Shrimp Tank Algae question

[Redwing RC]

New to Shrimp tanks and have a question about removing old food. I know shrimp like dead matter and algae but some of the food sticks I placed in for them is developing the white hair like algae and almost looks like underwater mold. Is this bad for them and should it be removed? Attached is a picture. Thanks in advance for your advice.

[Edsland]

I would take the old stuff out before it messes up your water

[JettsPapa]

Yes, as stated above, remove uneaten food, and in the future I'd recommend removing it well before it gets to that point.  If you could answer a few questions it would help get you on the right track.

1. How many shrimp do you have in the tank?
2. Is there any other livestock in it, or just shrimp?  If yes, what and how many?
3. What size is the tank?

[Beardedbillygoat1975]

I would add to @JettsPapaexcellent questions what is your present feeding regimen? What are you feeding?

[Ryan W]

I see you have blue shrimp. I’ve been feeding nothing but Shrimp King Bio Tase Active for the last 3 months and it’s been a pretty good experience. Super easy to feed and there’s nothing to settle and accumulate. It’s a powder that stimulates bio-film growth. Seems to work well with Oto cats too, in my experience. It’s relatively expensive but I think it’s been worth it. 
 

Please excuse the diatom phase. Also, these guys have been moved 3 times. Came from AquaHuna. Started with 5 (ordered 8, nature happens). Got down to two and one was berried. Now I have over 40 and fed them nothing but the Shrimp King. Although I’m convinced it’s just powdered yeast, it’s a good product.
 

[Redwing RC]

Thanks for advice on food will look into the shrimp King food. Feeding them a couple fish flakes, Shrimpy Party premium shrimp food (basically a stick), and sometimes a couple fish granules. Also have moss and Almond Leaf in tank for food.

1. How many shrimp do you have in the tank? started with 10 but have 9 now.
2. Is there any other livestock in it, or just shrimp?  If yes, what and how many? Just shrimp and one snail.
3. What size is the tank? 10 gallon Shrimp King cube.

Feeding them a couple fish flakes, Shrimpy Party premium shrimp food (basically a stick), and sometimes a couple fish granules. Also have moss and Almond Leaf in tank for food. I wait to see them eating the stick and wait until gone before adding more food so I do not over feed.

[JettsPapa]

For just nine shrimp you should be feeding very little, and could easily go days without feeding at all.

[Struggle]

We have several minimally stocked 10g shrimp tanks similar to yours and feed very little. Ours primarily feed on the algae and eat very little food. We remove the uneaten food after 24 hours. You can crash a shrimp only tank pretty easy as their bio load is very small and the beneficial bacteria can be very minimal due to the low bio load. 

[Guppysnail]

Snails have crazy poor digestive systems. I have seen many folks talk of the benefits of keeping snails with shrimp. The bacteria in the snail digested waste is apparently beneficial to shrimp. I keep snails and shrimp in all my tanks and often see the shrimp handling and picking at the snail poo. I agree with shrimp do not need fed very much at all.