| Too much algae ruins the tropical fish tank hobby for | | | | 3. Reduce the nutrients (permanently) |
| many people. The green slime coats the glass, plants, | | | | To keep the nutrient level down - and so starve |
| and gravel, and a beautiful fish tank is turned into an | | | | algae of the phosphates and nitrates they need - |
| ugly embarrassment. | | | | you need to look at three factors. Firstly, make sure |
| Don't give up! Here's a five-point plan for dealing with | | | | your tank is not over-stocked with fish. Secondly, |
| too much algae in your tropical fish tank. | | | | ensure you're not over-feeding them. All food added |
| 1. Remove as much algae as you can | | | | should be consumed completely within five minutes, |
| You know when you can hardly see your tropical | | | | and there should be none visible on the floor of the |
| fish, too much algae is making your fish tank a | | | | tank. Thirdly, start a regular water change regime to |
| misery. The first thing to do is to remove as much | | | | keep refreshing the old dirty water with clean water. |
| algae as you can. This is the start of the fight back, | | | | 4. Increase the planting |
| and a cleaner tank will inspire you to prevent algae | | | | Algae will smother plants in a badly maintained fish |
| permanently. Collect and remove green algae by | | | | tank, so the first three steps are vital to get it under |
| twirling a cocktail stick through it. Algae magnets will | | | | control. Adding plants to a tank where the algae is in |
| clean the glass of most algae - for stubborn spots | | | | retreat will finish the job, though. Cheap stem plants |
| use a toothbrush or an old credit card. Discard any | | | | grow quickly and absorb a lot of waste, reducing the |
| plants covered in algae, and remove decorations and | | | | food for algae. Floating plants can spread very rapidly |
| wash the green slime off. | | | | to block out the light, further suppressing the algae. |
| 2. Reduce the nutrients (short-term fix) | | | | Floating plants will also absorb a lot of nitrate and |
| Your tropical fish tank already looks better, but the | | | | phosphate. |
| algae will return double quick if you don't take the | | | | 5. Consider adding CO2 fertilisation and better lighting |
| next step. Perform a partial water change and | | | | If plants don't grow well in your aquarium, you may |
| remove up to 40% of the water from the aquarium. | | | | need to consider upgrading your lighting and adding |
| Get rid of the detritus and algae you scraped off in | | | | CO2 to the water. It may seem odd to add more |
| step one. Replace with clean water - add an aquarium | | | | light, but plants in a well-kept tank will stop too much |
| dechlorinator to your tap water first, or better yet | | | | algae growing, so it makes sense to get them |
| age the water for 48 hours in an old tank or safe | | | | established. CO2 is much more important to plants |
| bucket. If your tap water has a lot of nutrients in it, | | | | than algae, so again by feeding the tank with CO2 |
| you will need to consider using a resin or a | | | | can encourage plant growth rather than too much |
| reverse-osmosis unit to clean it up first, otherwise | | | | algae. CO2 can be cheaply added via a DIY kit, so it |
| you're just adding too much algae food back into the | | | | needn't cost too much. |
| tank. | | | | |