hair algea

[John H.]

I've got a bad case of hair algea in my 55gal. Its mostly attached itself to
broad leaf plants, my amazon swords. It reminds me of that fine hair you
have to clean of corn, its its much finer than that. There isnt any on the
grass I use in forground. ITs really ugly. Not sure where it came from.
I've read that you have to use a 5% bleach soln to kill it... thats before
you put the plants into your tank, right? What can I do now, trim the
affected leaves?
thanks
John

55gal
pH 6.5-7
kH 8-9
eheim canister filter
CO2
no2 & nh4 nil
no3 < 20
96 watts light X 12 hr/day

[§tudz]

"John H." > wrote in message
. ..
> I've got a bad case of hair algea in my 55gal. Its mostly attached itself
> to broad leaf plants, my amazon swords. It reminds me of that fine hair
> you have to clean of corn, its its much finer than that. There isnt any on
> the grass I use in forground. ITs really ugly. Not sure where it came
> from. I've read that you have to use a 5% bleach soln to kill it... thats
> before you put the plants into your tank, right? What can I do now, trim
> the affected leaves?
> thanks
> John
>
> 55gal
> pH 6.5-7
> kH 8-9
> eheim canister filter
> CO2
> no2 & nh4 nil
> no3 < 20
> 96 watts light X 12 hr/day
>

I have a similar problem, I'm treating mine by doing bleach dips to the
plants, when it gets outta hand, and reducing tyhe phospates in the tank.
I have also added a CO2 injector.
The growth has slowed, so hopefully its the start of getting rid of the
stuff :)

bear in mind some plants don't like the bleach and it kills them, I use less
than 5% dip, to be sure, I've lost a lot of plants to the 5% bleach dips.

§tudz

[Bill Stock]

"John H." > wrote in message
. ..
> I've got a bad case of hair algea in my 55gal. Its mostly attached itself
> to broad leaf plants, my amazon swords. It reminds me of that fine hair
> you have to clean of corn, its its much finer than that. There isnt any on
> the grass I use in forground. ITs really ugly. Not sure where it came
> from. I've read that you have to use a 5% bleach soln to kill it... thats
> before you put the plants into your tank, right? What can I do now, trim
> the affected leaves?
> thanks
> John
>
> 55gal
> pH 6.5-7
> kH 8-9
> eheim canister filter
> CO2
> no2 & nh4 nil
> no3 < 20
> 96 watts light X 12 hr/day

My setup is very similar to yours, except I have more light.

I had a bout with hair algae too, before I added more plants. I just kept
pulling it off and I finally got rid of it. Then I got BGA (a real scourge)
and now some minor BBA.

Do you add PO4 or traces? How much CO2 do you use, quite a bit based on your
PH and KH?

I've seen Florida Flag fish recommended for HA or a blackout if it's really
bad.

[John H.]

"Bill Stock" > wrote in message
...
>
> "John H." > wrote in message
> . ..
>> I've got a bad case of hair algea in my 55gal. Its mostly attached itself
>> to broad leaf plants, my amazon swords. It reminds me of that fine hair
>> you have to clean of corn, its its much finer than that. There isnt any
>> on the grass I use in forground. ITs really ugly. Not sure where it came
>> from. I've read that you have to use a 5% bleach soln to kill it... thats
>> before you put the plants into your tank, right? What can I do now, trim
>> the affected leaves?
>> thanks
>> John
>>
>> 55gal
>> pH 6.5-7
>> kH 8-9
>> eheim canister filter
>> CO2
>> no2 & nh4 nil
>> no3 < 20
>> 96 watts light X 12 hr/day
>
> My setup is very similar to yours, except I have more light.
>
> I had a bout with hair algae too, before I added more plants. I just kept
> pulling it off and I finally got rid of it. Then I got BGA (a real
> scourge) and now some minor BBA.
>
> Do you add PO4 or traces? How much CO2 do you use, quite a bit based on
> your PH and KH?

I think my CO2 is at about 1 bbl/2sec or so, not much. Water in my area is
fairly soft, from the tap the kh is 10. I add some peat to soften it more
for my discus. I wonder if that algea got in from the peat I'm using?? Its
the stuff from Fluval?

>
> I've seen Florida Flag fish recommended for HA or a blackout if it's
> really bad.
>
>
>
>
>

[John H.]

