# Easycarbo and Algae



## Greenview

I have had a battle with staghorn on plants and BBA on rocks for a few weeks now. It is stable, but I am still finding new leaves affected by the staghorn and getting new clumps of BBA. I have been dosing with Easycarbo (4ml in 180 litre tank) hoping that this would kill the algae off, but it does not seem to be working as well as I expected. I can treat small patches quite effectively by direct application, but this is impractical as there is a lot of hardscape with algae on it.  

I appreciate that patience is needed, but I wondered whether I should be seeing better results from the liquid carbon by now. I have been reluctant to increase the dose because of my Amano shrimp and Otos, but would appreciate advice as to whether I should increase dosing with liquid carbon. 

Tank: 180l, densely planted
Light: 90W T5, 5 hours
CO2: pressurised with lime green dropchecker (placed in a high CO2 consumption area)
Good flow, and the algae is at its worst where flow is highest
TPN+ 7ml/day; TPN 3ml/day
Weekly waterchanges of 50% (did increase to 4x a week at 50% when staghorn exploding)


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## m_attt

that seams a low amount to kill it off, i was using 15ml in a 180litre. plus get a syringe and apply the easy carbo directly onto the bba


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## Gary Nelson

I am dosing 10ml daily in my 180l, sometimes 12ml - no trouble with my shrimp and Ottos.  Like Matt says dosing troublesome areas with a syringe is best - I target an area and blast it over 3-4 days then move to another affected area... then watch it go red and die off, seems to work


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## Greenview

Thanks. I am directly dosing using a syringe, but 4ml does not go that far. It is interesting that you are managing with larger doses: I lost 2-3 Otos when I first began dosing and thought that this was because I was using 9ml/day, after a week of this dose I reduced to the current dose.


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## m_attt

i have ottos and shrimp, if you do go higher with the dose do it gradually


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## Gary Nelson

Try and increase the amount over a week or two, also make sure that there are no fish around the area you are dosing - its powerful stuff...!

I had a bad area on a couple of Anubias leafs and dossed 10ml with syringe over 4 days in the same area and it has completely gone now.


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## Iain Sutherland

i know somebody will disagree, but IME easy carbo is not even close to being as effective at killing algae as Flourish excel.  Excel will deal with it in a week.  I was dosing 20ml excel in 260ltr every day for a 6 days, went pink in 2 days, after trying with easycarbo for weeks, only direct application seems to work with EC and even then its still weak comparatively. Same in my 35ltr.


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## Greenview

easerthegeezer said:
			
		

> i know somebody will disagree, but IME easy carbo is not even close to being as effective at killing algae as Flourish excel.  Excel will deal with it in a week.  I was dosing 20ml excel in 260ltr every day for a 6 days, went pink in 2 days, after trying with easycarbo for weeks, only direct application seems to work with EC and even then its still weak comparatively. Same in my 35ltr.



That is interesting. I would have thought that they were a similar product, but you are not the first person I have read saying this. As my bottle of easycarbo is coming to an end I think I will replace it with excel.


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## bigmel

Same here , the easy carbo seems cack in comparision to excell its not touched the BBA this time the excell nuked the lot in 2-3 days.

Waste of money for me .


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## ian_m

Careful as some plants are sensitive to Excel. In nuking your BBA/Algae you melt your plants. Egeria Densa is certainly one that suffers with excess Excel.

Certainly works though, I lifted my driftwood and rocks out, brushed in Excel using a toothbrush and within days all gone and no sign of algae and BBA and no sign of it coming back either.

You also need to fix the cause of the algae of course or else it will just come back.


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## bigmel

Ok ....the BBA is starting to go lighter in colour and some bits are going pink so the easy carbo is working   

A lack of water changes and not enough filter maintenance is the cause in my case , so its my own fault


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## ian_m

bigmel said:
			
		

> Ok ....the BBA is starting to go lighter in colour and some bits are going pink so the easy carbo is working


After pink, mine went transparent, then slight green before disappearing, probably scoffed by my Otto's.


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