how do you keep a fish take free of Algae???

Question

i have had this problem with my take for months now i bought 4 oscar fish and now i cant keep the algae out of the damn take i need to know what to clean it with to keep it out...

Answer 1

Although algae is unsightly to you or I it is in small quantities good for your fish. Our idea of clean is one thing, but what a fish needs is something else. Algae is a sign of a clean and healthy tank.

Here is more on algae and how to handle it.

There are a few ways to control algae. Also, monitor your lighting and excess food in the tank.

Algae are mostly-photosynthetic organisms that sometimes resemble plants but are not plants, having no true roots, stems or leaves. Algae grow in freshwater and saltwater. Saltwater algae are sometimes referred to as "seaweed." Like plants, algae require light and nutrients to grow. We supply plenty of both in our aquariums, with several hours of aquarium lighting a day and nutrients like nitrates and phosphates from fish waste.

Algae come in many forms. There are microscopic, one-celled algae, filamentous algae that resemble hair, algae that grow in sheets, and macroalgae that look like plants. There are even algae that live inside the outer integument ("skin") or calcium shell of some corals, anemones, and other sessile invertebrates called zooxanthellae. There are slimy-looking algae that are often not algae at all, but a colony of primitive photosynthetic organisms known as cyanobacteria. There are also very hard-to-remove little dots of green that sometimes grow on aquarium panels which also are not algae, but diatom or radiolarian colonies (microscopic, one-celled, animals with hard shells) with algae incorporated in their matrix. With all that said, let us answer some common questions right up front:

Algae growth is inevitable in an aquarium.
Algae consume nutrients in the aquarium that if allowed to accumulate, are harmful to fish. Algae can be a good thing.
The presence of green algae in an aquarium indicates a healthy environment for fish.
There is absolutely no way to completely prevent algae from growing in an aquarium, without killing the other life in the tank.
Chemicals should never be used to control the growth of true algae in an aquarium, and should only be used in rare circumstances to control cyanobacteria.
Correcting a severe algae problem requires time and patience.
Natural methods of controlling algae are the best and most effective.

Algae removal from the tank panels can be done on an as-needed basis, but no more than once a week. Removing algae involves either correcting negative water conditions to control or slow excessive algae growth, or an age-old process known as "elbow grease" (scrubbing it off!). Algae removal in an aquarium should be done only when necessary. We have seen many aquariums where daily removal of algae resulted in fish that were so stressed, most had diseases and were dying. You should never remove all of the algae from your tank. Allowing some algae to grow in the aquarium can be beneficial to the aquatic environment.

When algae is removed from aquarium side panels, care should be taken to select an algae scrubber that will not hurt the finish of an aquarium. Be careful not to get gravel caught in an algae scrubbing pad where it can scratch the aquarium. Never use household cleaning pads to remove algae. They contain fungicides that kill fish.

First, test the water you are filling up your tank with. Many public water supplies (our homes) have a concentration of nitrates at around 7ppm or higher. (Bottled water is no better).
This could be the start of your problem.
Be sure your tank is not within direct or indirect lighting such as a window or in a room where the lights are on constantly. Is you tank near a heat source. Sometimes we do not take into consideration a fishtank is near a heat register which can and does add additional temperature changes to your tank.

be sure to clean the filter as well? Be sure the entire filter is cleaned and free of algae.

Use a razor or scraper and gently scrape all sides of your tank. Clean your gravel and return it to the tank as well.

If you have a stick on thermometer, get yourself a floating one. The stick on thermometers pick up ambient air temperatures from OUTSIDE the tank and can be up to 10 degrees off. DON"T trust them.

You can also purchase phosphorus pads for around $2.00 at your local pet store. These can be cut to fit with your filter and remove large amounts of phosphorus. These can be reused over and over just remember to rinse them out well when you clean your tank.

Test your water. You will want to scrape the sides of the tank and do a water change no more than 20% every other day. This should only be done if the algae returns in a heavy form.

If you need any more help, you can im or email me.

Answer 2

THe only real way to keep a tank fairly agle free (there will always be a little) is to starve the aglae out. Algae needs nutrients from the water, which the fish provide and light. Make sure no sublight is hitting your tank, make sure you keep the lights off when your not home to see the tank (the fish don't need the lights) and even then keep them on no more than 10 hours a day. Less is even better.

Keep the nurtients down by 1) being very careful not to over feed the fish and 2) do very generous weekly water changes. Oscars can be quite messy eaters so a 40% water change while using a gravel siphon to clean the gravel would be a good idea.

This won't clear up the algae overnight, nor will it keep all of the algae out, but given a few weeks it will have the algae to a level that you barely notice it anymore.

MM

Answer 3

Please do not take Andys suggestion. Even the smallest of algae eaters will outgrow the tank. a million.) confirm the sunshine on your tank isn't meant for turning out to be vegetation, they are often only noted as white lighting fixtures. in case you only have silk vegetation this might help immensely because of the fact the algae has a puzzling time turning out to be devoid of lighting fixtures. even confirm the tank isn't close to a window because of the fact the sunlight will reason algae blooms. 2.) replace out the water whilst the nitrates recover from 10ppm, The algae makes use of those as nutrition and its puzzling for them to enhance devoid of nutrition. 3.) Get a snail or some shrimp, those adult males will help shop the tank clean devoid of increasing the bio load too lots. in case you get a snail bypass with a nirite snail as they breed much less prolifically and could not overrun your tank. Even will those steps you will in specific circumstances would desire to bathe down the glass and razor the algae off the leaves yet this could help immensely.

Answer 4

i found a fish that helped keep my tank clean. i refer to it as an "algae eater" or some call it a "sucker fish". You don't need to buy any special food for it it just feeds off the algae in your tank. it swims up along the sides of the tank and sucks up all the algae. They are very neat and help to keep your tank algae free so you don't have to clean it as much. hope that helps.

Answer 5

Finding a spot where the algae cannot grow as well is a starting point. Finding a good tank remedy will help.

Answer 6

I've got 4 medium sized plecostomus fish in my 135 gallon tank and I haven't had to clean the glass once in over a year. I also run a pretty nice filtration system that I designed.

Answer 7

Bristlenose pleco is decent in the job. Oto can be used too but ensure there is no big fish in the tank or else oto may gasp on it.

Answer 8

keep it out of the sun light, you need to clean it up , use a razor to scrape it off the glass , pull out every thing and scrub clean