Fish Addict

I just got back from two months away to find that my tank has been overtaken by algae. The fish are doing fine, but the plants and tank look horrible. Is this still the brush algae I had problems with 2 months ago? Also, if I just replant, will it just come right back? What are ways to stop it? I will post pics of before and after, for comparison..

Thanks!

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Allie

Get some bristle nose plecos they will clear most of that up. If you have the room fo them that is.

Blub

That's BBA - Black beard algae there and BN's don't touch the stuff! I've had it before, and it is largely due to lack of CO2 I understand. The only animal I know that eats it is the true SAE. So, get some CO2 in there!

You have a few terrestrial plants in there as well - you should bin them now before they rot and create a lot of ammonia. They are that dark ferny one and the white and green stripey one.

Fish Addict

How could I get CO2 in there? Are there ways besides injections? I don't want too high tech of a tank... It looks like my amanos are eating it a lot, they have huge bellies that look full of algae...
Yeah, the stripey one is all dead now... I know about the ferny one too... I think there also might be some Mondo Grass...

clinton1621

I dont have a CO2 injector, personally they are too expensive and too much of a headache to get the levels just right, so I use Flourish Excel... its a supplement that contans available carbon that the plants can use instead of CO2, its not very expensive either ($7 to $12 depending on where you get it)

Fish Addict

Yeah, I have that stuff! It worked?

joy613

Excel works wonders for a lot of different types of algaes. Looking at your fish list in your tank you can add a little extra without any bad effects. I always add it when I change the water.

clinton1621

I would NOT recommend overdosing Excel (it even says DONT OVERDOSE on the bottle) it could possibly kill your fish.... You can dose extra with Flourish MINERALS but not with Flourish EXCEL, they are two completely different things

joy613

I have used extra excel because of problems with algae without any problem. Some plants don't do well with excel such as val, marimo, and anacharis they tend to melt. Another thing you can do is DIY CO2, it is very inexpensive and easy to do. It isn't as effective as pressurized CO2 but you can get some fantastic plant growth. Check out www.aquaticplantcentral.com www.plantedtank.net or www.plantgeek.net . They can help you with fertilizing also to help keep algae down.