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I don't have any algae eaters in my tank 20 gallon right now because the tank is pretty fully stocked. I've got two live plants, both of which are covered in brown algae. My fish will pick at the algae sometimes, but not enough to really reduce it. I'm not worried about the plants, I just think it doesn't look very good. I could leave my light off for longer periods of time but I like to look at my fish. Does anyone know of another way to get rid of algae besides turning off the light or getting more fish?

hmm...odd, that name looks familiar

What fish do you have, and how long are the lights on right now?

If you're gone during the day, turn the lights on when you get up, off when you leave, and on again when you come back home, etc. Or, setup a timer to turn off for a few hours during the day. *shrugs*

~Meow. Thus spoke the cat.~

I've got 2 corys, 2 platys, 3 blueberry tetras, an angel, and a fiddler crab that I'm giving to a friend soon. The light is on probably about 15-16 hours a day. I've thought about turning off the light when I'm gone during the day, but that would only leave about 6 or 7 hours of light time for my plants. Is that enough for them to thrive?

Go to Walmart or a similar store and get a timer for your lights... you can set it up to go on at a certain time, off again, and back on, off... Just set it up so that the light is on for a total of 12 hours or thereabouts.

~Meow. Thus spoke the cat.~

It probably wouldn't be too bad to add a couple of otos....... They stay quite small and do a number on algae. I like the timer idea best though. I have them on all my tanks. Makes life so much easier!

Last edited by Wingsdlc at 10-Oct-2005 21:38

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Are those timers expensive?...cause I'm not exactly rollin in the dough right now.

I feel your pain! I think mine was about 5 bucks at Lowes

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Timers can run from 5-15 bucks (or can get REALLY expensive if you go fancy), depending on how fancy you go. In your case, make sure you have one that can be set for multiple on/off periods. I got mine for about eight bucks I believe, and I have the same on/off/on/off cycle. *shrugs*

Last edited by Kitten at 10-Oct-2005 22:42

~Meow. Thus spoke the cat.~

A timer is the best solution & i don't think it's expencive.


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Okay, I just got super confused. I was just reading the post "brown film on plants" and people were responding that brown algae, which is what I think I have, is caused by not enough light. Does algae like light or not?

Yeah me confused now too...haha

Okay, now that my tank has been established for several months, the brown algae is gone. However, I am now struggling with green algae. I have 3 ottos, and I must say they've been troopers, but there's still tons of algae in there. The tank is in a very sunny room, and I'm sure that's why I'm having problems. I was wondering what would happen if I turned my light off during the day while I'm gone, since the plants will get a fair amount of natural sunlight. Minnesota winters are not exactly balmy, but there's still sun streaming in. I don't know how much this would help, but if it doesn't hurt and saves electricity, why not?