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Black Algae


matti89

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Hi Guys,

I've had my mixed cichlid tank setup for about 2 months now and it has been running great. Just in the last week though i have noticed black algae on my holey rocks. I've also got brown algae which ive read is normal for a new tank but that isn't as bad and quick to appear after cleaning.

My lighting is a single 4ft t8 fluro which is run for 7 hours a day. I also do >30% water changes each week.

I was wondering what i can do to stop this algae, or if its normal?

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Black (Blue-green) algae is usually bad water conditions caused by poor circulation and/or insuficient filtration.

And the brown algae can be caused by overfeeding your fish.

If you have bristlnose in your tank they will usually nail the brown algae. They may do the black as well in small quantitys. If its on your glass then best to get rid of it if you have a magnetic glass cleaner or something. You need to be careful of black algae as it can be toxic to your fish.

If you are really concerned about your rocks then take them out and scrub them down. Possibly add a small powerhead into the tank for circulation and cut your feeding down slightly.

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I don't have any bristlenose but I will start feeding less, I only feed a pinch once a day but will cut it slightly.

I have a canister on one side of the tank with the outlets pointing to the surface and a hob filter on the other side, I will point the outlets towards the rocks to see if it makes a difference.

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A pinch a day doesn't sound like too much. You may have a circulation issue and have dead spots in your tank.

Do yourself a favour though and get at least one small bristlenose for the tank. You will be thanking him for years to come :p

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Hi Matti89

nice looking tank .......... I like the effect some algae has

on the rocks as it looks established rather than new

but it comesdown to what you like

you will find that the THR will discolour over time

what fish do you have

what filter are you running

when you say the light is on 7 hrs is that during the day

or also at night

are there any windows with direct sunlight hitting the tank

so long as the bristle nose are 5cm or so your fish shouldn't

worry them .... rule of thumb is if will fit in the mouth it may

get eaten

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I've currently got 4 electric yellows, 2 yellow tail acies 2 maingano, 2 hongi, 1 neon spot 1 kingsizei and 2 peacocks.

I'm running a aquaclear 50 hob which I had laying around and a aquael unimax canister, lights are on from 3pm to 7pm and the tank isn't near direct sunlight. I may look at getting a couple bristlenose and a wave maker to have more flow towards the bottom of the tank

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Just another question how much lph for a wavemaker is adequate for a 4ft standard tank. I usually have waste build up on the sand and will like to get water moving to the inlet of my filter.

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