Red algae!!!

[Buckfins]

HELP y'all!!! I have red algae all over my driftwood and creeping on my rocks. PLEASE tell me how to get rid of it. I have had tanks for decades and this is the first time encountering it......

 

[Brookster123]

Pics?

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[Coyne]

I get a reddish-brown algae ( I assume) that grows on my driftwood. Mainly the parts that get the most light exposure. I can never seem to get rid of it... Even hydrogen peroxide has no effect. Luckily it's never gotten out of control and just stays as a light fuzzy coating.
I'll try to get some pics tomorrow afternoon and you can let me know if it's the same as what you have.


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[fish wrangler]

Diatoms maybe? They are a reddish-brown

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[Coyne]

I dont think they're diatoms. At least they dont look like any diatoms that Ive ever seen.

 

[coralbandit]

I dont think they're diatoms. At least they dont look like any diatoms that Ive ever seen.

That's BBA IMO!
Hit it with H2O2 while it is still 'controllable'.

 

[Brookster123]

That's BBA IMO!
Hit it with H2O2 while it is still 'controllable'.

Yeppers

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[Coyne]

Im guessing you didnt see the part where I said that hydrogen peroxide had no effect. It does bubble up and fizz like you'd expect, but it doesnt actually kill/remove it. That little patch you see there hasnt grown (or shrunk) in well over a year.
When I do get BBA, then yes, H2O2 takes care of it.

 

[fish wrangler]

Have you tried Excel or met-14?

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[Coyne]

I used to have a lot more plants in that aquarium and dosed metricide 14 daily at the time. That patch of algae (or whatever it is) was not effected by it.

Currently there is only a green tiger lily in there, so Im not dosing carbon or fertilizer anymore.

 

[Dallascowboys16]

If nothing is having any affect then I would recommend just taking the piece of driftwood out and using a knife to shave off the afflicted surface of the wood.

 

[Coyne]

I hope I didn't create any confusion or accidentally high jack this thread. I was just posting that picture to see if it was the same as what the OP was experiencing.
Since the stuff in that picture isnt growing/spreading or having any other negative impacts on the aquarium, Im not all that concerned with getting rid of it. While I did once take the whole piece out and dip it in straight H2O2, I'd rather not move it around anymore because a pleco has since made it its home.

 

[Buckfins]

I was thinking of just taking my driftwood out, scrubbing it clean, boiling it for a couple of hours in a vinegar water mixture, tossing my gravel and replacing it. This stuff looks like a red carpet and it's spreading.

 

[PoppaRyno]

http://www.thekrib.com/Plants/Algae/red-algae.html

Hope this helps. Sounds like type 3 rytophyta algae.

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