ALGAE!! yikes! I have a 40 gallon aquarium in my room. lately there has been alot of brown algae growing in it. it seems liek theres kjust a thick blanket of it that appears over night! . i have a full grown black moor gold fish in there and 2 smaller feeder fish i added in the other day. I have been cleaning the tank every 2 weeks. which is a hassel since its so big. i have been limiting my light use. it hasnt been on at all this week and more and more keeps showing up. its NOT in direct sunlight and i have been using "algae destoryer" which isnt doing much (and yes i have been foloowing the instructions) how do i contorl all of this algae! it smells so bad sometimes i cant even sleep in my room!!
how do i prevent it besides limiting light use. what other treatments are there to contorl/ or eliminate it all together?
i cant be algae eaters cause i do not have a thermometer cause all i have are 3 gold fish in the tank. i do have a filter and air pumps in it.
2006-11-16 17:22:57 · 11 answers · asked by Anonymous in Pets ➔ Fish
Get a few snails, they'll do the job, and they look nice, too. Or you can also try the algea tablets, thoug I imagoine you'd use a lot of them for 40 gallons...check phosphate levels? high phosphate levels can encourage algae growth. Alos you could get some reall plants to out-compete the algae. In the meantime, Renuzit makes everything smell great! (Don't put it in the water. I cover my tank before I spray it)
2006-11-16 17:31:11 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 2⤋
Brown algae unlike green algae is usually caused by not enough light among other things, not too much, so limiting your light can be making it worse. When you say that you have been cleaning the tank every 2 weeks you are only taking out some of the water right? If you are cleaning the whole thing out its not helping anything, it's not only causing you way too much work but it's not safe for the fish either.
Check this link out, http://www.thetropicaltank.co.uk/algae.htm
It explains the causes of brown algae and how to get rid of it.
2006-11-17 08:51:33 · answer #2 · answered by Nunya Biznis 6 · 5⤊ 0⤋
this means that the tank is cycled and it is ready to support life, the best thing to get rid of the algae is feed less and change water frequently, algae needs food to grow and the fish food is just great for it, you are overfeeding and the algae is taking the advantage of the free food. Feed once a day only and only what your fish can eat in 2 minutes, if in 2min you see floating food you are overfeeding. The other thing is change 25 % of your water every week, you have 40 gallon so change about 10 every Sunday lets say, and keep it on schedule and your tank will be beautiful for ever almost
2006-11-17 02:10:59 · answer #3 · answered by cubanitoloko23 3 · 3⤊ 1⤋
Algae eaters do not all require a heater. Get you 2-3 high fin spotted plecostmus, they will be fine in there and really help control the algae. I have a cold water 30 gallon tank with comets and moors and have 2 high fins' in my tank. One is over 7 inches long and have had her for 2 years so I KNOW they are fine in colder water. As for why it keeps growing so quickly, I don't know the answer to that. Seems like you're doing everything to control the overgrowth with no success. Maybe the petstore could be of more help.
2006-11-17 01:28:34 · answer #4 · answered by MasLoozinIt76 6 · 1⤊ 2⤋
I have had algae blooms from foods. I wasnt even over feeding, I just tried a different brand and it happened. I have 2 30 gallon tanks and it happened in both. You can have an algae eater without a heater, but it would be better if you got a heater anyway to control the temp. Even a fluxuation of a few degrees everyday can contribute to things getting out of whack and allowing strange things to happen.
Snails are great algae eaters and they dont seem to be as picky as some algae eaters I have had. BUT Make sure you do not have any salt in your water if you have snails, they cant handle that.
So, I'd suggest changing your food and getting an algae eater. BUT you do need to supplement your algae eater's diet with algae wafers every few days. Funny, huh? When we had those algae blooms just recently from the fish food, our plecos did not eat any of the ugly brown algae on the sides of the tank.
2006-11-17 03:42:04 · answer #5 · answered by Lori T 2 · 2⤊ 3⤋
Following these tips will help prevent an algae outbreak in your fish tank:
Add powerheads to increase water circulation and create a ripple on the water surface to promote aeration.
Avoid adding Phosphate (in tap water, certain poor carbons, buffer additives and some foods).
Clean filter sponges weekly. Wash sponges in a small bucket of aquarium water or dechlorinated water to prevent tap water chlorine or too high/low temperatures killing off beneficial Biological filter bacteria.
Avoid the use of lamps with a high percentage of red/orange even when growing water plants.
Vacuum/siphon regularly the top layer of sand to remove excess detritus.
Add live plants
When any algae is removed from the aquarium glass by sponging/scrapping, it is recommended to clean the Biological filter sponge after 12-24 hours to remove collected algae. This will prevent Nitrate and Phosphate within the algae breaking down and going back into solution as the algae dies.
Monitor the pH regularly. Adjust with partial water changes and/or Phosphate free buffer additions.
Keep aquarium lights on a timer for 8-10 hours a day.
Feed fish sparingly. Do not allow food to lie uneaten within the tank or Biological filter. All food should be consumed within 1-2 minutes.
Do not overstock the aquarium.
Test kits to measure Nitrate, Phosphate and Ammonia are available commercially. Use when algae appears to help determine its cause.
Ensure that Biological filters are of sufficient capacity to keep Ammonia at undetectable levels as algae will readily feed on Ammonia.
2006-11-17 02:44:32 · answer #6 · answered by Mantra 6 · 3⤊ 2⤋
you said you can't get an algae eater because you don't have a thermometer? You should still be able to have a placostomus in your tank. I've never had a problem with a placostomas in my tanks for any reason. They are very hardy fish and cheap.
2006-11-17 10:37:50 · answer #7 · answered by Iceman 2 · 1⤊ 2⤋
Do you have any algae eaters? You can try:
plecs,
bristlenoses,
SAEs(siamese algae eaters/siamese flying foxes)for hair alg.
twig catfish,
whiptail catfish,
maybe glass shrimp,
loaches,
and almost every other catfish except corys and synos(but not all at once!) which help,but not much.
Also, lego pieces do a nice clean job of it. Swipe them along the glass.You can also put in some live plants.
2006-11-17 06:08:25 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 3⤋
there are algae circle things you can buy at petco or something.. u just put them in ur tank and it bubbles and it kept my tank clean for about a month.. it really works.. it's like only 4 dollars for a lot of them.. just try it out..
hope it works!!
2006-11-17 01:28:21 · answer #9 · answered by swim4llife 2 · 1⤊ 2⤋
get yourself some algae eaters, sucker catfish or snails. they'll do the job. don't worry about the temperature, these are hardy creatures.
2006-11-17 04:54:56 · answer #10 · answered by Mafia Agent 4207 5 · 1⤊ 2⤋