Clado-bloody-phora

[Dave Spencer]

I have a just under three month old, still maturing set up:

60l (16USG)
72W
ADA Aqua Soil
EI ferts

I have started to get some Cladophora in one corner of the tank below the filter inlet and outlet, in amongst some HC and Eleocharis parvula. There isn`t a great deal at the moment, but I would like to nip this in the bud.

My usual action with new tanks is to continuously remove as much algae as I find by hand, and never letting it get a foot hold. With the location of this stuff amongst such delicate plants, I am finding it impossible to do. I have six Amano shrimp in there, but they don`t seem particularly interested in it at the moment.

All ferts and are at target, as is CO2 using a drop checker and 4dKH solution.

I am thinking of spot treating it with Excel, but I am concerned about my HC and Eleocharis possibly melting. Can anybody think of a workable strategy to get rid of this stuff, or will it eventually subside of its own accord as the tank matures?

Cheers, Dave.

 

[Tom Barr]

Excel is fine, but the CO2 likely is not.

I'd add a bit more.
You can mow the hairgrass like a lawn, that and a comb to remove any of it.
The HC may need picked out and then cleaned well, then returned.

When these plants are doing well, there is no Cladophora.

You likely are running a bit low on the CO2.

Bomb with excel daily, and do 2-3x a week water changes to beat it back.

It's a lot more like a plant but always seems to appear when CO2 is neglected of you do not fertilize. You can prune your way out of it and Amano shrimp/Rosey barbs are pretty good, they will eat the plants to some degree also though(barbs)

Regards,
Tom Barr

 

[VaughnH]

Don't forget that the drop checker measures the CO2 only where it is located. If you don't have good water circulation throughout the tank there can be areas with much lower CO2 concentration. So, I suggest working on the water flow, either by changing the locations of the filter suction and outlet pipes, or adding a small powerhead to the tank.

 

[Tom Barr]

Yes, there are always caveats. Then more on top of those

Test the test kits.
Measure the measurements etc.
Question and verify every step.

Regards,
Tom Barr

 

[Dave Spencer]

Thanks for the advice Tom and Hoppy. I think i`ll attack it for now with Excel and cranking the CO2 up a bit. I generally run with my drop checkers lime green, but I`ll edge this tank`s indicator up to the yellow and keep an eye on my shrimp.

I have wondered about circulation in this tank. I am using the CalAqua glassware with an Eheim 2213, which should give me good distribution in a 60cm. There are still a few temporary weeds that are in there, which I am slowly getting rid of over the weeks. I have always felt that they have restricted the flow a bit, because although they weighted down, they are not planted (didn`t want to dig them up out of my Aqua Soil). This means that they can drift about a bit and they tend to sit in front of the filter discharge.

Maybe I should get rid of these over the next few days and see what happens to the distribution. As for the glassware, I have modified the cabinet to have them both on the same side, so moving these around could be a problem.

Anyway, it`s early days yet and hopefully we will kick the crap out of this stuff.

Cheers, Dave.

 

[Tom Barr]

For my 76 liter, 60cm, I use a Via Aqua and it's about right. I could even use more flow etc/filter.

I think it's about 200gph/750l/hr +.

As it clogged over time, the flow drops off.
Quite a bit. That influences quite a few things, namely mixing the CO2 and the O2.

You can see a dramatic difference over a few weeks if it's not cleaned often.
Simple things, like cleaning the filter, keeping the over growth pruned back so you have good flow etc.



Regards,
Tom Barr

 

[Dave Spencer]

I thought I would give a quick update.

First off, I think I may have misidentified the algae. Having looked around on the internet, I am now suspecting that it may be Rhizoclonium. Secondly, I underestimated how bad it was getting.

I have increased the CO2 and given the hairgrass a major haircut. Unfortunately, the algae seems to be bouncing back each time, so I have started to use a fine toothed comb, which is fairly effective in getting rid of the majority of it.

The CO2 dropper is sat right over the worst area and is almost yellow. There is more pearling, and a lot of it tends to get caught up amongst the fuzz of algae.

It has been fairly high maintenance as of late, but I am hoping that hassling the algae on a daily basis will eventually see it off.

Cheers, Dave.

 

[JamesC]

Cladophora is a branching algae and feels rough or gritty whereas rhizoclonium is non-branching and soft or slimey.

James

 

[Dave Spencer]

Going by your website James, I am pretty sure it is Rhizoclonium.

Anyway, just when I think I have delivered a knockout blow to this stuff, it gets back up off the canvas and and lands one on my chin. The tank has just had a three day blackout which was effective in setting it back.

Unfortunately, it is a bit catch 22 at the moment, because all the pruning and black out has set back my hairgrass as well, so it is struggling to get the upperhand. What I have done straight after the black out is to float some Riccia on top and hope the growth from this will help the plants get the upper hand.

For the foreseeable, it is going to have to be lots of elbow grease and water changes. Can anybody think of anything else I can try?

Actually, I was thinking of possibly using a second black out, but I am not sure when to carry it out. I guess the answer would be to wait for the plants to show signs of full recovery before giving it a try.

Dave.

 

[sherry]

DAve, I had the same stuff, and You can't beat Tom's co2, excel, combing regiime. I did 2x recommended doses of excel and a few weeks later I finally won. Hven't seen sign of it in more than a month!

 

[Dave Spencer]

Hi Sherry,

I felt that I was fighting a losing battle, so I decided on the three day black out. Since then, I feel I have the situation under control.

What I am doing at the moment is only using two of the three light tubes and slowly nurturing the plants back to full health after the stress they have been through. I am also carrying out 50% water changes every other day and removing as much Rhizo as I can during them.

Flourish Excel is going to be dosed daily for the foreseeable future as well.

Dave.