New to the hobby and have some

[albertica1]

Hello! I'm new to the hobby and have watched a few of aquarium co-op's videos and I have some questions. I have set up a 5 gallon tank for my betta and I have noticed that there has been a bunch of algae growth on the substrate. I have been doing a gravel vac once a week and have been trying to cut the lighting hours a bit. The substrate I use is seachem fluorite black. One thing I have noticed is that if I leave the light for about 5 hours after a gravel vac, I can see the algae starting to grow on the substrate again. This is my first tank so I only have a piece of anubias and java fern. Does anyone have an idea on how to solve this as I have been battling this issue for about 2 weeks now. Im planning on adding some more plants so I would also like to know if this algae would be bad for them. I also am wondering on what other basic plants there are in the hobby that can survive even in the care of an absolute beginner. 

 

[albertica1]

This is also my first forum post as well so I apologize if the title has been cut out a bit.

[ChemBob]

I wouldn't worry about the algae harming new plants, assuming it is just normal brown or green algae. 

If it is black beard algae or blue green algae, try to physically remove it as you have. 

Algae in itself isn't necessarily bad. It can mean you have an imbalance between light and fertilizer or some other nutrient. Both Java fern and Anubias are slow growing plants, so getting a faster growing plant in the system may help out compete the algae in your system. Also, make sure there is enough nitrates for the plants to grow and consume the other nutrients. I target about 20 ppm Nitrates in my water for planted tanks. Assuming this is a new tank, a but of algae at the beginning of a tanks life is normal. Give it some time to settle out before you take any drastic steps. And don't be afraid to add a few more plants. 

[McNubbin]

Algae i think is going to grow regardless right? I've certainly never had a tank that was algae free, definitely not planted. 

I think consider some fish that feed on algae to help reduce it all. Things like Chinese or Siamese algae eaters, otocinclus, etc. They tend to be smaller, so are fairly inconspicuous, so long as nothing else in the tank is big enough to eat them. Shrimp and snails both are good algae eaters. However, snails in particular have a tendency to explode in population when food is abundant.