Need help on algae and plants

**Melvin Ong** · 27th Jan 2016, 00:09

Hi guys !

I have set up a 3 feet planted tank and it's been running for 3 months now.

Ph 5.5
Co2 = 2 bubbles per seconds
Kh = 3
Gh = I dunno (my gh solution is faulty)
Plants are spreading ok ...

My issues :

1) I kept getting brown color algae on the glass
2) my Monte Carlo plants are as green compare ... Some turn yellow/brown

Are these showing sign of nutrient deficiency ?
For the algae wise... I have increase my flow rate to ensure no dead spot but I still getting it.

Need your suggestion

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**Melvin Ong** · 27th Jan 2016, 21:42

Any suggestion ?

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**Urban Aquaria** · 27th Jan 2016, 22:31

The brown algae are usually just diatoms, they will commonly occur in all tanks (even with the best conditions and circulation), yours is considered relatively minor. Algae eaters like otocinclus, shrimps and snails will usually eat it up as part of their diet. I don't see any algae eaters in your photos so thats probably why the algae is visible. Alternatively, you can also just use an algae scraper to manually clean the tank glass during tank maintenance.

As for the MC browning/melting, if they have been growing in your tank for a while, nutrient deficiency would most likely be the cause. A tank running for a few months tends to reach a point where the nutrients from the active soil get depleted so you'll need to supplement it with fertilizers, especially when there are other faster growing plants in the tank also competing for nutrients. Just increase the dosing of both macro and micro fertilizers to help support new growth.

Remember to trim and remove all existing brown melting leaves to reduce the amount of rotting plant matter in the tank, it is all part and parcel of regular plant maintenance.

**Melvin Ong** · 27th Jan 2016, 22:37

I have 3 flying fox n 3 red shark ... I have been seeing them munching everywhere .... For fertilizer wise I have micro fertilizer from seachem ... What are the micro that u suggest to dose ? Any brand is good ? I heard of azoo .... Is this brand ok ?

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**Urban Aquaria** · 27th Jan 2016, 22:52

Originally Posted by Melvin Ong

I have 3 flying fox n 3 red shark ... I have been seeing them munching everywhere .... For fertilizer wise I have micro fertilizer from seachem ... What are the micro that u suggest to dose ? Any brand is good ? I heard of azoo .... Is this brand ok ?

Well, although those fishes do eat certain types algae, they don't eat all types, and from my experience they prefer fish food alot more... algae tends to be secondary priority to them.

Nerite snails can be a good option, they are excellent tank glass cleaners as algae is their main diet. Otocinclus can also help too as they relish eating soft brown algae on tank glass. If the brown algae is not much, then just scraping it away could be a simpler method rather than adding more livestock.

You can continue dosing the micro ferts from Seachem, check your nitrate levels and if its relatively low, dose additional nitrates (and perhaps phosphates and potassium too). To cover all bases, you could try dosing all-in-one ferts like Tropica Specialized which contain all macro nutrients (nitrogen, phosphates and potassium) and all micro nutrients. There are many other brand of fertilizers with similar features too, so just have to try and see. At the end of the day, its all about monitoring the plant growth/condition and adjusting the dosages to find the right balance.

**Melvin Ong** · 27th Jan 2016, 22:56

Thanks UA appreciate your advice

I have been reading your blog thou .... All tanks are nice

planning to add another shallow tank in my fish room

grin

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**Urban Aquaria** · 27th Jan 2016, 22:58

Yeah, shallow tanks are addictive.

**Melvin Ong** · 27th Jan 2016, 22:59

I plants to grow them with IKEA lights

hahaha plants under my IKEA lights grow insane !

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**happydanio123** · 29th Jan 2016, 20:02

In my opinion, Ottos do a far better job than most Algae-Eating Fish. I have had Ottos since I started my hobby and I haven't deviated from them since. I suggest you just increase water changes and constantly test for Nitrates in order to halt the algae.

**jiraiya** · 30th Jan 2016, 10:06

I would increase the CO2 if I were you. I have a 3-footer too and I'm setting it to 5-6bps with glass diffuser. My 19 rummy nose seems fine with it, their noses still looking bright red.

I think the co2 delivery method and circulation is very important too. Probably we can survive with less bps using co2 reactor or inline diffuser.

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**Melvin Ong** · 30th Jan 2016, 10:12

I do notice about the difference on the co2 delivery method. I was using up Aqua inline diffuser and I broke it 2 weeks ago l during cleaning. When I am using the online diffuser it seems my algae growth are slower ... Currently using ceramic diffuser until I get a new inline diffuser .... For water circulation wise ... I think my water circulation should be good enough after I add a wave maker.

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