and info on the types of systems.
http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/f20/1-4-diy-3-4-purchased-co2-system-136350.html

http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/f24/co2-help-136297.html#post1176824

As far as running an aerator in the tank, if you are injecting CO2 you do not want to run it. The air will agitate the water, causing the CO2 that is injected to off gas back into the atmosphere. You want the water to be as still as possible, so that the dissolved CO2 stays in the water as long as possible. If you are not injecting CO2, the aerator is good, as it will keep the water at equilibrium with the air, and therefore will replenish the co2 used by your plants.

The other option is to use a product called Seachem Excel. It is an organic carbon source in liquid form, that basically provides the same benefits as injecting CO2. I personally use injected CO2 gas and excel on my tanks. Excel is a great prophylaxis for algae, as a side benefit.
 
Do you think if I used fertilizer tablets along with dosing my liquid fertilizer it will help my plants grow better and eliminate needing to dose CO2 or should I just go ahead and look into dosing CO2?
 
I dont think there is any requirement in your tank to dose CO2 at this point. I think root tabs could help.

That being said, if you wanted to add it, it certainly wouldn't hurt your tank... even low light tanks can benefit from CO2 injection. I just don't want you to think it is going to magically fix everything. What you will see are noticeably greener plants that grow faster.

I also think you need to figure out what is causing the algae and correct that... as I said most likely a nutrient imbalance. Continuing to just dose tetra florapride (Fe and K) is not going to fix the problem.
 
CO2 sounds beneficial for my plants, but they're already nice and green and grow decently well now. The algae just makes them look ugly. I'll get some test kits for everything asap. Once I test everything, if I have an imbalance, what would I need to do to correct it for each thing?
 
Add KNO3, or KH2PO4. You can supplement n or p by using dry ferts or buying liquid ferts. You could also add more fish potentially if it is an n problem.

I would skip the Fe test and possibly the po4 test for now. I would most likely point the finger at N as the most probable cause for now.
 
I think I'll stick to dosing liquid ferts and just add in some tablet ferts. I'll buy a test kit for everything whenever I can. I have 10 otocinclus in there to try and help out the problem. I've added 6 of them in the last week. I originally had 4. Also, one of my big plants has two leaves that are turning yellow. Is that iron deficiency?
 
I doubt it is Fe deficiency. You are dosing Fe.

The ferts you are dosing don't have N or P so it isn't going to fix the problem.

Also if you just added more fish the problem could be the opposite- too much N.

Need to test for nitrates and go from there.
 
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