"§tudz" > wrote in message
...
>
> "John H." > wrote in message
> . ..
>> I've got a bad case of hair algea in my 55gal. Its mostly attached itself
>> to broad leaf plants, my amazon swords. It reminds me of that fine hair
>> you have to clean of corn, its its much finer than that. There isnt any
>> on the grass I use in forground. ITs really ugly. Not sure where it came
>> from. I've read that you have to use a 5% bleach soln to kill it... thats
>> before you put the plants into your tank, right? What can I do now, trim
>> the affected leaves?
>> thanks
>> John
>>
>> 55gal
>> pH 6.5-7
>> kH 8-9
>> eheim canister filter
>> CO2
>> no2 & nh4 nil
>> no3 < 20
>> 96 watts light X 12 hr/day
>>
>
> I have a similar problem, I'm treating mine by doing bleach dips to the
> plants, when it gets outta hand, and reducing tyhe phospates in the tank.
> I have also added a CO2 injector.
> The growth has slowed, so hopefully its the start of getting rid of the
> stuff :)
>
> bear in mind some plants don't like the bleach and it kills them, I use
> less than 5% dip, to be sure, I've lost a lot of plants to the 5% bleach
> dips.
>
> §tudz


So you pull the plants out of the tank? and then dip them in the diluted
bleach soln then re-plant them?
>
>

[Bill Stock]

"John H." > wrote in message
...
>
> "Bill Stock" > wrote in message
> ...
>>
>> "John H." > wrote in message
>> . ..
>>> I've got a bad case of hair algea in my 55gal. Its mostly attached
>>> itself to broad leaf plants, my amazon swords. It reminds me of that
>>> fine hair you have to clean of corn, its its much finer than that. There
>>> isnt any on the grass I use in forground. ITs really ugly. Not sure
>>> where it came from. I've read that you have to use a 5% bleach soln to
>>> kill it... thats before you put the plants into your tank, right? What
>>> can I do now, trim the affected leaves?
>>> thanks
>>> John
>>>
>>> 55gal
>>> pH 6.5-7
>>> kH 8-9
>>> eheim canister filter
>>> CO2
>>> no2 & nh4 nil
>>> no3 < 20
>>> 96 watts light X 12 hr/day
>>
>> My setup is very similar to yours, except I have more light.
>>
>> I had a bout with hair algae too, before I added more plants. I just kept
>> pulling it off and I finally got rid of it. Then I got BGA (a real
>> scourge) and now some minor BBA.
>>
>> Do you add PO4 or traces? How much CO2 do you use, quite a bit based on
>> your PH and KH?
>
> I think my CO2 is at about 1 bbl/2sec or so, not much. Water in my area is
> fairly soft, from the tap the kh is 10. I add some peat to soften it more
> for my discus. I wonder if that algea got in from the peat I'm using?? Its
> the stuff from Fluval?

Go here to check your CO2 levels (ppm).

http://www.csd.net/~cgadd/aqua/art_plant_co2chart.htm

My Hair Algae came in on some pond plants, before I changed my tank to
Tropicals.

>>
>> I've seen Florida Flag fish recommended for HA or a blackout if it's
>> really bad.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>
>

[Bill Stock]

"John H." > wrote in message
...
>
> "§tudz" > wrote in message
> ...
>>
>> "John H." > wrote in message
>> . ..
>>> I've got a bad case of hair algea in my 55gal. Its mostly attached
>>> itself to broad leaf plants, my amazon swords. It reminds me of that
>>> fine hair you have to clean of corn, its its much finer than that. There
>>> isnt any on the grass I use in forground. ITs really ugly. Not sure
>>> where it came from. I've read that you have to use a 5% bleach soln to
>>> kill it... thats before you put the plants into your tank, right? What
>>> can I do now, trim the affected leaves?
>>> thanks
>>> John
>>>
>>> 55gal
>>> pH 6.5-7
>>> kH 8-9
>>> eheim canister filter
>>> CO2
>>> no2 & nh4 nil
>>> no3 < 20
>>> 96 watts light X 12 hr/day
>>>
>>
>> I have a similar problem, I'm treating mine by doing bleach dips to the
>> plants, when it gets outta hand, and reducing tyhe phospates in the tank.
>> I have also added a CO2 injector.
>> The growth has slowed, so hopefully its the start of getting rid of the
>> stuff :)
>>
>> bear in mind some plants don't like the bleach and it kills them, I use
>> less than 5% dip, to be sure, I've lost a lot of plants to the 5% bleach
>> dips.
>>
>> §tudz
>
>
> So you pull the plants out of the tank? and then dip them in the diluted
> bleach soln then re-plant them?

