Anyone know an easy way of getting rid of hair algae



I had it a long time ago in a little 2ft x 1ft x 1ft community tank. I found it was a nightmare to get rid of. I had it on filter tubes, top of heater, plastic plants, rocks, bog wood and even on some of the gravel. It wasn't too hard to get of off filter tubes- just a good scrub but everywhere else was a real pain. It juts sticks real hard. I even tried boiling the rocks and im sure it killed the algae but it was still attached to the rocks. I tried some chemicals in a bottle from the fish shop but that didn't work. I finally got rid of it with a lot of scrubbing( and i mean a lot, you have to get all of it)


I have had hair algae in my oscar tank for a several months now. I used to have 2 lights on from 11am to 11pm with a blue moon light on for about 8 hours. I have reduced these times to try to stop the hair algae growing and even hopefully reduce it. I have a blue moon light(moonlight) bulb on from 12pm to 4pm and then 8pm to 12pm. My other 2 lights are on from 4pm to 10pm. The lights have been on like this for about 4 months and altho the aglea hasn't got worse it doesnt seem to be getting any better


It was hard enough scrubbing a 2 x 1 x 1 tank to get rid of hair algea but 4 x 2 x 2 , there has to be an easier way

Reducing the amount of light in your aquarium is obviously the first thing to do to try and reduce algae. Whereabouts is your tank located? I have got a small 20 gallon tank that keeps getting this kind of algae growing and it. Problem is, I have got it located in a very bright spot next to a window. I hardly put the light on but the algae keeps coming back. The only way to get rid of it is to keep removing it manually. There are things that you can add to the water to get rid of algae. You'd have to be very careful that you use something that doesn't interfere with your biological filter though, and your fish.

High nitrates can also encourage algae to grow. So regular tank maintenance is a good idea.

My tank is located near to my patio doors. Maybe I will keep the curtains closed during the day and see how this goes over the next few months. If this dont get rid of it or reduce it to a level that is not unsightly i suppose i am gonna have to get scrubbing. I prefer not to use chemical unless I have to


I do a 50% water change every week without fail. Ammonia and nitrite always zero. Nitrite varies (depends on how close to water change I test) but the max I have is between 25 and 50 but not 50). Do you think i should reduce the time I have my lights on??

Remember that lights are really only for our benefit, the fish don't need lights in the tank. I very much doubt it is going to be as light where they normally live, unless they are in extremely shallow water. I put my lights on for around four hours in the evening. If you are not in the room, don't bother putting the lights on, put them on so you can see the fish. Having the tank located to a constant light source, such as a window will certainly encourage algae to grow. It does on my 20 gallon tank, put it that way

Good point. Will change the timers on all my tanks. As a bonus that will save on electricity (not much compared to the cost of heating the tank) and also reduce the frequency of the bulbs needing changing


Cant move the oscar tank as there is nowhere else for it to go but I can keep one of the curtains closed thus reducing sunlight on the tank and hopefully the hair algae growth