Dark buildup on bottom of tank

[Fear Factory]

At the bottom of my tank is what appears to be very dark green fieces and algae some is very fine and some are small chunks, it is sprinkled over the tank bottom

Ive tried sucking it out with a syphon but can never get it all, I was wondering if there was another way I can get all of it out or some tips

Thanks

 

[rdd1952]

It sounds like blue green algae which is actually not algae at all but cyano bacteria. How long are you burning your lights each day? What kind of lights do you have? Do you have live plants? Is the tank positioned where it gets any natural sunlight? Too much lighting without live plants can lead to algae. Also, direct sunlight (even indirect sunlight sometimes) will definitely cause algae to flourish.

 

[Fear Factory]

I turn the light on at around 7:30 am and turn it off when it starts to get dark outside.
Im not sure what type of light it is all I know is its a long tube.
I have 1 live plant attached to a piece of driftwood.
The tank is in the corner of the room next to the window, when the tank lights are out and the blinds open the tank is only dimmly lit up.

 

[rdd1952]

You mught want to get a timer and put the lights on a timer so they come on and go off the same time every day. You can get some that are a little more complex so you can set the times different for different days. For instance, I have the lights on during the week from 6:00 to 9:00 AM and then from 5:00 to 10:00 PM. That way they are on when we are home. For Saturday and Sunday, I have them on a little longer since we are there during the day more. Sometimes it helps to split the on time into 2 sections per day. It doesn't hurt your plants but seems to help control the algae a little better.
It sounds like you have just the standard light that came with the tank so your lighting shouldn't be causing a problem unless the plant you have needs more wattage. Most people think 2 watts per gallon is average. Sometimes with the tubes, it's hard to get much more than 1 wpg though.

 

[Fear Factory]

Thanks for your help, I'll have the light on for a shorter time

Cheers

 

[Kirsty]

I have the same problem as you, i am buying a plug adapter which you can program so the light comes on and goes off when you want it to in case your not home. Hopefully cutting down my lighting will work, let me know how you get on.

 

[Bloo]

It made significant changes in terms of algae in my tank since I had it on a timer. I now usually start it at 7.30am till 12. Then lights off till 5pm (enough sunlight anyway!) and then on again till 10pm. Whereas in the past I had it running from 7am to 10pm with end result in loads of nasty algae of all sorts

 

[Y2J]

Can fish tell what time of the day it is outside the tank?

I have the light on 12 hrs roughly but different times. usually 10/12 am i turn it on and midnight/sometimes 1/2am i turn it off.

 

[rdd1952]

Can fish tell what time of the day it is outside the tank?

I have the light on 12 hrs roughly but different times. usually 10/12 am i turn it on and midnight/sometimes 1/2am i turn it off.

I don't know that they know what time it is but I think they do become accustomed to what time feeding time is. The only problem i could see with the times you burn your lights is that the tanks are basicall getting some type of light for about 18 to 19 hours a day. That is figuring it gets daylight at around 7 so the tank is in ambient daylight from 7 to 10 or 12 when you turn the lights on and then have tank light till 1 or 2. That means the tank is really only dark from 1 or 2 till 7. If you're not having any algae problems, I don't guess those hours will hurt the fish except that all fish need dark time and some fish don't feed until the lights go out so they may not be getting enough time to roam and play.