# Hair Algae Problem



## Paks (11 Mar 2015)

2.5gals Tank
7hrs photoperiod(t5 8watts)
50% WC after 2weeks, used water from water refilling station(RO WATER)
17 days old tank.
No Ferts and Co2
Hang-on Filter Jebo501, ordinary media filter
Flora: hygro green and sunset, rotala green, bacopa and ludwigia.
Fauna: 7pcs zebra pink
Feeding: 2 times a day 8pellets (crushed) of ordinary fish food.
Substrate: Baked Soil + River sand






Aside from manual removal, any tips in removing this algae ? TIA


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## Henry (11 Mar 2015)

Start adding ferts and CO2, or reduce your light. Your bioload is high for a small tank too.


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## ian_m (11 Mar 2015)

That is a lot of light, over 2Watts/gallon so well into high tech light region. That amount of light, along with no fertilisers and no carbon source is killing the plants, leaching organics into the water feeding the algae.

Also why are you using RO water, unless you 100% are sure of what you are doing, that can lead to yet more issues. RO water must be re-mineralised before use.

The way forward is:
- Remove as much of the algae as possible, tooth brush works well.
- Algae can be killed by liquid carbons or hydrogen peroxide, but be careful both these can be toxic to fish.
- Cover the lights, foil rings, plastic sheets etc to reduce the level.
- Reduce to say 4 hours a day.
- Completely black out your tank for 3-4 days. No light or food at all. This will kill the algae.
- Add ferts and carbon source to provide food for the plants.


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## Paks (11 Mar 2015)

Just my side issue, the reason i added RO water is because i wanted not have something like this in my tank (which is caused by the calcium content from tap water, though i didnt used any test kit, as others says)





any guide to avoid this in any tank ?

-i tried manual removal but im afraid my DW will comes out from the substrate so ill say no to this
-Ill order a liquid carbon tomorrow.
-okay gonna reduce the light, from 7 hrs to 4hrs
-3-4 days hmmmm okay2x. 


Thanks ian and Henry.


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## Christos Ioannou (11 Mar 2015)

Some white vinegar on the soft site of a sponge. Pad against the glass, leave for a minute then rinse with some tank water. 
You can add this to your biweekly maintenance, only 5 more minutes needed.


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## Paks (12 Mar 2015)

Is there any other way to avoid this ? I really dont want to scrub it every maintenance either dont want to see it in ordinary days.


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