Habitat - Indoor :: How to get rid of algae

[crazyturtle]

Hey everyone I have been having the worst case of brown algae for a while now and have searched everywhere to get rid of it and wasn't able... it basically took over my tank.. didn't matter how many times I cleaned it it always came back in full force... anyway I have found this stuff called Algae Destroyer at my local petsmart... it works great it has been a week now and the algae is almost gone.. it is safe for live plants and fish and doesn't even bother my turtle.. if any of you are having the same problem I recommend it..

crazyturtle

[turboturtle8]

I never had any big problems with algae but sometimes iI get it on my platform you can buy algae stuff like you said or buy an algae scrubber.What I usally do is get a tooth brush(make sure its not anybodys) and just scrub.It works for me.Just curious but where do you get your algae at?

[Starchick]

Lol I like that you specify that the toothbrush shouldn't belong to anyone. I use an old battery operated spin brush, and that works really well for me.

[turboturtle8]

Yeah thats really all you need is a cheap toothbrush and it gets rid of the algae on the basking area realy well

[crazyturtle]

actually guys the toothbrush was never working for me... it was only gone for about a day before it came back again in full force... I even tried cleaning out the whole tank and it would just show up again in about a week.. if you want to know how bad it was it was everywhere.. it covered all my plants, rocks, dock, and even the glass in thick brown layer.. algae destroyer was the only thing that worked in my case..

[octpusgirl8]

I had really bad algae in my tank, i would clean it and almost the next day it wouuld come back. I didn't like the idea of using a chemical algae remover, it made me kinda nervous. I did a little research and found that algae needs phosphates to live and grow, so i got a phosphate test for my tank water and it was pretty high (a result of the breakdown of food waste and poo from my messy turtle). I tried a number of different filter media that removes phosphates but none of them seemed to make much of a dent in the levels when i tested them, so i decided to bring out the big guns. I got a "Phos-Ban Reactor" http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=11586&Ntt=phos%20ban&Ntk=All&Ntx=mode+matchallpartial&Np=1&pc=1&N=0&Nty=1 and a water pump to operate it and in a couple days my phosphate levels were at zero. Ever since i haven't had any algae growing in my tank at all.
I know it's a kinda crazy solution to something that really isn't a big problem, but i love hooking tihngs up and making them work, so it was fun for me, and the algae really annoyed me since i work so hard at keeping the tank clean.

[DavidY]

Nice job, octpusgirl8! That's what a lot of people in the saltwater reef hobby use and it works really well. Phosphate is especially bad in coral reef systems because it interferes with the coral's ability to utilize the calcium in the water. That prevents the corals from growing and also allows the algae to overgrow and smother the corals. I never though of using that in a freshwater system, but it makes perfect sense!

[SpotsMama]

Question: If phospates in the water interfere with corals ability to utilize calcium, wouldn't they do the same in the case of turtles? I had understood that it was bad to feed your turtle food with too much phosphates but I hadn't really heard they were a problem in the water. But it makes sense.

Maybe algae growing in a tank is a symptom of a problem that will result in shell problems if not addressed.

[octpusgirl8]

I was a little worried about using it because all the info on it seemed to be geared towards saltwater applications, but it said it could be used in freshwater so i went for it, and i've had a nice clean tank and turtle ever since!
I don't now the differences in how turtles absorb phosphates in the water as opposed to corals, maybe while KalinaBallerina is on her academic journal kick she could check it out?

[DavidY]

Corals directly utilize elements from the water surrounding their tissue. RES on the other hand utilize what they ingest. It's possible high phosphates in the water may have a small effect on the turtle's shell growth, but I think most of the actual growth occurs in cells that are nourished by the turtles blood stream and not by the surrounding environment. BUT, we need specific scientific data to back this theory up! How 'bout it KalinaBallerina?

[SpotsMama]

You make a good point DavidY.

[DavidY]

Aw shucks.