Is normal to have algae growing in a hydroton growbed?

[Mark]

I've noticed that I've got some algae starting to grow in my growbed with hydroton. Is this normal? Also, my water with fish in it is starting to turn green as well. Will this affect my plants in any way? Thanks for your help!

[Shawn]

Hey Mark- It shouldn't matter too much, as long as it doesn't get out of control. People will tell you that it means that your system isn't perfectly balanced, or you are overfeeding. Basically the algae will compete with the plants for the same nutrients, but as long as you keep it at a minimal level, you are fine. The most common solution is to shade the tank, and feed the fish small amounts at a time. Pretty darn hard to avoid algae in Hawaii though!

[Sylvia Bernstein]

Hi Mark,

If you keep the top 1 - 2" of your hydroton dry you might be able to clear up that problem.

[Mark]

mahalo shawn....how many times a day do you feed your fish?....for my fish tank i've got a 55/g white/clear drum. for the most part its in the shade but does get some sunlight during part of the day. my grow bed is actually a clear rubermaid 2x4 bed. do you suggest using a solid color grow bed? plants seem to be growing very well. water is pretty green. thanks for the reply!

Shawn said:

Hey Mark- It shouldn't matter too much, as long as it doesn't get out of control. People will tell you that it means that your system isn't perfectly balanced, or you are overfeeding. Basically the algae will compete with the plants for the same nutrients, but as long as you keep it at a minimal level, you are fine. The most common solution is to shade the tank, and feed the fish small amounts at a time. Pretty darn hard to avoid algae in Hawaii though!

[Mark]

mahalo sylvia...i'll give that a try!

Sylvia Bernstein said:

Hi Mark,

If you keep the top 1 - 2" of your hydroton dry you might be able to clear up that problem.

[Shawn]

I guess the clear bin would definitely be allowing sunlight in to feed the algae, so solid would be better. But, I still think you only have a minor issue. On one hand, if your system (especially the plants) isn't mature enough to process all of the fish waste, then the algae may be helpful in that sense. I usually feed my fish three times a day, an amount they can eat in 5 minutes. That's pretty much a gold standard in fish care, from aquariums to fish farms.

I'm working on clearing up my algae in my pond too, btw, but really not concerned about the impact on the system, just want to be able to see my fish...

Mark said:

mahalo shawn....how many times a day do you feed your fish?....for my fish tank i've got a 55/g white/clear drum. for the most part its in the shade but does get some sunlight during part of the day. my grow bed is actually a clear rubermaid 2x4 bed. do you suggest using a solid color grow bed? plants seem to be growing very well. water is pretty green. thanks for the reply!

Shawn said:

Hey Mark- It shouldn't matter too much, as long as it doesn't get out of control. People will tell you that it means that your system isn't perfectly balanced, or you are overfeeding. Basically the algae will compete with the plants for the same nutrients, but as long as you keep it at a minimal level, you are fine. The most common solution is to shade the tank, and feed the fish small amounts at a time. Pretty darn hard to avoid algae in Hawaii though!

[Affnan]

Hi Mark

Algae don't affect the plant but they do pose some problem to the fish.

By day algae will actually produce Oxygen due to photosynthesis hence good for fish but they do use nutrient from water for that it could be good too, to certain extend.

The danger is at night, algae will use oxygen at night and compete with the fish, it may cause fish to be starve of oxygen and die. Early morning check your fish if they are gasping for air than its sign of problem.

Other than giving Oxygen by day, the other good part of algae is it could be fish food, some fish like Tilapia will eat those green algae and it could reduce it.

The only real problem of this green algae is it deplete oxygen in water at night, if you have good aeration then this algae can be a good thing.

But please watch out for the brownish algae,,, this is the one that have no value and could cause real problem.

Affnan

[Rob Browne]

Another problem with algae is that it is using nutrients that you would rather have your crop plants use. By heavily shading your tank you will reduce your algae load and make more nutrients available to your plants which is what you are after isn't it?