My tank has hair algae - how do I get rid of it?

42 comments

Does this picture look familiar?

 

Don't you just hate this stuff?!

 

I can almost guarantee that you will have probably seen this at some point in your aquarium. It's a frustrating algae because it looks awful and can be hard to get rid of. But don't panic, as I can solve your situation. PHEW! *wipes brow*

Let me first sort out an old wives tale and set some of you straight:

It has nothing to do with excess nitrates or phosphates

Now I'd like to quote some text from UKAPS which is an excellent forum for those who do not know. Clive, who writes a lot on there has a real knack for words and I just love what he wrote:

Hair algae has absolutely nothing to do with high NO3 or high PO4. Hair algae is strictly associated with poor CO2. My tanks always have super high NO3 and PO4 and they never get hair algae - until something goes wrong with my CO2.
Just because you are adding CO2 it does not mean that you are adding enough. Do not fall off the wagon. Do not look for other reasons. Only try to realize the truth. Moss is a low light plant, so when you pummel it with high light it suffers more than other plants if the CO2 is not excellent. Therefore the moss is telling you that it is suffering too much light and not enough CO2. You think your CO2 is good but your moss disagrees. At the end of the day it doesn't matter what you think, it only matters what your moss thinks.
Step number 1 is to reduce you lighting intensity significantly by 50% if possible. This will reduce the environmental pressures on the moss.
You also need to increase your CO2 levels without killing your fish. If this cannot be accomplished by gas injection rate increase then you need to add more liquid carbon and this has to be done daily, not once or twice a week. The liquid carbon is hostile to CO2 related algae and at the same time it delivers CO2 to the plant. You can use the bottle recommended daily dosage or you can multiply that by 2X or 3X assuming that you don't have plants that respond poorly to liquid carbon such as Riccia or liverworts/bladderworts or assuming that you don't have fauna that are sensitive to liquid carbon such as some shrimp.
Increase you number of water changes per week for a few weeks if this is possible.
As you lower the growth demand via reduction of the light intensity, and at the same time improve the available CO2, you'll find that the mosses and other plants will respond positively and will grow faster. The hair algae will subside. Use a toothbrush in a spiral motion to remove as much of the hair as you can.

This advice is soooo good and so honest. Let me know what you think. Have you suffered from hair algae or maybe you are suffering right now from it. Either way, let me know!

42 comments

Richard
Richard

If you’re not using a drop checker, you may as well just put your finger in the air and try and guess wind speed. It’s as simple as that.

If you want to stop your algae from growing, buy a drop checker and bromo blue – both sold on our site. This will help you enormously and I look forward to your update.

How about showing a picture too?

Alvin
Alvin

I’m not using drop checker as I couldn’t get my hand on 4kh solution and if I use the tap water, it always yellow but the fishes show no sign of lack of o2.

It started with Fissidens and now it has spread to HC, some rocks and Anubias and hair grass, basically everywhere now. It not as bad as it sounds, it just a few here and there but growing worst.

I will try out the 3 x water changes and reduce the intensity of the light.

Thanks for the advice, will update in a week’s time of the progress.

In the meantime, if you have any other solution that you feel I should give it a shot, do let me know.

Cheers,
Alvin

Richard
Richard

Are you using a drop checker with bromo blue?

Is your CO2 up to scratch (i.e. is your drop checker green when the lights come on?)

Which plants are suffering from hair algae? All or just some?

Increase water change (40% 3 times a week in this case) and then re-dose fertilisers each water change

Reduce lighting intensity, increase fertiliser dosage, increase water change = no algae

Alvin
Alvin

Hi Dr Richard,

I read your article on hair algae and I tried some of the method but the hair algae seems to be growing strong.

I have an odd size tank, 36″ × 5″ × 12″ (wall mount tank). I am on pressurized co2 (2-3 bps) I have been dosing Seachem Phosphorus, Nitrogen, Potassium and Comprehensive and daily supplement of excel, EI method and does weekly water change.

My plants are HC, fissidens, anubias nana petite and hair grass. I have reduced my lighting to 5 hours a day, co2 is on 1hr before lights on. However, the hair algae situation did not improve. I see most of my plants pearl around my tank.

I read on your article to increase water change, do I need to continue to add fertilizers after each water change? Currently dosing NPK on and Comprehensive on alternate days.

I feel like I’m fighting a losing battle. What should my next step be?
1. Continue the 5hours period and reduce the intensity?
2. Do 2 time water change per week?
3. Blackout for three days?

Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated.

Cheers,
Alvin

Alvin
Alvin

Finally got the drop checker sorted out and you are right!

It was not even green based on my last co2 configuration. I increased the co2 significantly (almost doubled the previous amount) and its very light green near to yellow at the end of the 5 hour light period.

I increase the intensive of the lighting to normal and I noticed crazy pearling of all the plants at all areas, except one area which I will check the flow.

Will observe if the hair algae situation improves over the next few days.

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