algae problem

Oliver · 03-30-2004, 04:01 PM

Hello Everyone, I am a new member in this forum so forgive me if i make any mistake. i have a 200litre tank with 8 angel fish and 2 algae eaters, however i have a problem with algae. plants are almost covered and some of them are actually dying. Can somebody help me with eliminating algae?

Jav400 · 03-30-2004, 05:07 PM

Welcome to our forum. We have a few people here that run real tanks but not that many. This forum is in support of the Screensaver created by Jim Sachs. Hopefully someone can step up to the plate and help you out, but maybe not. My first suggestion would be to get some algae eaters.

drfish · 03-30-2004, 05:51 PM

It's strange that you'd have such algae problems in a planted thank... Is it heavily planted? Usually too much light or too many phosphates are responsible for excessive algae growth in aquariums... I have my aquariums in my basement with no sunlight and they're on timers so they get exactly 10 hours of light a day. You might want to trying cutting down on the light, but you'd have to keep a careful eye on your plants... Check your phosphate levels too... And make sure you do your weekly 20% water changes!

Marian Nichols · 03-30-2004, 06:16 PM

DrFish’s advice is good; the algae eaters, are they the little ones or are they the plecostomus. If not you may consider getting one of these larger sucker-mouths. They do a really good job at cleaning the glass, the gravel as well as the plants. But if you preferred not using these, try an algaecide, one that I like is Algae Away for outside ponds. But you can’t have algae eaters if you used this product for they will starve to death. Good luck.

drfish · 03-30-2004, 06:26 PM

Be careful with plecostomu[i](?) and angelfish... Or any fish with a large flat side for that matter... You might be better off getting a bunch of Ottos (Otocinclus Affinis) if you want to use fish to take care of your algae problems...

03-30-2004, 08:19 PM

Doc,
I'm curious about that last post. I'm slowly gearing up for setting up a tank, and eventully want both Plecos and Angels in it. What should I watch out for?

drfish · 03-31-2004, 04:38 AM

I never had it happen myself, but I've heard from many that slow moving fish with large flat sides sometimes become victim to a plecos desire to suck on things... Loseing some slime coat and maybe even some scales are not good things for a fish...

Tiny Turtle · 03-31-2004, 04:53 AM

I've recommended Ancistrus over Plecos here before. My brother has an Aquarium with both species and no problem of that kind. The Ancistrus looks like a smaller (somewhat squished) version of the Pleco and is as far as I've seen (and heard) better at muching algae than the Plecostomus. Do a search on the forum for what was posted the last time.

Marian Nichols · 03-31-2004, 05:21 AM

Clint, What DrFish said is true, I have had a sucker mouth kill my goldfish, I got rid of that fish for that very reason. I took TT's advice and went in search of the fish he recommended, I found what they called a rubber mouth sucker and was told they did not attack the fish in that matter. Unfortunately he also died when I lost my all my fish. I am going to get another one. What kind of aquarium are you planning to set up?

Liath · 03-31-2004, 08:09 AM

I would be concerned about the size of the tank if you are getting a pleco. Although there are dwarf varieties, the ones you usually find in pet stores can grow to be as large as 20 inches. Most household tanks are too small for them in the long run. Whenever I go to a fish store I find poor plecos that have been traded in for smaller fish. I find that very sad. Having said that, Plecos are very good at cleaning leaves, until they get too big. Just be sure to get a dwarf variety. They are usually a little more expensive though. I have one that I am quite fond of. I also have a red-tailed shark that does an excellent job of cleaning plant leaves. Otos are great fish, and they do a good job of cleaning the bottom of the tank. Not sure how good they are for cleaning plants though. Certain kinds of shrimp are good for certain kinds of cleaning. Unfortunately, my shark equates shrimp with popcorn. Some snails are good too, but be careful which ones you choose. Some will eat your plants as well, and some will infest your tank. I agree with the good doctor. Decreasing the light can help, but be careful, too little light will result in other kinds of growth. How long has the tank been running? Usually a newer tank will have algae problems that eventually go away. I have found that adding a few more plants helps too. They will outcompete the algae for nutrients. No matter what you do, you will still have to do a little extra cleaning to keep things really nice, but that's half the fun....isn't it?

drfish · 03-31-2004, 09:37 AM

I usually get cyanobacteria or diatom problems in my tanks... So far my new ones are ok, but we'll see what happens as they age...

