It is any aquarium hobbyist’s dream to have a beautiful aquarium. If you are one of them, for sure, you might have this constant struggle of keeping the algae at bay. It is a familiar dilemma that most of us have been through.

In this blog post, let us talk about the root causes of algae, the most common types of algae found in freshwater tanks, and how to control it.

6 Most Common Algae

Brown Diatom Algae

This kind of algae is a brown diatom and sometimes green which looks like a dusty substance that may cover your tank walls and other surfaces. It is so soft and can be easily rubbed off with a scrubber sponge. Snails, catfish, and otocinclus like to eat this type of algae.

Green Water

A green water algae can make your aquarium water look like a green pea soup. This is mainly caused by free-floating phytoplankton. It replicates quickly and can’t be flushed out easily.

Blue-Green Algae (BGA)

BGA is technically not a type of algae, but rather cyanobacteria that grows like a slimy blanket coating the substrate, plants, and decor. It comes with a distinct smell that many fish keepers notice before the algae colony becomes visible.

Green Spot Algae (GSA)

This type of algae looks like green spots on tank walls. They make the slow-growing plants hard to clean off.  Phosphate imbalance and too much light cause it to have an outbreak.

Black Beard Algae (BBA)

BBA is one of the most problematic algae because it grows in thick and bushy clumps that are reddish or brownish and sometimes black or gray in color.

Hair Algae

This hair alga resembles wet hair. It is a problematic one because it is difficult to get rid of and it rapidly grows. These types of algae are thread algae, string algae, staghorn algae, and hair algae. 

The Pros of Aquatic Plants on Fighting Algae in Fish Tank

Adding live aquatic plants into your aquarium has tons of good things beyond their visually-pleasing look. Aside from adding on a vibrant popping décor in your aquarium, these live plants are also beneficial biologically, physically, and chemically. In order to maintain a truly thriving environment, it's best to have living plants in your aquarium moss.

Your focus should not be on eliminating the algae, but your focus should be on growing lots of plants successfully. Everyone who is an aquarium hobbyist knows how algae growth is so persistent and it is frustrating.

The best way to reduce its rapid growth and to eliminate it altogether, is to invest in adding live aquatic plants into your fish tank. This works best because aquatic plants, especially those fast-growing stem plants, will outperform the algae for nutrients.

It is a one clear advantage of having live aquatic plants for the algae reduction. However, it is a must to do aquarium maintenance on a regular basis like changing the tank water to get rid of algae. Aside from that, you may also add algae-eating snails such as mystery snails and nerite.

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