Algae Defeat

[_Cal_]

I turned up my co2 to increase it to 30ppm but all that has happen is a major algae outbreak I have never seen before. I have green algae, brown hair algae, and an algae I can only describe. Most to almost all my plants are covered. Can they be saved or is it over for them? And how can I beat the alage or am I defeated? I need help as soon as possible, before it gets worse, so please help!

 

[zig]

Hi Cal

Post your tank stats......what you are dosing for fertiliser, how often etc, also post any results from test kits you have, give us a better idea as to the routine of the tank, and post how many watts over you are using, and no, increaseing your co2 to 30ppm will not cause algae you probably got the algae from having your co2 to low in the first place but hard to tell given the lack of information.

 

[George Farmer]

I never realised the Carbo-Plus units were adjustable?

Are you running 65 or 130W in 20G?

As zig says post as much info as possible and we can help more.

Have you read the pinned algae article?

 

[_Cal_]

I am running half of its max ouput, so 3.25 wpg, using a 6700k bulb. I tested my co2 I currently have 7.6 ppm, and I raised this morning. I use flourish, flourish iron, flourish pottasium, flourish nitrogen, and flourish phopuhus once a week after a 10-15% water change. Yes I have read your alage article, infact I printed it out yesterday. What should I do?

 

[zig]

With only 7.6ppm CO2 and 3.25 WPG you will get algae thats for sure, you need to keep the CO2 at 30ppm or above during the photoperiod or you will be fighting a loseing battle with algae, try and increase the CO2 to 30ppm and keep it there.

 

[_Cal_]

I am, I keep turing the system up, I really just dont know its power, I turned it up a lot a couple hours ago, Ill test it in a couple hours and tell you the results.

 

[_Cal_]

Its getting worse, there is some better, no more green alage, its just hair algae, and this new alage foorming among the bottom on the sand. Looking at it I have done soemthing terrbily wrong. Should I keep adding nutriunts, or call this a defeat and start over? I wish I would follow up on my posts but my computer was out of wack, but I have been testing verday, 2 times or more a day on co2 levels, and its above 10 ppm. Its alot of co2 being pumped out Im confused on why it wont raise the levels... is it cause my tank is divided? The side with the co2 is doing better then the side without... but the divider has holes, but is covered with alage. Agh Im pissed off, and dont know what to do.

 

[zig]

I dont know why the CO2 wont raise higher than 10ppm either, maybe its just the carbo plus unit, have you ever had the CO2 higher than 10ppm? The reason for the algae is easy.....lack of CO2, but you know that, just make sure you dont have any surface agitation to hinder matters and drive off any CO2 that is being produced.

You could always hook up a DIY CO2 with plastic pop bottles and airline hosing just using yeast and sugar to try and supplement what you have.

Hopefully the algae on the sand is not the start of bga, do you have a Nitrate reading for this tank?

 

[ArielC]

try some siamese algae eaters (NOT chinese) they are also known as siamese flying foxes, they are life saves and eat almost any kind of algae (they eat black brush algae and hair algae also).

try them, or go to your pet store and try some other algae eaters, just please dont get chinese algea eaters, as they are very aggresive(golden algae eaters are the gold version of chinese, these arre bad too)

 

[_Cal_]

Would those even survive with a jewel cichlid?