Can A High Ph Make My Water Green?

[koodava]

I have had my fish tank since January.
The water in the tank was crystal clear until July when my mother overfed my fish.
I have done a complete water change, new stones, etc.
And now the water is green. There is no algae on any ornaments.
It's the water. The water in my area has a high ph, and to get the ph down
will cost me alot to get it in order. Could a high ph react and change my water to a dirty green?
Or is it a bad case of algae?
Any info on this would help.

Thanks in advance.

 

[fatheadminnow]

I do not think the pH will have any effect with the color of the water.

It sounds as if you have an algae problem in the tank, or you have some other chemical in the tank that is dying the water green.

-FHM

 

[drobbyb]

Green water is free floating algae. It is caused by the presence of ammonia and sunlight hitting the tank. Even an undetectable ammonia spike can trigger green water (overfeeding as you mentioned would explain this). It isn't caused by high pH.


In order to clear it there are several opinions on how to do it. I can only speak of what I have experience with. My preferred method is performing a total blackout. What you do is perform an 80% waterchange to get rid of the bulk of the algae. After the waterchange you need to block out all light from entering the tank and leave the lights off for 3 days. Don't feed over the course of the blackout. After the 3 days have passed do another 80% waterchange to get rid of the now dead or dying algae.

I have had success using the method I have outlined. A uv sterilizer will clear the green water fast, but they can be expensive. Some LFS will rent you one so you don't have to buy one.

I have heard of people using live daphnia, but I haven't tried it so I can't comment on that method. I'm pretty sure OldMan47 has used this method so hopefully he will see this thread and can comment further.

 

[koodava]

Green water is free floating algae. It is caused by the presence of ammonia and sunlight hitting the tank. Even an undetectable ammonia spike can trigger green water (overfeeding as you mentioned would explain this). It isn't caused by high pH.


In order to clear it there are several opinions on how to do it. I can only speak of what I have experience with. My preferred method is performing a total blackout. What you do is perform an 80% waterchange to get rid of the bulk of the algae. After the waterchange you need to block out all light from entering the tank and leave the lights off for 3 days. Don't feed over the course of the blackout. After the 3 days have passed do another 80% waterchange to get rid of the now dead or dying algae.

I have had success using the method I have outlined. A uv sterilizer will clear the green water fast, but they can be expensive. Some LFS will rent you one so you don't have to buy one.

I have heard of people using live daphnia, but I haven't tried it so I can't comment on that method. I'm pretty sure OldMan47 has used this method so hopefully he will see this thread and can comment further.

thanks soo much. I am gonna try the blackout, I'll keep you all posted.

 

[DiscusKeeper403]

Did you change sponges in your filters when you did this complete water change? I think you should be knocking out a few big water changes. I guess you could try a blackout but after its done you will need to do another huge water change and during the process extra oxygen (via an air pump) will be needed. Some people just end up getting a UV sterilizer. It kills the stuff like nothing else.