Don't forget to rinse and treat them with a heavy dose of dechlorinator
before returning them to the tank.

I recently dipped my BBA covered Anubias in some 5% bleach. Did a great job.


>>
>
>

[§tudz]

"Bill Stock" > wrote in message
...
> My setup is very similar to yours, except I have more light.
>
> I had a bout with hair algae too, before I added more plants. I just kept
> pulling it off and I finally got rid of it. Then I got BGA (a real
> scourge) and now some minor BBA.
>
> Do you add PO4 or traces? How much CO2 do you use, quite a bit based on
> your PH and KH?
>
> I've seen Florida Flag fish recommended for HA or a blackout if it's
> really bad.
>

Platies are also noted to eat hair algae, as well as a similar LB but Im bot
sure of its name, it looks like a platy, BUT is a rare find.
I have one baby platy in the Tank with the problem and he eats the HA and
BA.

§tudz

[Bill Stock]

"§tudz" > wrote in message
...
>
> "Bill Stock" > wrote in message
> ...
>> My setup is very similar to yours, except I have more light.
>>
>> I had a bout with hair algae too, before I added more plants. I just kept
>> pulling it off and I finally got rid of it. Then I got BGA (a real
>> scourge) and now some minor BBA.
>>
>> Do you add PO4 or traces? How much CO2 do you use, quite a bit based on
>> your PH and KH?
>>
>> I've seen Florida Flag fish recommended for HA or a blackout if it's
>> really bad.
>>
>
> Platies are also noted to eat hair algae, as well as a similar LB but Im
> bot sure of its name, it looks like a platy, BUT is a rare find.
> I have one baby platy in the Tank with the problem and he eats the HA and
> BA.
>
> §tudz

Thanks, I wonder how they would do outdoors in the pond? It's a hair algae
bonanza.

[Koi-lo]

"Bill Stock" > wrote in message
...
>
> "§tudz" > wrote in message
> ...
>>
>> "Bill Stock" > wrote in message
>> ...
>>> My setup is very similar to yours, except I have more light.
>>>
>>> I had a bout with hair algae too, before I added more plants. I just
>>> kept pulling it off and I finally got rid of it. Then I got BGA (a real
>>> scourge) and now some minor BBA.
>>>
>>> Do you add PO4 or traces? How much CO2 do you use, quite a bit based on
>>> your PH and KH?
>>>
>>> I've seen Florida Flag fish recommended for HA or a blackout if it's
>>> really bad.
>>>
>>
>> Platies are also noted to eat hair algae, as well as a similar LB but Im
>> bot sure of its name, it looks like a platy, BUT is a rare find.
>> I have one baby platy in the Tank with the problem and he eats the HA and
>> BA.
>>
>> §tudz
>
> Thanks, I wonder how they would do outdoors in the pond? It's a hair algae
> bonanza.
===========================
There's some hair algae in one of my platy tanks and they don't touch it.
:-(
--

