Algae Bloom Return!

[osiris]

hey, some of you may know i have had recent troubles with algae bloom in my water and its returning, am i right in thinking that phosphate removers will help, BUT wont they starve my plants??

 

[Underwurlde]

There is no evidence that phosphates 'cause' algae, so no point in removing.

What does cause algae in tanks are imbalances / fluctuations etc.
i.e.

lighting levels (too much?)
CO2 (not enough / fluctating levels)
new tank (say no more)
new substrate (can 'leek' ammonia).
adding / removing flora (not enough flora / removing too much: trimmming).
adding / removing fauna (bunged a shed load of neons in recently?).

etc. etc.

Andy

 

[BigC]

You need to find and address the route cause first then work on a plan to combat the stuff.
Proper lighting spectrum, Less nutrients entering the aquarium (feeding), reduction in Nitrate, etc. etc Phosphate removers such as Rowaphos and Phosban will work fine in freshwater aquariums.

There is no evidence that phosphates 'cause' algae, so no point in removing.

if not why go to all this trouble...
http/www.deltecaquariumsolutions.com/Plotzensee.php
Regards
C

 

[aaronnorth]

You need to find and address the route cause first then work on a plan to combat the stuff.
Proper lighting spectrum, Less nutrients entering the aquarium (feeding), reduction in Nitrate, etc. etc Phosphate removers such as Rowaphos and Phosban will work fine in freshwater aquariums.

There is no evidence that phosphates 'cause' algae, so no point in removing.

if not why go to all this trouble...
<a href="http/www.deltecaquariumsolutions.com/Plotzensee.php" target="_blank">http/www.deltecaquariumsolutions.com/Plotzensee.php</a>
Regards
C

PO4 feeds algae but it does not cause it. If phosphates do cause algae then explain why thousands of people can successfully dose PO4 without triggering algae?

The most probable cause for the green water in the first place is usually an ammonia spike, or direct sunlight -

have you disturbed the substrate at all?
When was the last time you cleaned the filter?
Is there any organic waste in the tank?

EDIT: i also notice that article was published in 2001. People's thoughts have changed greatly since that time.

 

[Davo86]

PO4 feeds algae but it does not cause it. If phosphates do cause algae then explain why thousands of people can successfully dose PO4 without triggering algae?

Ok therefore then is it safe to assume that although phosphates isn't a cause, by having it present in high amounts you are simply aiding the development of the algae bloom ??

My understanding is that if you keep nitrites and ammonia at 0 and keep nitrate and phosphates low then there will be little nutrients in the tank for algae to feed off ?

 

[aaronnorth]

PO4 feeds algae but it does not cause it. If phosphates do cause algae then explain why thousands of people can successfully dose PO4 without triggering algae?

Ok therefore then is it safe to assume that although phosphates isn't a cause, by having it present in high amounts you are simply aiding the development of the algae bloom ??

My understanding is that if you keep nitrites and ammonia at 0 and keep nitrate and phosphates low then there will be little nutrients in the tank for algae to feed off ?

yes, reducing PO4 will slow the growth of algae (although there is other sources of food). In this case though, there is not much point slowing the growth because if something else is causing the bloom then it will only happen again.

My suggestion would be too do a 50-80% water change, follwed by a 3 day blackout, followed by another 50-80% water change,

 

[Underwurlde]

Nope.

algae only require trace amounts. If you reduce it enough to levels such that the algae is statved, you can guarantee your plants will wither up & die in front of your eyes.

Again, I will say that you are wasting time & effort trying to reduce phosphates etc.

I'm going to guess that you do not have enough plants in your tank / something is stunting their growth,


Andy

 

[aaronnorth]

My understanding is that if you keep nitrites and ammonia at 0 and keep nitrate and phosphates low then there will be little nutrients in the tank for algae to feed off ?

keeping NH3 & NO2 at '0' will be fine. This way no algae should develop unless it is something like BBA which is caused by poor CO2/ circulation.

Having low PO4 can contribute to excessive growth of GSA, so in this case it is important to keep it sitting at around 1-2ppm as a guideline

 

[osiris]

well i dont have any extra CO2 going into the tank, i have good circulation , ammonia levels are fine, no direct sunlight, i will try the black out again, it have been the lack of plants,.

Thanks for your help and concern