Just found this link... Might be helpful... Also this one... Might be more helpful.

feldon34 · 03-31-2004, 10:35 AM

Something tells me we'll never hear from Oliver again.

cjmaddy · 03-31-2004, 11:10 AM

Yes, I can agree with what has been said. Back in my fish keeping days I always had what we commonly called a Siamese Loach as an algae eater. On occasions it did leave a mark on the sides of my Angel Fish, but it did no permanent harm, - just looked unsightly for a while. Like Liath I also had a Red-tailed Black Shark, (a particular favourite of mine!

), - they too are useful at cleaning plant leaves! - and IIRC, Black Mollies are partial to nibbling algae from rocks and leaves.

Thinks!!! ..... This is giving me thoughts about setting up a tank again! ...... I will try to resist!

(But once Jim's Freshwater Aquarium is done, [with Red-Tailed Black Shark!!! ], the temptation may be too great, I have after all, got the ideal place for it, - or should that be fire place?
......... and it's better than burning flags! .... or even flag waving!)

Marian Nichols · 03-31-2004, 11:30 AM

Yes you do Cliff take pictures when you do.

Liath · 03-31-2004, 01:16 PM

Originally posted by feldon28
Something tells me we'll never hear from Oliver again.

Ha...you're probably right

Originally posted by drfish
I usually get cyanobacteria or diatom problems in my tanks...

Increasing the light intensity has always cleared up diatom problems for me(one of the low light problems I mentioned earlier)

Hair algae is the cause of my tank woes.

Oliver · 03-31-2004, 02:52 PM

you will hear from me for sure

thanks for the ideas i will try things out. thanks for your sugestions, i will keep youinformed of what will happen. i think that i am going to purchase more algae eaters and see what happens

Tiny Turtle · 04-01-2004, 12:48 AM

Ha! Great move, Oliver. Thanks for proving them wrong

What kind of algae eaters do you currnetly keep in the aquarium?

What kind of plants?

/Tiny Return

Oliver · 04-01-2004, 03:55 PM

I have a variety of plants but do not know the exact names of them, when I'll find out how to send pictures through this forum i will send you some of my plants and my fish too

Tiny Turtle · 04-02-2004, 12:43 AM

Do like this:
Hit the blue "Post Reply" button below the last post in this thread instead of typing up your reply in the grey quick reply box at the bottom.

On the screen that pop ups youl can find a grey button labeled "Browse" (or "Bläddra" on my Swedish system

).
Hit that one and select the file you would like to upload. One attached file per message is the limit.
If you already have the pictures online somewhere else you could use the button labeled "IMG" on the reply page to insert as many as you'd like in a message.

Happy posting

/Tiny Tutorial

03-30-2004, 04:01 PM	#1
Oliver Registered Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Malta Posts: 3	algae problem Hello Everyone, I am a new member in this forum so forgive me if i make any mistake. i have a 200litre tank with 8 angel fish and 2 algae eaters, however i have a problem with algae. plants are almost covered and some of them are actually dying. Can somebody help me with eliminating algae?

03-30-2004, 05:07 PM	#2
Jav400 Administrator Join Date: Dec 2000 Location: Tennessee Posts: 9,725	Welcome to our forum. We have a few people here that run real tanks but not that many. This forum is in support of the Screensaver created by Jim Sachs. Hopefully someone can step up to the plate and help you out, but maybe not. My first suggestion would be to get some algae eaters. Michael Administrator of Inside:SereneScreen Aquarium Forum, Chatroom, Fan Site & *Gallery* DVD Collection

03-30-2004, 05:51 PM	#3
drfish the Doc Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: Zeeland, MI Posts: 5,357	It's strange that you'd have such algae problems in a planted thank... Is it heavily planted? Usually too much light or too many phosphates are responsible for excessive algae growth in aquariums... I have my aquariums in my basement with no sunlight and they're on timers so they get exactly 10 hours of light a day. You might want to trying cutting down on the light, but you'd have to keep a careful eye on your plants... Check your phosphate levels too... And make sure you do your weekly 20% water changes! I don't watch commercials.

