40 Gallon Tank Is a blackout the cure for this?

I've had this tank for about 5 months now. Light cycle is around 6-7 hours per day. I have a HOB and sponge filter. I somewhat sporadically dose with Seachem Excel.

I've been struggling with this green algae on the glass which is now to the point where I can barely scrub it off. I also have brown/black algae on the sand, my java fern, and the sponge filter. Someone told me it was black beard algae but it has never gotten "hairy" and grows more like the green algae, so I'm not sure what type it is.

My stock is some tetras, rasboras, rainbow fish, bristlenose pleco, and just yesterday I got five cories to try to help kick up the sand more.

I did a big water change today and removed some hardscape. What would be the best method to remove the algae? It also appears I now have some green algae forming on my java fern. Any help is appreciated!

 

It looks like green dust algae not Black beard. The java fern looks to be green spot algae, could be some BBA on the edges.

Are you dosing any fertilizer? What kind? The best way to remove it is to scrub it off. Right now the plants dont seem to be big enough to out compete the algae.

You could change your light schedule to bust up the algae cycle but still get light to your plants. You can do this by running the light like 4 hrs on 4 hrs off 4 hrs on. Something like that.

 

It looks like green dust algae not Black beard. The java fern looks to be green spot algae, could be some BBA on the edges.

Are you dosing any fertilizer? What kind? The best way to remove it is to scrub it off. Right now the plants dont seem to be big enough to out compete the algae.

You could change your light schedule to bust up the algae cycle but still get light to your plants. You can do this by running the light like 4 hrs on 4 hrs off 4 hrs on. Something like that.

I have tried removing the black from the java fern but it doesn't come off at all. Could it actually be a deficiency?

I am currently just using Seachem root tabs along the substrate for feets.

 

BBA does not come off easily. The Excel is supposed to help. I believe it needs to be dosed regularly though. Im not sure if a regular liquid fert would help or not with a small amount of plants. Im kind of dealing with algae myself right now so hopefully someone who is a plant person will weigh in too. What kind of root tabs are you using?

 

You could try adding some floating plants such as water lettuce. They grow quickly and will provide shade and take up the nutrients that are feeding the algae. As your plants grow the algae should become less of a problem.