Algae Problem

I have some algae behind the silicone on my tank that I would like to get rid of. Any ideas on how to do this?



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Less light, more water changes and less food can help, I learned to live with and my Africans don't mind salad in their diet. On the other hand I wish it wasn't there sometimes.

Sorry miss read. Is it actually under the silicone? My best would be to scrape old silicone off and clean then re-apply.

Could try a bleach mix and carefully clean with a tooth brush and rinse, rinse, rinse.

Yep it's under the silicone.

GOOGLED the ? and got this,

I Can't Remove Algae From Silicone?

Algae and mold growth is a common problem in the bathroom. Silicone sealant around the bath and shower fixings is particularly susceptible to bacterial growth. Algae and mold require warm, damp conditions to grow and the bathroom provides an ideal climate. The silicone sealant will rot if the algae and mold growth is left untreated, which may cause water damage to the bathroom floor and walls. You can produce an inexpensive cleaning solution using household items to remove the algae.


Instructions
1)Mix 1/2 cup of white distilled vinegar to 1/2 cup of water and pour into an empty, clean spray bottle. The vinegar is a natural, acidic cleaner.

2)Spray the mixture on the algae on the silicone sealant and leave for 10 minutes to allow the vinegar solution to soak into the bacteria.

3)Mix 1/2 cup of baking soda with enough water to form a thick paste.

4)Dip the scrubbing brush into the baking soda paste and apply the paste to the algae on the silicone sealant.

5)Scrub the silicone until the algae is completely removed.

6)Wipe the silicone with a dry towel or absorbent cloth.

Read more: I Can't Remove Algae From Silicone | eHow.com [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Here is a better picture. Remeber it is behind the silicone.

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Sounds like everyone has pretty much done all of the work for you, and has given enough great info. What else do you want them to say, I will clean it for you?

Sounds like you want an easy fix, but thats not going to happen. I could ask one of my professors if that might help. But I am sure he will probably say what has already been said.

So what are you waiting for, get on it.

Have you even tried bleach? Vinegar? Baking soda?

Maybe you should just sell it and start over.

Dang, my first response to a post and I sound like a ...... But come on, at some point dont you need to stop relying on everyone else to do it for you.

I just bought the tank a couple day's ago. I'm trying to get it cleaned up. It's 210 gallons and is very heavy.

So clean it.

You have several options to try. But if you give up and want to sell, keep me in mind. Id gladly take that problem off your hands.

Looking at that silicone it's due to be scraped off and re-done. If it's peeling off in places and chits growing under it? Potential major leaking down the road,may not happen right away but eventually. Or maybe never. But 200 gallons is a lot of water to leak out.

re silicone. the fact that its behind means you dont have a seal and your tank could rupture. scrape off the old silicone and apply new. thats a serious problem

I just did the 165 I picked up, the scraping was a pain and the silicone a bit of a mess. Waiting for it to cure and will re-fill tomorrow and see if she leaks.

I’m a newbie so I wouldn’t be able to silicone this myself. Are there any fish shops that can do this for me?

Not that difficult. Here is a nice article for you: [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

DMD123 wrote:Not that difficult. Here is a nice article for you: [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Nice read, thank you for the link!

Same article I went to when I re-caulked my 135. Great find. I completely forgot where I saw it.

Or choice #2, pay someone to re-caulk your tank and then complain about how crappy of a job they did!

Lol crappy job.... yeah its not hard I have done it several times. Good luck.

If you do the tape thing like is shown in the link it actually does look good. If you try and wing it, free style with your finger only, you will be sad.

I'm sad because I never thought about tape, geez how simple an idea.

Um yeah.. Tape would have made it look nicer, day late dollar short on my silicone job Mine actually didn't come out to bad.

My tank has a black metal frame around the tank top and btm. I was thinking about running and attaching 2 corner vertical trim psc painted black from the btm to the top in front to hide the bead of silicone, I think it will look a bit better and hide the silicone in the front corners ta boot.