Easy Carbon vs Hair Algae?

[Hobbit]

I’m very tempted to grab some Easy Carbon but my main problem is hair algae. Long, green strands of algae, no branching. Has anyone used Easy Carbon specifically for hair algae? What’s your experience?

This is a tank where I’m open to keeping shrimp, but I’m trying to avoid snails because it’s a breeding tank for medaka and I don’t want the snails to eat the eggs.

And while you’re here… does it work against green spot algae? Brown diatom algae? 😄 

Thanks in advance!

[HH Morant]

I used Easy Carbon in my quarantine tank when it was overrun with green hair algae. I could not see any difference, but I did not give it much time to work. I decided that light was the main problem and started decreasing the light intensity. I could see the hair algae was not such a huge problem after that, but it is still there.

I decided the hair algae in a quarantine tank is not so bad because it keeps the water quality perfect. If ammonia/nitrites/nitrates increase, the hair algae increases, and I twirl the hair algae around my aquarium tweezers and pull it out. It is like harvesting nitrogen. 

In a display tank, hair algae is generally considered more of an eyesore than an asset. I think adjusting the lighting is the best course to control it.

 

[wtrch20]

Here's my Easy Carbon versus hair algae worthless test.  I bought Easy Carbon to try and tackle some hair algae in various tanks.  After pulling out strands of hair algae from my little indoor pond tank that I had dosed with Easy Carbon, I put the hair algae (with bits of xmas moss and subwassertang) into this little container with about 2 cups of water to try a test.  I added one pump of Easy Carbon into the container and I took pictures on day 1, day 2, day3, day 5 and day 6; I forgot to take a picture on day 4.  On day 3, I did a water change and put another full pump of Easy Carbon in.

I was hoping to see the hair algae melting away since this is a huge overdose (a pump into 2 cups of water as opposed to 10 gallons).  The day 5 and 6 pictures do show the algae definitely turning brown so it is slowly working under this extreme test but it's slower than I'd hope.  In my actual tanks, I haven't noticed any significant (or insignificant) changes with regards to the hair algae so I think I'll up my dosing and hope for the best, keeping my expectations low.  If I hadn't already purchased Easy Carbon, I'd probably skip it for hair algae control.

Edited November 4, 2021 by wtrch20

[test.tin]

When I use easy carbon, I like to fill a squirt bottle with all water. Ill pump one or two pumps of easy carbon into the squirt bottle. Then do a pretty large water change, so that the algae areas are exposed. Then I take the squirt bottle and spray where the algae is. Don't need to go crazy with the spray, as long as the areas you want is wet from the spray. Let it sit for a few mins. Then fill back up with water. Ill redo this every time I do a water change. Easy carbon degrades over time, so put new water and new easy carbon in the squirt bottle.

But this is only a bandage to help handle the aglae, make sure you figure out the main problem for the algae. Maybe lower the light intensity, etc.