Green hair algae: causes?

[ibanezfrelon]

What in your opinion is the main trigger for spirogyra?

That's the one algae that kind of never goes away in my tank , always a hair or two wawing from limnophilla's or rotala's..

 

[dutchy]

You have to look in to the CO2/light combination. If you can't give more CO2, reduce the light. If you already reduced it, reduce it more. Use less intensity by less Wattage or raise your lights.

 

[ibanezfrelon]

Thnx for replying!

I guess co2 and light are the key for almost all algae issues ..
..but i'm thinking nutrient wise etc..
...maybe amoniak spike? ...too much CSM+B? ...or something?

 

[Gerryd]

Hi ibanezfrelon,

I guess co2 and light are the key for almost all algae issues ..

and for most growth issues as well. Macro and micro ferts are relatively easy to ensure non limiting levels.

Light and c02 trip up most of us at one time or another. Easy to get these two out of balance.

..but i'm thinking nutrient wise etc..
...maybe amoniak spike? ...too much CSM+B? ...or something?

So even though you agree that light/co2 is the key to most algae, you are still looking at nutrient levels as root cause?

 

[dutchy]

Thnx for replying!

I guess co2 and light are the key for almost all algae issues ..

Most of the time that's exactly right. If you have issues always first check CO2. Never assume it is ok, even if it was ok before.

..but i'm thinking nutrient wise etc..
...maybe amoniak spike? ...too much CSM+B? ...or something?

No, you can only have algae issues if there's a nutrient shortage. But if you're doing EI right, you can rule this out. I have over 1 ppm of Fe, 30 ppm of NO3 and 4 to 5 ppm of PO4. But no Spirogyra.

So first try to add more CO2 without gassing your fish, so do it slowly and wait a few days after each adjustment. Maybe you have to increase circulation, 10x the tank volume is a good point to aim at. Then watch if the Spiro comes back. If it does, start raising your lights, or remove reflectors.

regards,
dutchy

 

[ibanezfrelon]

So even though you agree that light/co2 is the key to most algae, you are still looking at nutrient levels as root cause?

No, it's just curiosity...
I know the root cause is the light and co2, i'm trying to tweak the two all the time...
I was just wondering if there's anything else to know..

 

[ibanezfrelon]

Hi ibanezfrelon,




and for most growth issues as well. Macro and micro ferts are relatively easy to ensure non limiting levels.

Light and c02 trip up most of us at one time or another. Easy to get these two out of balance.



So even though you agree that light/co2 is the key to most algae, you are still looking at nutrient levels as root cause?

Most of the time that's exactly right. If you have issues always first check CO2. Never assume it is ok, even if it was ok before.


No, you can only have algae issues if there's a nutrient shortage. But if you're doing EI right, you can rule this out. I have over 1 ppm of Fe, 30 ppm of NO3 and 4 to 5 ppm of PO4. But no Spirogyra.

So first try to add more CO2 without gassing your fish, so do it slowly and wait a few days after each adjustment. Maybe you have to increase circulation, 10x the tank volume is a good point to aim at. Then watch if the Spiro comes back. If it does, start raising your lights, or remove reflectors.

regards,
dutchy

Thanx for confirming that!
I actually made much changes in my tank last days , taking out the sagitaria carpet and planting hc cuba , taking out valisneria etc.
...that means loosing a lot of plants , a lot of supstrate mixing with the water etc.. ...kinda gotten off track a little..

...maybe a whole new thread about this...

 

[Tom Barr]

I had one tank that woukld get this species even so often, typically when I added more light, but none of the other tanks ever got any.
Nutrients. sediments etc are exactly the same and same routine.
Light is the same PAR, color temps are bit different.

So light intensity and the nutrients/sediment cannot be it, I am certain and have transferred plants from this infested tank to other tanks without issues.
The only difference unaccounted for that seems likely is CO2.

We have this Spriogyra at the lab in the vaults where I work, so spores are easily brought home.
They do not grow except in one tank. When I reduce the light= no algae, when I adjusted the CO2= no algae.
This does not imply that it's 100% direct to CO2, nor that there might not be indirect effects, but it does seem like a big factor given the observations on multiple test tanks.


Regards,
Tom Barr

 

[Wet]

I run relatively N limited tanks because I like it (a post for another day), and I get this stuff whenever my N bottoms out. Every single time. If you are limiting N in a high uptake tank, try dosing daily. This is easier than it sounds, especially if you already dose, say, traces or something else every day.

 

[dbazuin]

A other cause can be not enough flow in that area.
Not enough flow can be the cause of a CO2 shortage.

 

[ibanezfrelon]

Let me just update and maybe confirm the ''low co2 = spirogyra claim'' ..
I've turned up the co2 higher and still gredualy increasing it little by little , i see spirogyra stopped growing and turned thinnish and pale..
I hope it will continue to go that way.

 

[dbazuin]

How much CO2 do you have now?

 

[ibanezfrelon]

How much CO2 do you have now?

Well, my DC is yellow, but it was yellow even with less co2.
I was releasing 3-4 bps before and now (since i got ridd of the very sensitive rasboras) i've tuned it up to 5-6bps , more 6 than 5 , it's getting hard to count..
So almost double.

 

[Tom Barr]

You likely do not need to go this far with CO2. Better to do this slow and incrementally. Many lose patience and want to eradicate the algae too quickly with CO2, then they get "gun shy" after they gas their fish, or overlook some other thing etc.
You are not really in a rush to get rid of the algae, the plants are still growing okay etc typically with folks that have Hair algae. The benefit by adjusting the CO2 slowly is that you can observe the plants responses to slight changes in CO2.
Then,.................you know what to look for and see next time the CO2 tapers off.

Then you can respond to the issue with CO2 and tweak it back up rather than just wondering why there's a slight lull in the growth.
It also increases your ability to tweak CO2 and not harm any fish.

Plants growth can suffer and algae can persist for a few days longer, weeks etc without much issue........gassing your fish is a much more critical and immediate problem that cannot wait.

Regards,
Tom Barr

 

[ibanezfrelon]

Perhaps i was going a bit too fast.. I'll take it easy , my fish will be greatfull , so will my wife

I also started to dose EC every day , is thar ok or not nesesary?

 

[Tom Barr]

Easy carbo will not help the algae one bit.
Does not work on green algae at all.


Regards,
Tom Barr