03-30-2004, 06:26 PM	#5
drfish the Doc Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: Zeeland, MI Posts: 5,357	Be careful with plecostomu[i](?) and angelfish... Or any fish with a large flat side for that matter... You might be better off getting a bunch of Ottos (Otocinclus Affinis) if you want to use fish to take care of your algae problems... I don't watch commercials.

03-31-2004, 04:38 AM	#7
drfish the Doc Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: Zeeland, MI Posts: 5,357	I never had it happen myself, but I've heard from many that slow moving fish with large flat sides sometimes become victim to a plecos desire to suck on things... Loseing some slime coat and maybe even some scales are not good things for a fish... I don't watch commercials.

03-30-2004, 06:16 PM	#4
Marian Nichols ~Author~ Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: Rocky Mount, NC Posts: 7,429	DrFish’s advice is good; the algae eaters, are they the little ones or are they the plecostomus. If not you may consider getting one of these larger sucker-mouths. They do a really good job at cleaning the glass, the gravel as well as the plants. But if you preferred not using these, try an algaecide, one that I like is Algae Away for outside ponds. But you can’t have algae eaters if you used this product for they will starve to death. Good luck.

03-30-2004, 08:19 PM	#6
klyntun Guest Posts: n/a	Doc, I'm curious about that last post. I'm slowly gearing up for setting up a tank, and eventully want both Plecos and Angels in it. What should I watch out for?

03-31-2004, 04:53 AM	#8
Tiny Turtle is pleased Join Date: Mar 2001 Location: Stockholm, Sweden Posts: 7,365	I've recommended Ancistrus over Plecos here before. My brother has an Aquarium with both species and no problem of that kind. The Ancistrus looks like a smaller (somewhat squished) version of the Pleco and is as far as I've seen (and heard) better at muching algae than the Plecostomus. Do a search on the forum for what was posted the last time. Thanks to Morgan, Tiny Snapshots is up and running again with "Tiny Järvafält" as the latest addition – Go have a look and tell me what you think. "We knew the world would not be the same. A few people laughed, a few people cried, most people were silent. I remembered the line from the Hindu scripture, the Bhagavad-Gita. Vishnu is trying to persuade the Prince that he should do his duty and to impress him takes on his multi-armed form and says, 'Now, I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds.' I suppose we all thought that, one way or another." /Robert Oppenheimer on witnessing the first thermonuclear detonation in history.

03-31-2004, 05:21 AM	#9
Marian Nichols ~Author~ Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: Rocky Mount, NC Posts: 7,429	Clint, What DrFish said is true, I have had a sucker mouth kill my goldfish, I got rid of that fish for that very reason. I took TT's advice and went in search of the fish he recommended, I found what they called a rubber mouth sucker and was told they did not attack the fish in that matter. Unfortunately he also died when I lost my all my fish. I am going to get another one. What kind of aquarium are you planning to set up? Last edited by Marian Nichols; 03-31-2004 at 08:18 AM.

03-31-2004, 08:09 AM	#10
Liath Still here in spirit Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Ann Arbor, Michigan Posts: 637	I would be concerned about the size of the tank if you are getting a pleco. Although there are dwarf varieties, the ones you usually find in pet stores can grow to be as large as 20 inches. Most household tanks are too small for them in the long run. Whenever I go to a fish store I find poor plecos that have been traded in for smaller fish. I find that very sad. Having said that, Plecos are very good at cleaning leaves, until they get too big. Just be sure to get a dwarf variety. They are usually a little more expensive though. I have one that I am quite fond of. I also have a red-tailed shark that does an excellent job of cleaning plant leaves. Otos are great fish, and they do a good job of cleaning the bottom of the tank. Not sure how good they are for cleaning plants though. Certain kinds of shrimp are good for certain kinds of cleaning. Unfortunately, my shark equates shrimp with popcorn. Some snails are good too, but be careful which ones you choose. Some will eat your plants as well, and some will infest your tank. I agree with the good doctor. Decreasing the light can help, but be careful, too little light will result in other kinds of growth. How long has the tank been running? Usually a newer tank will have algae problems that eventually go away. I have found that adding a few more plants helps too. They will outcompete the algae for nutrients. No matter what you do, you will still have to do a little extra cleaning to keep things really nice, but that's half the fun....isn't it? Liath Appleton University of Michigan Museum of Zoology My Homepage Why I've been gone

03-31-2004, 09:37 AM	#11
drfish the Doc Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: Zeeland, MI Posts: 5,357	I usually get cyanobacteria or diatom problems in my tanks... So far my new ones are ok, but we'll see what happens as they age... Just found this link... Might be helpful... Also this one... Might be more helpful. I don't watch commercials.

