Hair/Beard Algae

"Happy'Cam'per" wrote in message
...

With DIY CO2 it fluctuates too much, very difficult to maintain stable
levels throughout the ENTIRE day. Ally, you need to measure your KH and PH
values to determine how much co2 is getting into the water. The ideal
level
would be somewhere between 25-30ppm CO2. This is quite difficult to
achieve
without a ph controller etc. Do a search on Google for Chuck Gadd's
website,
he has some info that might make for sense to you.
--
**So long, and thanks for all the fish!**


exactly, however keeping my CO2 in the 25 -30 PPM with pressurized injected
was as simple as increasing my bubble rate until I reached the desired level
and then leaving it there. Minor fluctuations from lights on to lights out
but it is important to maintain the correct levels all day so measure your
output morning , noon and just before lights out and adjust your CO2 to keep
it in that desired level all day. I have had BBA in my tank and from my
experience once you have it then it is there until you break down the tank
and bleach everything/. You can however control it to minimal levels by
pruning anything that shows signs of it and doing a 19-1 bleach dip on other
plants. I have done this with all kinds of plants with minimal loss.

Rick

"Rick" wrote in message ...
"Happy'Cam'per" wrote in message
...

With DIY CO2 it fluctuates too much, very difficult to maintain stable
levels throughout the ENTIRE day. Ally, you need to measure your KH and PH
values to determine how much co2 is getting into the water. The ideal
level
would be somewhere between 25-30ppm CO2. This is quite difficult to
achieve
without a ph controller etc. Do a search on Google for Chuck Gadd's
website,
he has some info that might make for sense to you.
--
**So long, and thanks for all the fish!**


exactly, however keeping my CO2 in the 25 -30 PPM with pressurized injected
was as simple as increasing my bubble rate until I reached the desired level
and then leaving it there. Minor fluctuations from lights on to lights out
but it is important to maintain the correct levels all day so measure your
output morning , noon and just before lights out and adjust your CO2 to keep
it in that desired level all day. I have had BBA in my tank and from my
experience once you have it then it is there until you break down the tank
and bleach everything/. You can however control it to minimal levels by
pruning anything that shows signs of it and doing a 19-1 bleach dip on other
plants. I have done this with all kinds of plants with minimal loss.

Rick

When dealing with DIY, you can use something like the internal power
reactors I designed and plant guild makes a version of it, you can as
well with a gravel vac etc.

This will even out the DIY while preventing over dosing and allow much
better control of the CO2 level.

FYI.

Regards,
Tom Barr

|| Red, I wonder if you could clarify something - you initially say
|| that DIY CO2 is the cause of the algae, and that he was right to
|| turn it off, and then at the end you say that high CO2 levels are
|| the answer. Do you mean that the low levels of CO2 produced by DIY
|| causes more algae than no CO2 at all? - Thanks!

Ok, I never said DIY is the cause... simply, it doesn't produce enough to
matter in the first place... by that, the 'lack' of it, can be attributed to
the DIY...

What I meant is this, DIY fluctuates from 5ppm to 25ppm in each batch...
that fluctuation is actually feeding most algaes... versus a press. system,
pumping out 25ppm consistently, 24/7/180(I get 6months out of mine) and that
will help stand off most algaes...

|| "RedForeman ©®" wrote in message
|| ...
||||| I was using DIY CO2, but have disconnected it as it only seems to
||||| encourage the algae.
|||
||| This is exactly the 'cause' of it... I know... it's hard to
||| believe... but true...
|||
||||| I have been reading about treating the plants using a 5% bleach
||||| solution and realise the trauma this must cause the plant, but I
||||| am desperate.
|||
||| Yep, I learned that the hard way too... bleach is the only thing
||| that 'really' worked...
|||
||||| The only thing I haven't been able to find on the subject is
||||| whether the dead algae falls off or whether it persists on the
||||| leaves and needs removal. Does anyone have any views?
|||||
||||| Thanks!
|||
||| FWIW, I too asked this question about a hundred times... and Tom
||| Barr would always answer, CO2 2 low... until I learned how to
||| measure my kH and pH to get my CO2 levels, I had all types of
||| algae... but I learned.... it's better to have the upper limit
||| than the lower limit... DIY barely puts out enough to get you to
||| the upper limit... Keep it up and chugging and your algae might
||| just vanish....
|||
||| --
|||| RedForeman ©® fabricator and creator of the ratbike
|||| streetfighter!!! ==========================
|||| 2003 TRX450ES
|||| 1992 TRX-350 XX (For Sale)
|||| '98 Tacoma Ext Cab 4X4 Lifted....
|||| ==========================
|||| ø¤°`°¤ø,¸¸¸,ø¤°`°¤ø,¸¸¸,ø¤°`°¤ø,¸¸,ø¤°`°¤ø,¸¸¸,ø¤° `°¤ø,¸¸,ø¤°`°¤ø
||||| ((((º`·.¸¸.·´¯`·.¸.·´¯`·.¸. ((((º ·´¯`·. , .·´¯`·.. ((((º
|||| for any questions you may have....
|||| Gmail - the ultimate in disappointment...

--
| RedForeman ©® fabricator and creator of the ratbike streetfighter!!!
| ==========================
| 2003 TRX450ES
| 1992 TRX-350 XX (For Sale)
| '98 Tacoma Ext Cab 4X4 Lifted....
| ==========================
| ø¤°`°¤ø,¸¸¸,ø¤°`°¤ø,¸¸¸,ø¤°`°¤ø,¸¸,ø¤°`°¤ø,¸¸¸,ø¤° `°¤ø,¸¸,ø¤°`°¤ø
| ((((º`·.¸¸.·´¯`·.¸.·´¯`·.¸. ((((º ·´¯`·. , .·´¯`·.. ((((º
| for any questions you may have....
| Gmail - the ultimate in disappointment...

