I am fine with the green algae on the glass. I can scrape the glass every week or 2.
It is the black/brown thick stuff that coats the décor, plants and substrate that I want to be gone.
It coats the plants and kills or at best stunts growth. The amazon sword has gone from a beautiful bushy green plant with 16in leaves to a tiny ugly black coated thing with a few 5in leaves.
The fish seem to be doing fine.
Goal: Get rid of algae. Better plant growth for a more natural environment for the fish.
What I have tried with no success over the last 2 years. Giving 1mo +/- to see results:
Water changes daily 10%, weekly 40%, no water changes.
Lights 12hr day, no lights 1 week, 6hr day
Dosing ezgreen, ezcarbon, ezroottabs, flourish potassium.
Removed driftwood, rocks and décor.
Setup:
60 gal tank 24in high x 4ft long, with glass lid (running over 2yr)
Feed: xtreme krill, xtreme community, tetra min tropical granules, frozen blood worms 1x week, o-nip tabs.
hanging led shoplight 40w 1 ft overhead 8hr day
Eheim ecco pro 300 canister (clean every 6mo or so)
MarineLand penguin 200 HOB (rinse filter weekly)
2 air stones
Heater @ 74 degrees
Gravel substrate with some crushed corral mixed in.
About 30 fish, small barbs (gold, tiger, rosy, Odessa, green, and others)
Plants: pothos, crypts, amazon sword, Anubis.
Nitrate 20, nitrite 0, ammonia 0, hardness 300, buffer 120, ph 7, phosphate 3
above reading are subjective, based on my interpretation of the color chart.
New:
CO2 AquariumCoop regulator and diffuser, set at about 2 bubbles per sec.
placed diffuser under a “wavemaker” 90% of bubbles are circulated making 1000s of small bubbles floating around the tank. The drop checker shows no change after 24hr, it is still blue. Added more plants. Super jungle val, 2 red stem plants unknown name, hornwort and jungle fern.
Added back in the factory led lights (Shoplight + intank)
Lightly mixed 2lbs fluval stratum into substrate
Should I keep the co2 at current low level for 2 weeks. Watch for any improvements or turn up the co2 now.