Not sure if this is cladophora, staghorn or green hair /green turf /green fluff

2667 Views 15 Replies 5 Participants Last post by p0tluck94, Oct 25, 2018

p0tluck94

Discussion Starter · Oct 23, 2018

I'm at a loss, I have no idea what this is but it's smothering some of my plants and its hard to remove, I broke half of my Buce off because I didn't see I was grabbing the plants rhizome

, I've spot treated with excel, tried manual removal (it's a nightmare), I bought red racer nerites but had to take them back as they were escaping the tank, any idea what this is and how do I fix it? Ty in advance.

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mistergreen

· #2 · Oct 23, 2018

Probably Clado. Try Amano shrimps if nobody would eat them.

p0tluck94

Discussion Starter · #3 · Oct 23, 2018

mistergreen said:
Probably Clado. Try Amano shrimps if nobody would eat them.

Yeah I can't put them in my tank, I have rainbows/tetras that peck at my ramshorn snails, plus I'm very inexperienced with shrimp(never had any and im allergic to the shrimp people eat, can't even touch them so I'm not sure if I would be allergic to aquarium) or I'd probably kill them tbh due to lack of knowledge , anything else that will eat it? Rabbit snails? Nerites (I can find a way to seal the tank so they don't escape)

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hoppycalif

· #4 · Oct 23, 2018

You could try hydrogen peroxide, squirted on the algae, making sure you aren't overdosing it in the whole tank water. When I had algae like that I was able to pull out most of it. It is certainly difficult to eliminate.

p0tluck94

Discussion Starter · #5 · Oct 24, 2018

hoppycalif said:
You could try hydrogen peroxide, squirted on the algae, making sure you aren't overdosing it in the whole tank water. When I had algae like that I was able to pull out most of it. It is certainly difficult to eliminate.

Forgot to Mention I did a small pipette spot dose and it did nothing but cause my fish to start gasping which makes no sense as I did not use much at all

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mysiak

· #6 · Oct 24, 2018

p0tluck94 said:
Forgot to Mention I did a small pipette spot dose and it did nothing but cause my fish to start gasping which makes no sense as I did not use much at all

You spot treated with Excel or Hydrogen peroxide? I am using H202 regularly for spot treating and it works wonders. Fish/shrimp swim right through it with absolutely no discomfort. Only snails will hide in their shells if they are too close to the treated place, but they come out and continue grazing after a few minutes.

With Excel you have to overdose, otherwise it won't do anything with the algae. This is why I don't like this stuff.. H2O2 is IMHO much safer and more effective. And it makes water clear.

mistergreen

· #7 · Oct 24, 2018

You can manually remove them with a toothbrush.

p0tluck94

Discussion Starter · #8 · Oct 24, 2018

mistergreen said:
You can manually remove them with a toothbrush.

I haven't looked on YouTube but how would you remove it from the plant itself, I'm assuming the bristles catch the filaments on the algae and pull it out? It's not attached to the leaves more growing up and around them

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mistergreen

· #9 · Oct 24, 2018

yes, clado is easy to remove since they don't attach securely. I've let them grow into a mat and removed by hand.

Squirting peroxide and excel have risks of melting your plants. I usually apply the chemicals out the tank for 20 seconds and wash off the chemicals. That's usually safe for the plants.

p0tluck94

Discussion Starter · #10 · Oct 24, 2018

mistergreen said:
yes, clado is easy to remove since they don't attach securely. I've let them grow into a mat and removed by hand.

Squirting peroxide and excel have risks of melting your plants. I usually apply the chemicals out the tank for 20 seconds and wash off the chemicals. That's usually safe for the plants.

The plants it's growing on are attached to pieces of driftwood I can remove from the tank, what is the mixture ratio of the treatment if i do it out of the tank , I'd really hate to melt the bucep.

I got 3 nerites just to see won't hurt anything if they don't, 2 zebra and a red racer they sold all the snails just 1 hours ago lol, my lfs said flying fox but they won't eat it after they get bigger and start to get mean.

Also said it could be cause my phosphate is 2

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DutchMuch

· #11 · Oct 25, 2018

yea i have this algae in my 40b
it sucks big time.

p0tluck94

Discussion Starter · #12 · Oct 25, 2018

Off topic, I have never owned a nerite snail in my life, I'm assuming these aren't very high quality, think the shell on one red racer is chipped and no idea if it will grow back I know the shell is like a fingernail or so I was told, the other red racer is under a piece if driftwood I can't put back down or I'll crush him hopefully hell move by tomorrow

, I paid 1.50 each, second Pic I had to turn the brightness way up cause he is in the dark

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mistergreen

· #13 · Oct 25, 2018

Spray or squirt straight 3% hydrogen peroxide you get at the store. Wait 20 seconds, wash it off/dunk it in water. The algae should die off in a few days.

p0tluck94

Discussion Starter · #14 · Oct 25, 2018

mistergreen said:
Spray or squirt straight 3% hydrogen peroxide you get at the store. Wait 20 seconds, wash it off/dunk it in water. The algae should die off in a few days.

Yeah after moving pieces of driftwood this stuff is all over in my tank

, one piece I cannot remove without uprooting all my plants.

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mistergreen

· #15 · Oct 25, 2018

They usually occur when you have too much light.
They're related to those 'moss' balls so they don't look too bad.

p0tluck94

Discussion Starter · #16 · Oct 25, 2018

mistergreen said:
They usually occur when you have too much light.
They're related to those 'moss' balls so they don't look too bad.

I did lower my light back down 5% to see if that will help so I'm now running it at 55% instead of 60%

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