Fish tanks owners - Need advice on combating algae.

[RamblingRose]

My tank has been set up for 6+ years, and over the past year, the algae has gotten out of control. I scrub the tank every month and clean the plants & rocks. The gravel has been changed out once, but is again covered in algae. Fortunately, the fish seem very tolerant. Do I need to replace the gravel again? Anyone have any experience with the algae products sold in the stores?

[trotsky]

1. Have you tried some algae eaters or snails?

The natural approach works pretty well.

[RamblingRose]

3. I've tried algae eaters several times, but they always die after about a

month. Probably from over eating. I've never tried snails. The tanks I've seen with snails seem to have an over breeding problem. Should I give them a try?

[trotsky]

8. You do have to watch out for the breeding.

But certain types of fish will help you out by nibbling on the progeny. I don't know enough to say exactly which kinds but sometimes you will reach an equilibrium.

[LTR]

9. Did you use Plecostamuses?

The are one of the most notorious algae eaters. They do grow like crazy, so make sure the tank is big enough.

You can also try snails, and get a snail eating fish for the tank (only if your eco-system can handle it). Otherwise, you can remove excess snails by putting a lettuce leaf in a shot glass and submerging it. When full, remove the shot glass filled with snails. Otherwise, and this may be a bit gross, smash the snails and their shells against the side of the tank, and let your existing fish take care of them.

You can also get some Ghost Shrimp, which are small and often cheap. They are strictly bottom feeders, and do a nice job of cleaning the bottom of the tank.

[matcom]

2. is it in the sunlight?

direct sunlight will cause that stuff to grow out of control

[RamblingRose]

4. It's in the basement, so the water level drops very rapidly.

[Teddy_Salad]

5. I clean my tank every week....never have a problem

I change at least half the water out and scrub the inside of the tank with a brush and clen the rocks....every seven days.

Yeah...it's a chore but I've never had algae problems.

[LTR]

12. That's a bit excessive

Way too much cleaning and disrupting of the fish.

Fish thrive on bacteria found in the water and the rocks.

I have often read that changing 10% of the water weekly is adequate. And use a bio-wheel filter to keep bacteria in the water, to consume the excess ammonia.

Use a gravel filter to clean debris from the rocks and take out water. Then replenish with chlorine-free water.

[MadHound]

6. I would recomend that you get a couple of different fish

The first is a placostimus, also known as an algae eater. They generally scrub the sides of the tank pretty well. The second is either snails or the tropical catfish, in order to clean algae from the bottom and other places the placostimus can't get to. This will keep your algae problem way down.

[LTR]

10. Plecostamuses are great!

They do very little to disrupt the eco-system in the aquarium. They are very solitary, though, and hide a lot.

Other fish may be a bit risky. Best to research.

And be careful scrubbing rocks. You may get rid of some beneficial bacteria vital to the water, plus introduce chlorine to the aquarium (if you use tap water to clean them). Chlorine is devastating to an aquarium.

[ZenLefty]

7. I'll tell you what not to do

I once bought an algaecide - little pills you drop in the tank that kills off the algae. Two of my fish died the very next day. :thumbsdown:

I think a good sized snail might help. Sometimes they live for a couple months, sometimes several years, and they eat all the algae in sight. I think they're slow enough that they don't overeat. Just don't get two snails or you'll have lots of snail babies. :o

[RamblingRose]

11. Thanks everyone. I'll start scrubbing & head to the store tomorrow

[RamblingRose]

13. Is there any advantage to live plants vs. fake ones???

[Richard D]

15. Yes!

I have a heavily planted tank and I have never had an algae problem. I've also never, in over 8 years cleaned the tank other than siphoning off water off the bottom once a month or so. The more plants that you have the less food is available for the algae. By heavily planted I mean most of the tank floor has plants on it. A lot of Java fern as well. I also have a lot of snails.

[Ready4Change]

14. I had an algae explosion

Turned out it was water quality. I hadn't been changing it often enough.

So I did a 10% change for 3 days straight (to avoid rapidly changing the water quality and overstressing the fish) then every other day for a week, then back to my old habits. (Because they are habits) Algae problem cleared right up.

Now I keep an eye on it and if algae starts making headway I know it's time to do some more water changing.