Algae nightmare: Please help

[DiscusBR]

Hi everyone,

I have been facing a bad brown algae (BA) problem and I need help. I have learned here in the forum that BA is common in recently established/cycled tanks, but my 80g has been running for 8 months and the problem has not improved. Recently, I had a 10-day trip. When I came back, the pool filter sand (PFS), the Manzanita branches and the 3D background were all taken by brown algae. Here is a pic that I showed in another thread:



Thinking that my PFS might have silicates (a source for BA), I took all sand out the tank and decided to go BB. I also took out almost all Manzanita branches (left only a small one). After a few days, it is clear that the cause of BA was not the PFS or the driftwood. The brown algae came back full force. It has now taken over the tank's bottom glass.

The tank's setup: 80g tank with 3D background, one Eheim 2217 canister filter, two sponge filters, one T5 54W lamp that stays on for 6 hours per day. The tank is accross the room from a window that is always covered by a thin curtain. Thus no direct sun light in the tank.

Water parameters: ph 6.2, ammonia and nitrites 0 ppm, nitrates 5.0 ppm.

I got a phosphate test kit. It shows 0.5 mg/l in my tap water and in my tank water. Is that normal or high? Is that level of phosphate the cause of all my algae problems?

What should I do? I read that some people use RO to get rid of phosphates in the tank. Any experiences? There are also filter media like Seachem's PhosGuard that you can put in the canister filter to clean the phosphate. Has anyone used it?

My 7 discus are healthy now, but the algae problem has been a pain and quite frustrating. Any help is welcome.

Thanks in advance.

[Skip]

how often do you water change?

[DiscusBR]

how often do you water change?

Two 60% WCs per week.

[Skip]

i found that when i let my water changes go.. the brown stuff would grow.. my bristlenose pleco don't really like it..

so i wipe it down and then did more water changes.. then it stays away..
well for me it did

ps.. i don't know much about your light..

[ExReefer]

I used to run one T5HO bulb on my 75G BB discus tank. I always fought brown algae on the bottom of the tank even though my photo period was only 6 hours. T5HO bulbs are just too intense and not needed on discus tanks (unless growing plants). I sold the 75G and picked up a used 125G with two plain old 30W flouescent bulbs and I no longer have alage issues with a photo period of 7 hrs. a day. As a solution, you can raise your light above the tank or block the intensity with some window screening.

[Chicago Discus]

Up the water changes and the algae will go away........IMO......Josie

[DiscusBR]

i found that when i let my water changes go.. the brown stuff would grow.. my bristlenose pleco don't really like it..

so i wipe it down and then did more water changes.. then it stays away..
well for me it did

ps.. i don't know much about your light..

Thanks, Skip. How often do you need to wipe it down to keep the algae away? Is it brown algae?

I used to run one T5HO bulb on my 75G BB discus tank. I always fought brown algae on the bottom of the tank even though my photo period was only 6 hours. T5HO bulbs are just too intense and not needed on discus tanks (unless growing plants). I sold the 75G and picked up a used 125G with two plain old 30W flouescent bulbs and I no longer have alage issues with a photo period of 7 hrs. a day. As a solution, you can raise your light above the tank or block the intensity with some window screening.

Thanks, ExReefer. That is a possibility and there is a way to test if that is the case. Since I have no plants in the tank right now I can leave the lights off. I will clear the tank once more, leave the lights off, and see what happens.

I have few questions that I would like to hear feedback:

- Is 0.5 mg/l a normal phosphate level or can it be the source of my algae problems?

- Has anyone used RO to control algae?

- Has anyone used Seachem's PhosGuard or a similar product?

Thanks in advance.

[DiscusBR]

Up the water changes and the algae will go away........IMO......Josie

I was not really willing to do more than two 60% WCs with full wipe downs per week. Something must be wrong if I get a lot of algae in just 3 days.

[Discus Origins]

Mauro,

Couple of things are standing out to me. First is that this occurred after you were gone for 10 days, second is that there is silicates in the tap water.

Did your fish sitter do WCs while you were gone? I saw pictures of the BA and also all the fuzzy white gunk in the tank that usually results from uneaten rotted food. It appears to be a case of overfeeding not enough WCs while you were gone. If you have taken out the sand and driftwood, been doing 50% WCs daily since you've been back it should have resolved the problem.

Now, if the BA came back worse AFTER doing WCs, this would lead me to believe the cause could be the silicates. Every time you do a WC you're removing some but also adding back in silicates. Eventually you will get a build up in the tank over time and silicates could rise to a high enough level to sustain constant algae growth. In that case adding more tap water would not resolve the problem.

Have you tested the tank water for silicate level? Would need more info for proper advice.

As to your question on RO, yes many use them to remove impurities from tap water such as silicates, phosphates, nitrates, etc that all contribute to algae growth. I've only used the Phosguard once on my reef tank, it was only slightly effective. After I started using RO water didn't have algae problems in that tank.

[ExReefer]

Do a major WC before the lighting experiment. Keep in mind that even with limited light, you'll get BA if you go too long between WC's. If the water builds up too much nitrate, silcates, etc., BA will grow.

[CajunAg]

Would adding some sort of simple plant life - life Java moss - perhaps help to starve the brown algae?

[Chicago Discus]

Im just thing if you do more water changes more frequently it might help......

[ExReefer]

Would adding some sort of simple plant life - life Java moss - perhaps help to starve the brown algae?

Those plants don't grow fast enough to soak up the excess nutrients. You would need some fast growing stem plants for that to work and unfortunately, more light.

[Skip]

Im just thing if you do more water changes more frequently it might help......

if he wants to

[DiscusBR]

Thank you, Mark. Reacting to some of your points:

First is that this occurred after you were gone for 10 days (...) Did your fish sitter do WCs while you were gone? I saw pictures of the BA and also all the fuzzy white gunk in the tank that usually results from uneaten rotted food. It appears to be a case of overfeeding not enough WCs while you were gone. If you have taken out the sand and driftwood, been doing 50% WCs daily since you've been back it should have resolved the problem.

My friend did one 60% WC during my absence, but he did not wipe the background, the glass and the driftwood. The problem got worse during my absence, but I have been fighting BA for more than 7 months. The problem existed before and continued after my absence. I assume that daily WCs will solve any type of algae problem. But I am working with the assumptiong that two 60% WCs per week would be a very reasonable schedule. I don't want to do daily WCs in a display tank.

EDIT: I forgot to add that overfeeding was not the cause of the problem. During my absence I drastically reduced the food ammount.

Now, if the BA came back worse AFTER doing WCs, this would lead me to believe the cause could be the silicates. Every time you do a WC you're removing some but also adding back in silicates. Eventually you will get a build up in the tank over time and silicates could rise to a high enough level to sustain constant algae growth. In that case adding more tap water would not resolve the problem.

Have you tested the tank water for silicate level? Would need more info for proper advice.

That is a possibility. However, I don't have a test for silicates and I assume it would be difficult and very expensive to get one here in Brazil. But I will try.

As to your question on RO, yes many use them to remove impurities from tap water such as silicates, phosphates, nitrates, etc that all contribute to algae growth. I've only used the Phosguard once on my reef tank, it was only slightly effective. After I started using RO water didn't have algae problems in that tank.

I might end up trying RO if nothing else works.

Do a major WC before the lighting experiment. Keep in mind that even with limited light, you'll get BA if you go too long between WC's. If the water builds up too much nitrate, silcates, etc., BA will grow.

Will do it.