Algae, the aquatic organism, can grow anywhere in the water including an aquarium.The fish living in an aquarium or tank needs proper care and an aquatic environment. If you have an aquarium or tank at your place, then you must have observed algae which are indirectly giving you the maintenance need.If you have seen algae blooms or algae on the floor of the aquarium or tank, then the very first thing to identify is the type of algae growth in the aquarium water. The different types of algae growing in the water have different effects on the types of aquatic species. Some types of algae are good for aquatic or marine species, while a few types of algae are not good for them and can make it difficult for them to survive. This harmful algae growth needs proper maintenance of the aquariums. The different types of algae are brown algae, blue-green algae, red or beard algae, green algae, and green water, etc. Brown algae, also known as gravel or silica gravel, is completely harmless and can be easily removed from the water. Blue-green algae are known as slime or smeared algae and grow in water due to high levels of nitrate and phosphate chemicals. Keep the aquarium away from parts of the house where there is a lot of light.It is hard to control algae once it starts to grow. Red algae usually grow on plants, which is not easy to remove. Green algae are good for the tank, and if the water quality of the tank is healthy, it never overgrows. The presence of green algae, also known as algae bloom, makes it difficult for aquarium fish and live plants to survive. These algae even cover the glass of the tank or aquarium. There are many different factors that are responsible for the algae growing in your tank, such as water and climatic changes, lighting, direct sunlight, fish waste, high levels of nutrients or chemicals such as nitrate and phosphate in the freshwater aquarium or tank, etc. These are all the natural environmental changes inside and outside the aquarium that will cause algae to grow in your tank. If you enjoyed reading this article about getting rid of algae from growing in tanks, then do read some interesting and fun facts article about how to get rid of a hornet’s nest, and how to get rid of Asian beetles.How to get rid of algae in a fish tank naturally?If you want to get rid of algae in a fish tank naturally, then you can try to control sunlight or well-lit areas, nutrients, including algae-eating fish or algae eaters, using many live plants in the aquarium, and lastly, by keeping proper maintenance of the aquarium.There are many reasons which lead to algae growth in the aquarium water, which makes it difficult for aquarium fish and invertebrates to survive. The very first thing you can do is just simply keep the aquarium water clean. The water changes color with algae growth which can easily be seen from the glass of the tanks. So, to keep the natural quality of the aquarium freshwater, regularly change the water. Many times, even regular water changes fail to keep algae under control, and you need a better UV sterilizer in that case. Clean the gravel, rocks, filter, and surface of the aquarium regularly. Try to avoid direct sunlight falling on the tanks, and even the least amount of lighting should be used near an aquarium.Decrease the number of nutrients and plant more live plants in the aquarium to naturally remove the algae. Bad water quality or green water will not even allow live plants to work in the aquariums. Once aquarium algae grow, it can even cover the decorations, and some of the time, even damage the filter. You also include some algae-eating fish or algae eaters in the tank along with other fish and invertebrates. Bristlenose catfish, Otocinclus catfish, and mollies, etc., are some of the fish and invertebrates which eat algae. The fish food also varies from the type of algae. Liquid algae controls can also be used and are safe for fish when used correctly.How to get rid of black algae in a fish tank?You can use hydrogen peroxide, reduce the phosphate amount in the water, and include an algae eater in the tank to remove the black algae from the aquarium. Apart from that, keep the nutrient level low, clean the tank and change the water on a daily basis, etc.Black algae, also called black bread algae, starts to grow with small black mold and soon, if ignored, may cover the plants, filter, rocks, and gravel. If you find this black algae-like bread, it might also look blue or green in color in the fish tank, then you will have to struggle hard to remove or control the algae from re-growing. Black aquarium algae are soft and have hair or a small thread-like texture where the algae grow. A few fish species, like American flagfish, black molly, and lip pleco feed on black algae. These fish species in the tank, in a natural way, eat the algae as their food and keep the aquarium healthy. Try to keep the aquarium away from light areas of the house.You can use hydrogen peroxide chemicals with only 3% of the peroxide, which will help to remove the black algae, but be precautious with the live plants and fish. When you clean the tank, keep