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Anybody that has had an aquarium understands that algae
cannot be avoided and it is simply a thing that fish owners,
whether salt or freshwater, need to deal with on a regular
basis. There's four major types of algae - green, brown,
red-brush, and blue green.
If you have a fish tank that receives plenty of light, the
green algae will most probably be the type that will have to
be dealt with. In this case, what fish owners see the most
often is either the hair algae or the "green dot algae". The
first one is simply long strings of algae, while the latter
one is the green dots on the aquarium's side. The second
type is also very hard to remove.
It is common for brown algae to show up in a fish tank which
has just been started and it typically shows up in the
initial two weeks. If it shows up in established tanks it
means that the owner of the aquarium has to check the
nitrate as well as phosphate degrees in the tank. Brown
algae is abnormal because it lives in aquariums which don't
get a lot of light, therefore the aquarium owner needs to
clean the entire tank and increase the lighting. It's not
uncommon for brown algae to vanish when the conditions of
the tank stabilize.
Red-brush algae is not a good news, as it is very hard to
remove it manually. In most cases, the cause behind its
appearance lies in a high water PH.
Blue-green algae is misleading because it's not exactly
algae, it's really a cynobacteria. When it appears within an
aquarium it looks like a slime that is commandeering your
tank and can not only be detrimental to plants in the
aquarium, but may endanger the health of your fish.
The easiest way to lower the amount of algae in your tank is
to reduce the lighting level. If you keep the aquarium
lights on for less than nine hours per day, you will shorten
the time that algae has for photosynthesis.
Changing the water often or using distilled water for
cleaning a saltwater aquarium is another good way prevent to
algae from growing in your fish tank. Also when changing
water try to use as little additives as possible and do
remember about vacuuming the rocks. It also helps to keep
algae eating aquatic creatures in your aquarium, such as the
Yellow Tang Fish, Hard Star Fish, Turbo Snails, Hermit
Crabs, Blennies or Angel Fish.
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