I ignored the BBA and its gone for already 3 month.

--
Paulo
"RedForeman ©®" wrote in message
...
|| I was using DIY CO2, but have disconnected it as it only seems to
|| encourage the algae.

This is exactly the 'cause' of it... I know... it's hard to believe... but
true...

|| I have been reading about treating the plants using a 5% bleach
|| solution and realise the trauma this must cause the plant, but I am
|| desperate.

Yep, I learned that the hard way too... bleach is the only thing that
'really' worked...

|| The only thing I haven't been able to find on the subject is whether
|| the dead algae falls off or whether it persists on the leaves and
|| needs removal. Does anyone have any views?
||
|| Thanks!

FWIW, I too asked this question about a hundred times... and Tom Barr
would
always answer, CO2 2 low... until I learned how to measure my kH and pH to
get my CO2 levels, I had all types of algae... but I learned.... it's
better to have the upper limit than the lower limit... DIY barely puts out
enough to get you to the upper limit... Keep it up and chugging and your
algae might just vanish....

--
| RedForeman ©® fabricator and creator of the ratbike streetfighter!!!
| ==========================
| 2003 TRX450ES
| 1992 TRX-350 XX (For Sale)
| '98 Tacoma Ext Cab 4X4 Lifted....
| ==========================
| ø¤°`°¤ø,¸¸¸,ø¤°`°¤ø,¸¸¸,ø¤°`°¤ø,¸¸,ø¤°`°¤ø,¸¸¸,ø¤° `°¤ø,¸¸,ø¤°`°¤ø
| ((((º`·.¸¸.·´¯`·.¸.·´¯`·.¸. ((((º ·´¯`·. , .·´¯`·.. ((((º
| for any questions you may have....
| Gmail - the ultimate in disappointment...

On Sun, 19 Sep 2004 06:33:16 GMT, "cabaloz"
wrote:

I've been fighting a losing battle with hair/beard on my plants and black
brush algae on a piece of driftwood.
Tank is 130 litres, my nitrates are always within 5-10 mg/l, tested every
2-3 days, regular (every 7 days) 25% water changes, thorough and deep
vacuuming of the substrate and reasonably well planted with crypts, swords,
ludwegia, bacopa, elodea, java fern and dwarf anubia.
Filters are a 1000 l/hr canister filter and a 700 l/hr internal.
Lighting is a 30watt bio-lux and a 20watt bio-lux on for a timer 12 hours
per day
I was using DIY CO2, but have disconnected it as it only seems to encourage
the algae.
I have been reading about treating the plants using a 5% bleach solution and
realise the trauma this must cause the plant, but I am desperate.
The only thing I haven't been able to find on the subject is whether the
dead algae falls off or whether it persists on the leaves and needs removal.
Does anyone have any views?

Thanks!

I got back into the fishy life about 2 years ago by buying a 75 gallon
tank, a few plants and 6 starter fish. All went well and I bought
more fish and plants. About 6 months later I noticed black strings
growing from plants, ornaments, even gravel. I tried lots of
remedies, but finally decided I had the wrong plants for my low light
situation. I ordered a package of mixed low light plants. I pulled
out all plants with hair growth. Removed all gravel with hair,
cleaned the ornaments with bleach and put in the new low light plants.
I also added 6 Siamese Algae Eaters. The combination worked. It is
over a year since the Hair problem. My tank is has the bottom covered
with plant growth, not algae.

dick

Thanks everyone for your most valuable input.
I'm thinking Red may have the answer here, the CO2 levels always fluctuated,
and the low light plants grew in fits and starts.
Since disconnecting the CO2 and adding the zeospeed to the canister, my
phosphate levels have dropped significantly. I'm using the Hagen Nutrifin
test kit and this morning it's extremely difficult to detect any colour in
the sample, it just appears slightly milky.
The black brush and beard algae are turning very pale and I'm now wondering
if this is possibly a sign of their imminent demise?
Assuming it is, does anyone know if it will slowly decay and dissapear or is
it likely to remain, kind of like a dried arrangement?

Thanks!

"cabaloz" wrote in message
...
Thanks everyone for your most valuable input.
I'm thinking Red may have the answer here, the CO2 levels always
fluctuated, and the low light plants grew in fits and starts.
Since disconnecting the CO2 and adding the zeospeed to the canister, my
phosphate levels have dropped significantly. I'm using the Hagen Nutrifin
test kit and this morning it's extremely difficult to detect any colour in
the sample, it just appears slightly milky.
The black brush and beard algae are turning very pale and I'm now
wondering if this is possibly a sign of their imminent demise?
Assuming it is, does anyone know if it will slowly decay and dissapear or
is it likely to remain, kind of like a dried arrangement?

Thanks!
Cabaloz,
Thanks for your question. I have real bad hair algae in one of my
Tanganyikan tanks. I'm going to get some Synodontis petricola to help combat
it, but I also bought a phosphate test kit and some phosphate remover for my
eheim. Hopefully this'll get the problem under control. I'll probably also
get some hornwort for the tank to help soak up any excess phosphates. The
only plants in the tank are annubias and java fern, so they won't mind the
extra shade.
Tim
www.fishaholics.org