I don't overfeed the fish, I keep the tank clean making sure that I add stress coat and water con with every water change, the pump and heater both work fine and the tank light is on for most of the day.HELP!!
2007-07-03 08:53:30 · 15 answers · asked by DD 2 in Pets ➔ Fish
The problem is the light being on for most of the day. This allows algae to grow at a really fast rate!
I would only switch it on at night when necessary!
And try to get some oxygenating plants in the tank to counter-act the effects of the algae!
Hope this is useful information for you!
2007-07-03 09:01:53 · answer #1 · answered by Joyful97 5 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Algae requires 3 things to grow, light, food, and oxygen.
I run my lights for 12hrs a day there's a break in this period where they go off for an hour around mid-day. Don't ask me but it seems to work. While the tank has plenty of natural light it's not in direct sunlight.
You don't over feed, however, your water source could contain Nitrates so you really need to check that to ensure your not adding food that way. If your tank is over crowded that could also provide the food. Natural plants compete for the same food so that would help on that one.
Bubble walls, air stones these tend to be the biggest source of the problem, they don't add oxygen to the water however they do disturb the surface creating a damp area for it to start to take hold then release more spores. This can also happen if the return on a filter is disturbing the surface to a great degree. Limit the time that you have the bubble wall on. In my case my CO2 system goes off when the lights go off and the pump comes on this helps with CO2, Oxygen gas exchange at the surface during the night but with there not been any light helps to cut down on algae.
Finally fish, theres several different Algae eating fish out there and the Fish shops will sell you your grandma, because she's good at sucking however, the real algae eaters the beneficial ones are not Pleco's they're Otto's or siamese algae eaters (black stripe through tail), or if plants are involved Plattys.
A combination of all the above will solve your problem, you have to remember though that some algae is beneficial and will help you balance a tank.
AJ
2007-07-03 17:28:05 · answer #2 · answered by andyjh_uk 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Light, extra food, not enough water changes, and infrequent filter changes are the major contributors to algae. If you're sure that food, water changes, and filter changes are in order, it has to be too much light.
In a fake-plant aquarium, the light is for people to see the fish, not for the fish. Also, is the tank near a light source (large window, bright light on all day)? This could add to your problem.
Algae eaters might help, but try to solve the problem by tackling the source. Cut the light, and if that doesn't help, experiment with the other factors that I listed above. Also, if you can borrow a UV filter, it can help get your tank back on track faster.
2007-07-03 16:31:24 · answer #3 · answered by steve v 2 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Algae is a plantlike protist that grows the quickest when it has lots of sunlight. If your tank is near a window or is in a room with lots of natural light, you're going to get lots of algae. To take care of this problem without moving your tank into a different room, you can simply scrape it off the sides and siphon it off the bottom, or you can add a chemical algaecide. Be sure to ask your local pet-expert where you get the chemical if it is safe to use on a tank with fish! About a week after you use a chemical like that, you're going to want to siphon the gravel to take care of excess dead algae material.
2007-07-03 16:03:15 · answer #4 · answered by john p 1 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Too much light causes algae, either sunlight or artificial. Your tank shouldn't be in the sunlight anyway, so your aquarium lighting might be on for too long. Maybe leave it on for just 8 hours a day and see if that makes a difference?
2007-07-03 16:07:41 · answer #5 · answered by ♥ Divine ♥ 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋
algea can come cos of all sorts of reasons. What temperature have you got it at? personally, iI have mine on 26/27 degrees c and i have one algea eater fish, this keeps any algea at bay. Also, i found that the type of food can effect the algea, i used to feed my clown loaches wafers and my angelfish and tetras flake food, i had a small problem with algea but after i changed my food it rapidly decreased. I also agree about heat, if your tank is on a window ledge this could seriously be affecting the algea.
hope this helps, gud luk
2007-07-04 11:20:13 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
get some moss balls they starve the algae by taking the nutrients which they need to thrive, i have 2 and they work
2007-07-04 13:36:15 · answer #7 · answered by janorth1 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I agree that your lights are on too long. They should only be on as long as a normal sunlight cycle (8-12hrs). Try shortening the time the light is on.
2007-07-03 16:03:49 · answer #8 · answered by tllips2 2 · 2⤊ 1⤋
if its green algae its normal and means that u have healty tank just scrap it off
2007-07-04 17:03:13 · answer #9 · answered by goldfish 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
U SHOULDNT HAVE THE LIGHT ON FOR SO LONG. AND IF U HAVENT ALREADY GET URSELF A PLEC THEY ARE GREAT ALGAE EATERS.
2007-07-04 09:00:33 · answer #10 · answered by NIKKI 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