Koi-Lo.... frugal ponding since 1995...
Aquariums since 1952
My Pond & Aquarium Pages:
NEW PAGE: Aquariums:
http://bellsouthpwp.net/s/h/shastadaisy/Aquarium-Page4.html
http://bellsouthpwp.net/s/h/shastadaisy
~~~ }<((((o> ~~~ }<{{{{o> ~~~ }<(((((o>

[Daniel Morrow]

Mid posted.
§tudz wrote:
> "Bill Stock" > wrote in message
> ...
>> My setup is very similar to yours, except I have more light.
>>
>> I had a bout with hair algae too, before I added more plants. I just
>> kept pulling it off and I finally got rid of it. Then I got BGA (a
>> real scourge) and now some minor BBA.
>>
>> Do you add PO4 or traces? How much CO2 do you use, quite a bit based
>> on your PH and KH?
>>
>> I've seen Florida Flag fish recommended for HA or a blackout if it's
>> really bad.
>>
>
> Platies are also noted to eat hair algae, as well as a similar LB but
> Im bot sure of its name, it looks like a platy

Are you thinking of mollies? They eat some algae if I am not mistaken. Good
luck and later!

, BUT is a rare find.
> I have one baby platy in the Tank with the problem and he eats the HA
> and BA.
>
> §tudz

--
You can find my public key at https://keyserver1.pgp.com

[§tudz]

"Daniel Morrow" > wrote in message
...

> Are you thinking of mollies? They eat some algae if I am not mistaken.
> Good
> luck and later!
>
> , BUT is a rare find.

No, not Mollies, I'll have to try and remember, they look almost identical
to Platies (in the wild form) they are grey in colour, I'm not sure they
have the fin adapation that most male LBs have.
I could be talking a load of rubbish with that last statement, lol, my
memory fails me, too many hours working.

§tudz

[John H.]

"John H." > wrote in message
. ..
> I've got a bad case of hair algea in my 55gal. Its mostly attached itself
> to broad leaf plants, my amazon swords. It reminds me of that fine hair
> you have to clean of corn, its its much finer than that. There isnt any on
> the grass I use in forground. ITs really ugly. Not sure where it came
> from. I've read that you have to use a 5% bleach soln to kill it... thats
> before you put the plants into your tank, right? What can I do now, trim
> the affected leaves?
> thanks
> John
>
> 55gal
> pH 6.5-7
> kH 8-9
> eheim canister filter
> CO2
> no2 & nh4 nil
> no3 < 20
> 96 watts light X 12 hr/day


This is probably an insane idea but I'm going to ask you guys anyway...
I was wondering, my hair algae problem is so bad, if I relocate my fish and
disconnect my pumps, could I just add enough bleach directly to the tank to
make 5%, then add declorinator to the tank to neutralize the bleach? Is
there anything else in bleach that would be toxic to either the fish or the
beneficial bacteria other that clorine? I suppose it would kill all the
bacteria in the water and gravel... however after neutralizing I still have
the bacteria in the pumps?
just a thought?

[§tudz]

"John H." > wrote in message
...
>
>
> This is probably an insane idea but I'm going to ask you guys anyway...
> I was wondering, my hair algae problem is so bad, if I relocate my fish
> and disconnect my pumps, could I just add enough bleach directly to the
> tank to make 5%, then add declorinator to the tank to neutralize the
> bleach? Is there anything else in bleach that would be toxic to either the
> fish or the beneficial bacteria other that clorine? I suppose it would
> kill all the bacteria in the water and gravel... however after
> neutralizing I still have the bacteria in the pumps?
> just a thought?
>
>
>


That would indeed kill all the algae, also your bacteria and possibly your
plants, if you add too much.
you would need to empty the tank after doing it, rinse with water and
declorinator, then let the tank cycle again, but yeah in theory it would
work.

but remember it would be a new tank setup situation.

§tudz

[Gill Passman]

§tudz wrote:
> "John H." > wrote in message
> ...
>
>>
>>This is probably an insane idea but I'm going to ask you guys anyway...
>>I was wondering, my hair algae problem is so bad, if I relocate my fish
>>and disconnect my pumps, could I just add enough bleach directly to the
>>tank to make 5%, then add declorinator to the tank to neutralize the
>>bleach? Is there anything else in bleach that would be toxic to either the
>>fish or the beneficial bacteria other that clorine? I suppose it would
>>kill all the bacteria in the water and gravel... however after
>>neutralizing I still have the bacteria in the pumps?
>>just a thought?
>>
>>
>>
>
>
>
> That would indeed kill all the algae, also your bacteria and possibly your
> plants, if you add too much.
> you would need to empty the tank after doing it, rinse with water and
> declorinator, then let the tank cycle again, but yeah in theory it would
> work.
>
> but remember it would be a new tank setup situation.
>
> §tudz
>
>
Another thing to bear in mind is even if you do set the tank up again
after the bleaching there is nothing to stop the algae from returning as
