Major Algae Problem. Need Advice

[owen0992]

Man it has been awhile since I've been on here. I am having a really bad algae problem and I have no idea on how to deal with it.

Here's the whole tank on the upper picture. Sadly messy. The one right below the first is a close up of the biggest concentration of beard algae. I was away from school for a week and it got out of hand. I've heard of treating it with hydrogen peroxide, can I do that with the whole tank?

-10 gallon
-rapid mini canister filter
- Satellite Freshwater LED+ (probably on too long, I don't use the timer)
- CO2 every day once (it's one where you fill up the upside down case and it diffuses throughout the day.

What can I do to fix it?

Also the bottom two pictures are of my newly set up EBI nano shrimp tank. That one is algae free so far and is running well, just thought I show you guys.

 

[kentat]

Make 50% change of water. Cover the tank totally 4 days. I mean totally! Let the filter work. No feeding. Lift carefully the items you use for covering and add 3% peroxide 10 ml. per liter water. Pay attention to the waterflow, create vortex effect.

After day 4 change water 50%, continue with peroxide reduced to 5 ml per liter water for a week or two.

Fertilizing, fertilizing, fertilizing, water flow....

 

[kentat]

Sorry ... Peroxide is 10 ml per 100 liter of water.

 

[Coursair]

Plus use a timer and reduce lighting to 6 hours a day.

Don't over fertilize or over feed.

Keep up on PWCs.

You can also spot treat some Algae with Excel.

 

[AtHomeWithTwins]

I just finished a three day blackout and wow! What a difference! I actually had some cyanobacteria ive been dealing with so i figured a blackout might help with that. It did and it took all the other algae with it!! I used black trash bags... Give it a try!!

 

[FishCr8zy]

Like coursair said, don't overfeed and bring down the lighting to 6 hours. Use a timer.
Algae always has something to grow on. You can try to kill the algae directly with chemicals, live animals, etc. Or you can kill off the algae by getting the plants to outcompete it.
To get the plants to outcompete the algae, you need them to outgrow the algae and take away all the nutrients. One way of doing that is to get the PPS-Pro fertilizer pack off of GLA. You can add different types of micro and macros.
I use metricide instead of excel. It is twice as strong as excel and works great. Pressurized co2 should get rid of most algae as well. Your co2 may not be dosed enough. Try to up the amount of co2 you put into the tank. How many bps on average do you have?

 

[FishCr8zy]

In fact use the same light you have on a 20g. I sometimes keep it on for 12 hours. Sometimes less. I don't have a timer on it so I turn it on and off whenever I get the chance. Yet I don't have algae. It's an anubias tank and anubias grows pretty slow but the whole bottom of the tank is covered in plants. Giving the algae a hard time to develop.

 

[owen0992]

Ok I'll do the blackout way. Will the peroxide hurt the fish? I have a spare 10 lying around somewhere in my dorm that they can vacation in for a few days. If I remove them can I increase the peroxide dosage? And to answer the bps question; my Co2 doesn't use bps, I fill a chamber that's in the water and it diffuses throughout the day.

 

[Janssenjr84]

i read a lot of people dosing peroxide with their fish. i had way to much light on mine and had a huge out break. i used API algeafix as directed and it did great. i did stop early because i want a little in there for my snails and the natural look. but that stuff stopped it dead in its tracks.

also all my plants are fine and actually doing better. so its as safe as it says. about a 1/4 of the 8oz bottle treated 200 gallons

 

[owen0992]

I have a nerite snail in my shrimp tank and they are supposed to be pretty good algae eaters right? Would moving him over to the current tank help at all?

 

[FishCr8zy]

I have a nerite snail in my shrimp tank and they are supposed to be pretty good algae eaters right? Would moving him over to the current tank help at all?

Yes they are pretty good algae cleaners to a certain extent. I am not sure if they eat bba though. I think Chinese algae eaters eat it.

 

[Janssenjr84]

Oh yeah I forgot about those guys I have several. My kids loves those. I personally think that the tiger nerite munches more than the zebras, but they will go to town. Now that my algae is under control 6 of them keep up with it.

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Aquarium Advice mobile app

 

[Janssenjr84]

Oh and they don't seem to bother any of my plants

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Aquarium Advice mobile app

 

[owen0992]

Ok so today I got all my fish out and put them in my spare tank and began treating the tank. I Moved the outflow of my filter for maximum flow around the tank. I also dosed hydrogen peroxide, more than what was said since I took out my fish. Covered it up and now I just have to wait a few days. Hopefully it clears up

 

[FishCr8zy]

Good luck!

 

[owen0992]

Thanks. quick question on the hydrogen peroxide. Do I dose it everyday until the algae is gone or just the one time and let it do it's thing for a few days?

 

[Coyne]

It's probably too late for this, but did you turn your filter off when you dosed the hydrogen peroxide? If your filter was running, then the BB inside it got nuked and you'll probably need to restart the cycle.

 

[owen0992]

Darn. Yeah I left the filter on. Figured the movement would help the peroxide spread.