# Trouble with moss in hight light...



## JAX3000 (18 Jun 2015)

Hi,

I have been trying for months to grow java moss on a very tall piece of wood under high light and it just becomes engulfed with algae.

Should I be using Flame Moss, Christmas Moss... Other...?

The wood is very large and I want to cover a large area. I was thinking different types if moss may work best.

I have increased co2 (which should help) and employed 4 SAEs, but I'm still nervous that when I re cover in moss (for the 3rd time) I'll just have the same problem if I use java moss again.... 

Thanks


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## xim (18 Jun 2015)

Any moss can have algae problem. And Java moss is already the least demanding species.
I thinks Amano shrimp work better for this delicate job. You have to have enough of them though,
to see the result.

My mosses in the high light area had always been entangled with Spirogyra and Oedogonium (fuzz algae)
that makes them look fuzzy for years.

After adding more Amano shrimp. They are all gone now even though the temperature is
28 celsius, which favours algae and well above optimal temperature for mosses,
which makes them look less lush.

Willow moss ~8 cm under the surface.





Unknown moss (Java?) ~8 cm under the surface.


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## Andy Thurston (18 Jun 2015)

fissidens


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## JAX3000 (18 Jun 2015)

Thanks guys. My concern with shrimps is that my Golden Wonder Panchax will end up eating them...!

I (think) I understand that because Java Moss has such low light requirement that causes the algae to take over, so a moss which prefers higher light would at least reduce the problem...?

I think Fissidens looks like a winner...

I was thinking about a combination of Fissidens with either Weeping, Christmas, Flame...? I like the look of Flame. Unless that might lead to some other problem....


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## parotet (19 Jun 2015)

As far as I read (and something I have also tested lately in my tanks) mosses do better with good co2 levels, high O2 levels, light flow, enough light, cool temperatures and shrimps feeding on them. This can be a bit conflicting, but I also found my mosses do better in soft(er) water (at least they do better in my tank with 400 microsiemens than in the ones with 1,000 microsiemens). 

Of course there are less demanding species like Java moss that can grow with very low levels of light and no CO2... and nearly under any conditions, but for sure they won't look like the ones you can see in the contests tanks. Actually under these above mentioned conditions, a moss that I had for 3 years that looked nothing special, is showing now a beautiful color and shape. It's like if it was a different species. My guess is that if you cannot get rid of algae with Java (=achieve nice and healthy growth), things won't be better with other species that can be even more demanding in terms of light or CO2.
Do you thing the big Amano shrimps will be eaten by your Panchax? They are quite large and very efficient with algae...

Jordi


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## dw1305 (19 Jun 2015)

Hi all,





xim said:


> My mosses in the high light area had always been entangled with Spirogyra and Oedogonium (fuzz algae)
> that makes them look fuzzy for years.


 I think it is difficult to grow any moss in high light without shrimps and keep it algae free. 

High flow might help, I say this because I was on field work earlier in the week by the upper reaches of the Bristol Avon (at Seagry). 

The water quality is reasonably good, and I noticed that on a concrete weir there was a lot of moss (_Fontinalis_?) growing in a very strong flow section, but away from this the concrete was covered in green filamentous algae.

cheers Darrel


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## JAX3000 (19 Jun 2015)

Hmm...... Food for thought.

You may have sensed, I'm a novice really, so I don't want to make life unnecessarily difficult with "demanding" mosses, but they will have excess ferts, high co2 and lots of light, so I assumed I couldn't really fail to grow them unless the hair algae I was suffering from returned. (Since removing the riddled Java Moss I have NO visible algae).

I keep hearing I'm gonna have trouble keeping any moss under high light algae free with no shrimps, but I thought I couldn't have shrimps due to the fish wanting to eat them.

I'd LOVE to get some little busy fingered fellas working on the moss and I guess there's only one way to find out, so maybe I should just try.

Please tell me if you think it's a dumb idea with my stock list...

Golden Wonder Panchax (currently only a couple of inches long)
Bleeding Heart Tetras
Siamese Algae Eaters
Bronze Corys
Skunk Corys
Bristlenoses
Bolivian Rams
Dwarf Flag Cichlid (mouth like a pin hole)
Keyhole Cichlids to come...

The Panchax hang out right where the shrimp would be, at the top over the wood.

COULD this possibly work? If so I'll give it a try. If they get munched it's not going to change my life to be honest...

If so I may as well just go back to Java Moss for ease, price, availability...

And which shrimp are best, Amano?

Thank you SO much for all your help. This is my biggest and really my only problem in the tank and it's been bugging the life out of me, so thanks...!


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## xim (19 Jun 2015)

I never keep a Panchax. But I think any big fish will make Amano shrimp hide in the plants or stay on the substrate only.
That happened in my previous tank with a medium sized Angel fish. Its mouth was too small to swallow them. But it still 
made them afraid.

You already have the Siamese Algae Eaters, so you may just try putting the moss in.


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## JAX3000 (19 Jun 2015)

Yeah, that's a good point. Even if the shrimp don't get eaten, they'll be hiding well away from the moss...

Ok, so I'll just try with new moss and hope the SEAs can keep on top of it.

I could try Java Moss again if any other moss is likely to be just as prone to algae I guess...?


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