Green algae is not bad for aquarium but excessive growth of green algae can be bad for aquarium health and fish health. That is because green algae consume oxygen at night hours depleting amount of oxygen in water and tat can be a big problem.
More light falling on aquarium walls means more algae. By controlling light you can control algae growth. Avoid direct sunlight falling on aquarium glass
You can have shrimp (if you like them) or catfish that eat algae. While picking up fish that eat algae be careful because some fish species also eat plant leaves along with algae. For example plecos eat algae but they also eat plant leaves making the planted aquarium setup look ugly with half eaten leaves.
If algae is growing on glass surfaces then you must clean them using magnetic cleaner in which you can move the scrubber from outside as well because the other part of the scrubber is attached to the outer one by magnetic force.
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Is green algae good for fish tank?
Green algae is good for fish tank but problem only becomes serious if it’s growth is not controlled. If it grows excessively then it can cover almost every surface in your fish tank such as decorations, substrate bed and even vertical glass walls completely blocking visibility. If not taken care of it can even turn all the fish tank water cloudy and make the entire set up look ugly.
Is too much algae bad for aquarium?
Too much of anything in an aquarium is bad for your fish. But many fish tank owners are really concerned about excess algae growth because when it gets out of control it affects visual quality of the aquarium. Sometimes excess algae will climb on glass walls of the fish tank and that is when the problem starts.
Algae growing on the glass walls from inside will obviously block the beautiful view inside the tank and it really looks ugly. You spend hours showing of your excellent fish tank skills all to display the green algae cover on the inside of the glass walls. SO too much is bad from a visual point of view, but what about the health aspect?
Can algae kill fish in a tank?
Just like live aquatic plants algae will produce oxygen in some form and some fish species will actually eat algae as food. Excess algae will not kill your fish directly but indirectly yes, because though algae produce oxygen during day, it consumes oxygen during night and this can kill fish because of the reduced levels of oxygen in the water. That is why it’s always better to control growth of algae in aquarium
How do I get rid of algae in my fish tank naturally without killing fish?
To get algae out from the fish tank naturally there are some steps involved. The best method to get rid of algae is to prevent it in the first place. But right now if you tank has too much overgrowth of algae turning your water green and cloudy then here are some steps involved.
1) Remove the upper lid and lighting from the fish tank and start removing physically visible algae using a siphon rube slowly. There could be deposits of algae on plants, decorating items, glass surfaces and even gravel at the bottom. Carefully start removing the deposits using a siphon tube.
2) Once you are satisfied with the removal of algae do a water change with water that you have stored previously elsewhere in a tub that is only kept for water changes. Stored water will not have chlorine deposits in it and will be considered safe for water change.
3) After the excess algae has been removed next comes important steps involved to prevent it from growing again. The very first step is to prevent direct sunlight falling on the tank surfaces. This can be done by adding curtains on the windows in which the tank is placed. if possible try changing position of the tank itself, but this can be quite a job when the tank is filled with water. You can consider this shifting when you have empties the tank partially for water changes. Be careful while shifting the tank to a new location because it’s not an easy task. Here is a complete article on positioning your fish tank
4) Not just natural lighting but artificial lighting also encourages excess algae growth, Check with the amount of light you have on top of your tank and consider that reducing a bit. You can also reduce the number of hours you are putting the lighting on and then check the results.
5) You can consider shifting to a planted tank if the tank does not have plants already. Plants will consume nutrients on which algae thrives and when you have plants already present algae will be deprived of the nutrients preventing their excess growth.
6) Try adding algae eating fish species in your fish tank. This can be optional because you may not like the visual look of those species in your tank. If you don’t mind adding algae eating fish in your tank then another point to consider is that check if the species that is already present in your tank can have their tank mates as the algae eating species you have chosen. If they don’t go well then they will fight and kill each other causing another problems.
7) Pay closer attention to how much food you feed your fish. There should be a minimum amount of food uneaten everyday in your tank because uneaten food settles at the bottom of the tank and starts decaying encouraging excess algae growth.
8) Follow a strict cleaning schedule of your fish tank. This also includes testing your water regularly for excess of harmful dissolved gases such as ammonia, nitrites etc.
What kills algae in fish tanks?
You don’t have to kill algae in a fish tank, but just remove it. Once you remove it you’ll need to control it’s growth by using various factors as discussed above.
How do you prevent the excessive formation of algae in a fish tank?
If algae is going out of control in your fish tank then the primary reason for this is excess natural light falling on your tank. One more reason for this could be too much lighting for an excessive amount of hours. You can try reducing the artificial lighting if you are able to control the amount of direct sunlight falling on the fish tank.
Try covering the windows from where the direct light is coming with curtains and see the difference. Many times algae acts as a food for some fish species and they will eat it as food. But not all fish species eat algae and if you have non algae eating fish in your tank then it will quickly occupy every corner of the fish tank and sometimes the water will become greenish cloudy too. To avoid this from happening start observing from the day you see algae growing in your tank.
If you don’t like the algae eating fish by looks or just by choice then another option is to have a planted tank. By this way the plants will utilize the nutrients from soil or substrate and the algae will starve for nutrients breaking the cycle of excessive growth.