it in another spacious tank or large container. If the right ratio of hydrogen peroxide is used in a ratio 1:3, then it will help to keep the plants and fish healthy. In the case of plastic plants, 1:20 can be used. You reduce the amount of phosphate in the water, remove the food waste of the fish from the tank. Always check the pH level of the tap water you use in the fish tank because, generally, the tap water is found high in phosphate. Feed the tank fish sparingly, clean the tank often along with the filter, which will naturally reduce the high nutrients within the glass walls of the aquarium.How to get rid of white algae in a fish tank?To get rid of white algae in a fish tank, use algaecides, algae eaters, bleach treatment, avoid light areas of the tank, make use of more live plant species, decrease the use of nutrients, and from time to time, do daily cleaning of the tank, etc.White algae are common in the tank with the fish and are not harmful, but can ruin the decorations of the aquarium due to their rapid growth. The white algae can cover up the whole tank, including rock, gravel, plants, and other small decorative items. Too much lighting, sunlight, and light-oriented areas of the house cause algae to grow in the tank by increasing the level of nutrients. White algae appear like a white web and grow on the decorations such as rocks and gravel, but they cannot be found on the glass of the fish tank.In order to get rid of white algae naturally, you can keep some small fish and invertebrates such as zebra nerite snails. These snails help remove the white algae in the tank by feeding on them. White algae caused mainly by light is the favorite food of zebra nerite snails, hence, it is also called tank cleaner in regard to white algae. Apart from that, keep changing the water in the aquarium along with cleaning the tank floor with an algae scrubber.The water change will help to eliminate the white algae. Try to clean the food waste from the fish on a regular basis because this will only enhance the decrease in the nutrients in the water, which causes algae to grow in the fish tank. You can also try out the bleach treatment at a 1:20 amount. Carolline algae are good for saltwater tanks and bright light, along with high levels of nutrients, causes algae growth.How to get rid of brown algae in a fish tank?To get rid of brown algae in a freshwater tank, you can increase the light near the aquarium, include algae-eating species, do proper maintenance of the tank, decrease the use of nutrients, and avoid using silicate objects, while in saltwater you can use a protein skimmer.Brown algae, also called diatoms, are generally found in both freshwater and saltwater aquariums. The brown algae grow into a thin thread-like structure within a time period of five days. Brown algae are called diatoms because they are made up of single-celled organisms. In the beginning, they are less noticeable among other plants in the tank, but when grouped together they are called a diatom bloom. Brown algae grow in aquarium water only in the presence of sunlight and when nutrient levels are high, such as nitrate and phosphate. Many times, individuals get confused between cyanobacteria and brown algae.Brown algae are known to be different from other algae as they need silica to grow with a hard covering on the outside. The chemical components present in silica, i.e., silicon and oxygen, enable them to be hard from the outer covering. Brown algae are known to go away on their own, but that time period could also be for months. So, they are not that dangerous in comparison to other algae. Brown algae grow anywhere in the tank, including the aquarium glass and green plants. You can identify them by their color.In order to get rid of brown algae, change the water in the aquarium regularly. You should vacuum the gravel because the rise in nutrients in the water is due to the fish’s food waste. Another simple way to get rid of brown algae is to rub the tank glass on a daily basis to avoid the growth of brown algae on it. To remove the brown algae on sand, you can use a gravel vacuum. Try to remove the decorations on the tank, such as plastic plants. You can use bleach treatment for the removal of algae.Brown algae grow in dim light. So, just do the opposite of what you do for other algae. Use more lighting to get rid of brown algae. You can include fish and invertebrates such as nerite snails, Amano shrimp, and Otoclinus catfish, etc. Saltwater marine species named trochus snails and Mexican turbo snails also feed on brown algae. To prevent the re-growth of brown algae, make frequent use of water filtration, increase water flow in the tank, and try to avoid silicate objects. Apart from that, you can avoid fish overeating, try to use RO water, a UV sterilizer, etc. If you have a saltwater aquarium, then you can use a protein skimmer to get rid of brown algae.Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly facts for everyone to enjoy! 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Algae, the aquatic organism, can grow anywhere in the water including an aquarium.