03-31-2004, 10:35 AM	#12
feldon34 Forum Administrator Join Date: Dec 2000 Location: Rock Hill, SC Posts: 10,939	Something tells me we'll never hear from Oliver again. "Journalism is printing what someone else does not want printed. Everything else is public relations." - George Orwell "If voting changed anything, they'd make it illegal." - Emma Goldman

03-31-2004, 11:10 AM	#13
cjmaddy Registered Join Date: Nov 2001 Location: Lancashire, UK Posts: 7,854	Yes, I can agree with what has been said. Back in my fish keeping days I always had what we commonly called a Siamese Loach as an algae eater. On occasions it did leave a mark on the sides of my Angel Fish, but it did no permanent harm, - just looked unsightly for a while. Like Liath I also had a Red-tailed Black Shark, (a particular favourite of mine! ), - they too are useful at cleaning plant leaves! - and IIRC, Black Mollies are partial to nibbling algae from rocks and leaves. Thinks!!! ..... This is giving me thoughts about setting up a tank again! ...... I will try to resist! (But once Jim's Freshwater Aquarium is done, [with Red-Tailed Black Shark!!! ], the temptation may be too great, I have after all, got the ideal place for it, - or should that be fire place? ......... and it's better than burning flags! .... or even flag waving!)

03-31-2004, 11:30 AM	#14
Marian Nichols ~Author~ Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: Rocky Mount, NC Posts: 7,429	Yes you do Cliff take pictures when you do.

03-31-2004, 01:16 PM	#15
Liath Still here in spirit Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Ann Arbor, Michigan Posts: 637	Originally posted by feldon28 Something tells me we'll never hear from Oliver again. Ha...you're probably right Originally posted by drfish I usually get cyanobacteria or diatom problems in my tanks... Increasing the light intensity has always cleared up diatom problems for me(one of the low light problems I mentioned earlier) Hair algae is the cause of my tank woes. Liath Appleton University of Michigan Museum of Zoology My Homepage Why I've been gone

03-31-2004, 02:52 PM	#16
Oliver Registered Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Malta Posts: 3	you will hear from me for sure thanks for the ideas i will try things out. thanks for your sugestions, i will keep youinformed of what will happen. i think that i am going to purchase more algae eaters and see what happens

04-01-2004, 12:48 AM	#17
Tiny Turtle is pleased Join Date: Mar 2001 Location: Stockholm, Sweden Posts: 7,365	Ha! Great move, Oliver. Thanks for proving them wrong What kind of algae eaters do you currnetly keep in the aquarium? What kind of plants? /Tiny Return Thanks to Morgan, Tiny Snapshots is up and running again with "Tiny Järvafält" as the latest addition – Go have a look and tell me what you think. "We knew the world would not be the same. A few people laughed, a few people cried, most people were silent. I remembered the line from the Hindu scripture, the Bhagavad-Gita. Vishnu is trying to persuade the Prince that he should do his duty and to impress him takes on his multi-armed form and says, 'Now, I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds.' I suppose we all thought that, one way or another." /Robert Oppenheimer on witnessing the first thermonuclear detonation in history.

04-01-2004, 03:55 PM	#18
Oliver Registered Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Malta Posts: 3	I have a variety of plants but do not know the exact names of them, when I'll find out how to send pictures through this forum i will send you some of my plants and my fish too

04-02-2004, 12:43 AM	#19
Tiny Turtle is pleased Join Date: Mar 2001 Location: Stockholm, Sweden Posts: 7,365	Do like this: Hit the blue "Post Reply" button below the last post in this thread instead of typing up your reply in the grey quick reply box at the bottom. On the screen that pop ups youl can find a grey button labeled "Browse" (or "Bläddra" on my Swedish system ). Hit that one and select the file you would like to upload. One attached file per message is the limit. If you already have the pictures online somewhere else you could use the button labeled "IMG" on the reply page to insert as many as you'd like in a message. Happy posting /Tiny Tutorial