# Clear leaves, Brown algae and hair algae, please help



## Trixa (May 31, 2015)

I have a large leaved plant, I don't know what it is exactly, but it has leaves about the size of half my hand to almost my whole hand. It looks like it is supposed to be rooted, but I've been just been letting it float since it's in my fry tank that has no substrate. A few of it's leaves seem to be turning clear, but not mushy or anything. It also keeps getting brown algae spots on it's leaves that are very hard to get off, and it's leaves tear easily.

In the same tank I also have floating wysteria and either moneywort or ludwiga(not sure if I spelled that right). The wysteria is doing great other than a few brown algae spots here and there. The moneywort(?) however has been having horrible problems with both the brown algae(which turns pink eventually) and the brown algae. About half of them have turned to mush in the past week 

My tank is a 20 gallon high, 84 degrees, cycled, with a hood and fluorescent lighting, bulbs are 6500k CFL. I use 2-4 drops of liquid fertilizer every water change (wc ranges from every day to every other day). Is there anything I can do to help the plants? Any recommendations for cheap fast growing plants that would thrive in this tank?


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## Sadist (Jan 1, 2015)

How long is the light on? That might help.


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## Trixa (May 31, 2015)

10-12 hours for the light. Not exact though since I turn the lights on when I wake up and turn them off when i go to bed.

The big plant looks similar to a banana plant.


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## themamaj (May 11, 2015)

Any luck on the plants? I am having similar issue with brown algae spots on my larger leaf plants. Be interested to know how to prevent or control the algae.


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## Sadist (Jan 1, 2015)

From everything I've read, the best way to control algae is to have the lights on only 8 hours a day. If the algae gets super bad (completely covering everything), you're supposed to have a black out for 2 days. 

I can't really recommend plants. I have all slow-growing low light plants. The only thing that's grown quickly is some java fern, which is common and cheap enough at pet stores. Mine took a few weeks to settle in, but it grew quickly after that.

Sometimes too much or little light can make plants lose leaves, too. I'm not really sure what's going on with yours. As an experiment, I would try changing the hours of light for a few weeks and see what happens if you can. If the good plants are still good, it could help with the spots of algae.


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## Trixa (May 31, 2015)

Ok I'll try less light and see what happens. If anything maybe it'll help my electric bill lol. 

As of today, the big leaved plant is still having problems, but is still alive, wysteria is doing fine, and all of my moneywort melted into mush.


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## dannifluff (Jul 5, 2015)

I'm not an expert, but the following may help, after my own experience battling brown algae. I won the battle, so it is possible!

First, which liquid fertilizer are you using? Excel or any other liquid carbon fert will tend to turn the softer stem plants to mush (I speak from experience!) If you switch to a co2 diffuser/flourish comprehensive method instead you may get better results. Not sure if a diffuser would work for a fry tank though. You could get away without it, but I've had excellent results. It might be possible to make it fry safe by tying netting around any access points with a rubber band?

Brown algae is pretty much inevitable in newly cycled tanks. I dealt with it by adding more plants... you need enough to out-compete the algae. Try adding something very hungry like floaters, fast-growing stem plants, etc, to see if they can tip the balance in the plants' favour. Float them all, that way they will block the light from the algae, plus get easier access to nutrients. You can coral them with a circle of airline tubing to make fry access easier. Since you have a plant-friendly light, it will also promote algae growth, unless the algae can't get a look in.

Good plants to consider may be: salvinia minima, firm elodea or anacharis varieties, duckweed if you can bear it (not sure how suitable it would be for a fry tank), rotalas (mine grow like the clappers when floated and fertilized, although they're not so cheap).

Hope this helps a bit!


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## dannifluff (Jul 5, 2015)

Sorry to double post... I maxed out the editing window.

The way that large leaf plant is reacting though sounds to me like it might not be a true aquatic, rather than a ferts/algae issue. Do you have a picture so we can try to identify it?


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## Sadist (Jan 1, 2015)

Good point about the non aquatic plant! I didn't even think of that.


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## dannifluff (Jul 5, 2015)

Yeah, I accidentally put a non-aquatic plant in an old tank and it's the only time I've seen leaves going 'clear' but not melting... Liquid carbon melted my anacharis but it went very pale and mushy rather than clear.


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