it is present in all water.....

I would think the better way of going would be to add more plants to
compete with the algae and maybe invest in some algae eaters....

Gill

[§tudz]

"Gill Passman" > wrote in message
.. .
>
> Another thing to bear in mind is even if you do set the tank up again
> after the bleaching there is nothing to stop the algae from returning as
> it is present in all water.....
>
> I would think the better way of going would be to add more plants to
> compete with the algae and maybe invest in some algae eaters....
>
> Gill

I recently bought a CO2 system for my planted tank, the algae growth has all
but stopped, but it hasn't disapeared yet, and my plants are going mad,
growing SO fast :)

§tudz

[Gill Passman]

§tudz wrote:
> "Gill Passman" > wrote in message
> .. .
>
>>Another thing to bear in mind is even if you do set the tank up again
>>after the bleaching there is nothing to stop the algae from returning as
>>it is present in all water.....
>>
>>I would think the better way of going would be to add more plants to
>>compete with the algae and maybe invest in some algae eaters....
>>
>>Gill
>
>
> I recently bought a CO2 system for my planted tank, the algae growth has all
> but stopped, but it hasn't disapeared yet, and my plants are going mad,
> growing SO fast :)
>
> §tudz
>
>
I've not used a CO2 system on my tanks as yet...one sits in a
Conservatory with constant light....but now has no algae
problem...defeated by over planting (and plant food weekly) and a
combination of clean up guys (Flying Foxes, a Plec and some
otos)....occassionally I need to manually pull some hair algae but we
are talking once a month at max....the whole thing is reaching a
balance...I have some very pretty algae that is trimmed by the fish and
so not a problem...bit like a lawn on the driftwood....I've never cut
the light to the tank...

I think the whole answer is reaching a balance between plant growth and
fish and accepting that a little algae is OK....of course massive growth
is not acceptable but IME it was defeated by the planting and the clean
up crew, a little bit of manual labour and patience....chemical
solutions are just temporary...we have one tank that used to be full of
green "candyfloss" the over planting has defeated it along with the
weekly pulling it out...hasn't taken long (less than a month) and IMO
far better than any chemical intervention

JME

Gill

[§tudz]

"Gill Passman" > wrote in message
.. .

> I've not used a CO2 system on my tanks as yet...one sits in a Conservatory
> with constant light....but now has no algae problem...defeated by over
> planting (and plant food weekly) and a combination of clean up guys
> (Flying Foxes, a Plec and some otos)....occassionally I need to manually
> pull some hair algae but we are talking once a month at max....the whole
> thing is reaching a balance...I have some very pretty algae that is
> trimmed by the fish and so not a problem...bit like a lawn on the
> driftwood....I've never cut the light to the tank...
>
> I think the whole answer is reaching a balance between plant growth and
> fish and accepting that a little algae is OK....of course massive growth
> is not acceptable but IME it was defeated by the planting and the clean up
> crew, a little bit of manual labour and patience....chemical solutions are
> just temporary...we have one tank that used to be full of green
> "candyfloss" the over planting has defeated it along with the weekly
> pulling it out...hasn't taken long (less than a month) and IMO far better
> than any chemical intervention
>
> JME
>
> Gill
>

yeah very true, I did think about chemical usage, but the effects it may
have long term on my plants and fish, were not a risk I wanted to take.
after the hair algae died back, I had some hard silica-algae on my bogwood,
I put the wood in almost boiling tap water, and then scraped it off, the
algae that was left, has gone form bright green to a dull grey, so hopefully
the silica-algae is dead now to :)

I have a bulldog plec, 2 otos (was 4, but you know how it goes) I did have
an ancisturs to but he is in a larger tank at the moment.
I also have a baby platy which loves eating the hair algae, lol.

§tudz

[Richard Sexton]

In article >,
John H. > wrote:
>I've got a bad case of hair algea in my 55gal. Its mostly attached itself to
>broad leaf plants, my amazon swords. It reminds me of that fine hair you
>have to clean of corn, its its much finer than that. There isnt any on the
>grass I use in forground. ITs really ugly. Not sure where it came from.
>I've read that you have to use a 5% bleach soln to kill it... thats before
>you put the plants into your tank, right? What can I do now, trim the
>affected leaves?

Flourish Excel. Use as directed.

--
Need Mercedes parts ? - http://parts.mbz.org
Richard Sexton | Mercedes stuff: http://mbz.org
1970 280SE, 72 280SE | Home page: http://rs79.vrx.net
633CSi 250SE/C 300SD | http://aquaria.net http://killi.net