Green Algea Slime What is the cause??

[axl]

Hi,
I have a 5ft planted discus tank with 2.2wpg of light and are running co2. I have some green slime over some of my plants mainly anubius and just want to no what is the cause of it. Is a deficiency in a nutrient or to much in 1???. Any advice would be apprecieted on how to get rid of it. cheers Axl

[rwel4809]

do you have any algae eaters?? They are an essential part of the planted tank eco system - I currently have 6 otos, 2 saes and a bn for 300 litre planted tank - though I think I could even do with a few more.

algae will always be around in some measure in a planted tank - but the kind you are talking about sounds like the kind the algae eaters like to munch... algae can often come around with overfeeding (ie too much macros - nitrates, phosphates) and too little micros.. what fertz are you dosing - I suggest a good all rounder like flourish complete with each water change and some chelated iron and potassium sulphate every few days.. it works for me..?

now that you've got it try double dosing some flourish excell at lights out. I haven't tried it myself, but many swear by it...

HTH

Robert

[axl]

I added 6 ottos 3 weeks ago and funny enough 4 have gone missing along with 12 rummy nose tetras ie 10 Hungry discus, I havent done to much dosing of ferts to be honest with you, i generally make my own up which has got yates products in it with kno3. I will have to start dosing on a regular basis, been a bit slack on that front. Will have to add some more ottos and bristlenose i think.

[rwel4809]

gosh . they must either be huge discus or tiny rummynoses and otos :D

otos are notorious for hiding if you have heaps of wood and the like.... otherwise you have some serious hunters on your hands by the sounds of things :D

R

[axl]

ha ha ha the rummy nose are over 3cm in size there big and the ottos are very small, regularly i see rummy nose with chuncks out of them and 1 of them at the moment has a missing eye. They hunt in packs at night

[NorCalAl]

I get that same green slime - but only in one of my two tanks. I use my python to scrape the leaves every water change. I've used some 'algae killer' stuff and it doesn't do much. My otos don't like the slime and neither do the bn's. Aside from looking bad, it's not doing anything negative.

[fish_r]

the green slime algae is usually caused by potassium deficiency.

[cityguy]

Algae can not be completely eliminated from the aquarium no matter how big the effort. However algae control is always required, and most of us require an algae treatment from time to time.

The term over-feeding is closely related to algae. Waste resulting from overfeeding must never be greater then the tanks own ability to break down this waste. If it exceeds the breakdown capacity of the aquarium excess nutrients will accumulate and this will be the decisive factor for fast and sudden algae outbreaks.

Decaying plants will then further contribute to the algae problem by creating waste and nutrients. Algae furthermore benefits from the dying plants as the competition for nutrients decreases.

Another fact regarding low CO2 levels is that algae can utilize carbon derived from carbonates. Carbonates availability increases as the CO2 drops and the pH rises. Since plants do not have this ability the algae benefits again.

The correct lighting and the timely replacement of the bulb is one step to prevent algae from overtaking the tank.

[cityguy]

Algae eating fish and critters prefer fresh and soft algae which are often not the ones that are a visible problem and a nuisance. Algae eaters are therefore part of the preventative measure but not part of the solution once the algae are out of control.

Adding new fish to an already algae infested aquarium will likely worsen the problem as more waste will be produced and the aquariums bio filter will need to adjust for the change in bio-load.

Despite of all of the above avoiding an algae outbreak can still be very challenging. An aquarium is a delicate environment which needs regular attention. Often our busy lifestyles make a consistent maintenance schedule difficult. So from time to time “it just happens”!

When it does don’t fall for the quick fix! There are some products such as algaecides which appear to offer a fast solution to the problem.

[samir]

could be Cyanobacteria ?

[fish_r]

nice copy and paste CG.

[fish_r]

putting a link up to the person that wrote the original article would of been nice for the effort "THEY" put into writting it.

[axl]

totally agree he cant even come up with his own opinion, lucky we folged them in the cricket

[samir]

i don't think where he comes from has anything to do with who or what you may think he is.