# Uh oh... hair algae...



## holly12 (Apr 21, 2011)

So, the other day I was messing around the the 20g tank, and I saw this clump of green...... stuff.... I pulled it out, thinking maybe I missed some of the foamy stuff that was wrapped around some plants when I planted them, but then at a store, a worker pointed to some of the same stuff in their plant tanks and said it was hair algae!!!

I also just noticed some long black hairs on a mother Java fern, so I clipped those leaves off. (The rhizome is till tied to the wood - too much work pulling up the hunk of wood now that there are fish in there.)

So.... if I notice that I'm getting clumps of green hair algae in the 20g, or long dark hair algae in the 36g, what is my best option?

I have very low lighting... like .5 watts per gallon, and the lights are on for 8-12 hours a day tops. I also use a liquid fertilizer. I do have some Excell... but I don't want to over dose and hurt any of the fish.


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## BBradbury (Apr 22, 2011)

Hello holly...

Here's the best way I've found to deal with algae. Get some Pennywort from a local or online source and the next time you do a water change, plant a few stems of this plant in your tank and see how the algae reacts for the next couple of weeks. 

You don't need to adjust the lighting, change the amount you feed or anything else. Just follow the sound tank maintenance schedule you no doubt set up in the beginning.

If the algae is unchanged, then the next time, plant a couple more stems. I did this until I noticed the algae dying back. You're just adding a complex, fast growing, stem plant to the tank that will use the added tank nutrients.

An added bonus, is you have a very undemanding and resilient plant that looks very nice in your low light tank.

As always, just one "old water keeper's" opinion.

B


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## jrman83 (Jul 9, 2010)

I wouldn't take the store worker's opinion (never would) without looking for that type of algae on the internet and read about its causes and what to do to get rid of it. Not all algae comes from excess nutrients.

How long do you keep your light on and how often are you putting in that liquid fert?


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## holly12 (Apr 21, 2011)

Lights are one for 8-12 hours a day..... reeeeally low lighting. Liquid ferts' once a week on water change day.


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## Gizmo (Dec 6, 2010)

Get some shrimp! They scarf hair algae.


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## holly12 (Apr 21, 2011)

I've got 2 surviving Black Diamond Shrimp in the 20g (out of 1 Bamboo shrimp, 20 RCS and 16 BDS.) Don't know what killed them all..... 

No shrimp in the 36g yet, just 6 Harlequin Rasboras, 6 Julii Corys and 4 Dwarf Fire Gouramis (1m, 2F). Still have 4 more Harley's to get and 2 more Julii's, but going to wait a few weeks.


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