Green Tint+ Brown Algae

[BaylorPerez]

Well, it appears as im getting my 55 tank fully setup, my 20G is now getting algae in the tank, yet i dont know why. my Levels are set at 0 with a ph of 7.6 in my 20, as my Gh is now 20 when it was set at 15-18
 
So my question is. What would be a good thing to help out with my tank. I was thinking a clown pleco or rubberlip(Rubbernose Pleco depending on which is better) to help and also to help out with the uneaten food that seems to be left behind by my 6 Albino Coradoras Catfish.
 
Though since the pleco would be adding more to the bio-load im willing to accept that it would do that.
 
As i am running a 60G internal filter in my 20 now. 
 
or is there a better way to get rid of the green tint + the Algae besides vaccuming my tank ( as i do every week, yet the algae still grows )

 

[Far_King]

These sites have useful info on algae.
 
http/www.tropicalfishsite.com/types-of-algae-growth-found-in-the-home-aquarium/
http/www.theplantedtank.co.uk/algae.htm
 
Is there much sunlight hitting the tank?  Lighter times of year may result in an increase in algae, perhaps reduce your lighting time to compensate or leave curtains drawn.

 

[Ninjouzata]

How long are you leaving your lights on? What type of lighting do you have?

 

[StevenF]

 
 
my Levels are set at 0 

What levels?  And how do you set them to zero?  In addition to light levels how often do you cycle water and how much.  Also please list everything you add to the water.  please provide as much detail as possible.

 

[BaylorPerez]

20 Gal Set
 
Added to water
1/4 Cap of Seacham Prime
1/4 Cap of Nite-Out ( Nitrite bacteria adder and Ammonia Bacteria Adder )
Omega one Fish Pellets ( sinking ) 1-2 Pinches
2 Algae wafers 
1 small Pinch of SInking Shrimp Pellets
Things in tank
4Ib Malaysian Driftwood
2 Plant Bulbs ( cannot say what plants they have Grown into as i dont know plants to well )
3 Potted Plants
 
Sand Substrate with 2 Ornaments 
1 Old Fashioned Pirate Steering whell
1 Red/Brown Rock Formation
 
Tank Inhabitants 
2 Long-Finned( BlackSkirt Tetras )
6 Albino Corydoras Catfish 4 Female( 2 Male )
2 Amano Shrimp ( dont know where they came from )
4-6 MTS
10+ Pond snails
 
30 or so Empty Snail shells  in the tank
 
Tank Parameters
Ph 7.6
Gh 18
Ammonia 0.0 PPm
Nitrite 0.0 PPM
Nitrate 40 PPM
 
Water Changes 30-40% every 2 weeks
Weekly Water vaccume on bottom of tank 10% water changed after cleaning substrate ( weekly added to my major Change  )
 
Lighting 8 - 10 Hrs
12 Hr Duration changed due to 2 of my plants needing Major Lighting ( done on the weekends only, weekdays are 8 - 10 Hr Shifts )
Tank does need to be cleaned as i am trying to fix the tint of the  Brown Algae "bloom"
 
Lighting type UltraSun 6500K Dual Fluorescent Lighting rods  at 24Inch per Rod, Set timer at 10Hrs Max weekdays, 12Hrs Max weekends for specific plants in 20G tank
 
As for the Uneaten food, its  mostly the Shrimp food from what i can see.
 
 
 
 
55Gal tank set 
 
Nitrite Spike 
 
Natural light for Cichlids/Common Pleco
 
Things Added to tank water
Seacham Prime ( 1 Cap ) 
Nite out( to help get rid of the Nitrite spike ) 1/2 Tsp, one in the morning, 1 at night for a total of 1 TSp
Algae Wafer ( 2 Added for the 5In Common pleco ) 
Cichlid Growth Flakes 1 Pinch for 5 Cichlid babys
 
Ornaments in tank 
7 Ib Malaysian Driftwood
4Ib Ph Stabilizing Rock ( Keeps water Stable as it releases Calcium into the water column )
1  1/2 Ib Cave System ( 4 Small rocks added to make a small cave for the Cichlids
1 TerraCottle Cave
 
Filter
80 Gallon Emperor Dual filter
55Gal Auto Heater
 
First Pleco died due to the High Nitrites, So Added a 2nd one a couple hours later after Adding 1/2 Tbsp of Nite-Out to help start getting rid of the High Nitrite along with a 60% Water Change, after cleaning out my Filter Cartridges in old tank water due to it being so cloudy.
 
So far my Nitrites have gone from 10PPM+ to 5PPm over the past 2 days. Nitrate has gone from 1.0 to 10PPM
 
Water Parameters
Ph 8.0
GH 20
Ammonia 0.0 PPm
Nitrite 5PPm
Nitrate 10PPm
Kgh 5
 
Just need some suggestions as to help with the Nitrite again. As i am worried that my fish are to Stressed as of right now 

 

[Munroco]

 
 
First Pleco died due to the High Nitrites, So Added a 2nd one a couple hours later after Adding 1/2 Tbsp of Nite-Ou
 
Seriously?

Just need some suggestions as to help with the Nitrite again. As i am worried that my fish are to Stressed as of right now 
 
I think people reading this may be getting stressed too. You need to have patience. Don't put fish in your tank until it is ready.

 

 

[BaylorPerez]

Thats the thing, the tank was set up for about 2 months. So i may have added to many fish at one time which caused it to crash ( maybe ) 
 
 
Now that the Nite-out has helped the new pleco has survived the past 2 days. The Cichlids are doing fine with their Catfish neighbor. 
 
As for my 20G i just dont know any other way to get rid of the green tint

 

[StevenF]

 
 
1/4 Cap of Nite-Out ( Nitrite bacteria adder and Ammonia Bacteria Adder )

There is no need to add bacteria on a weekly basis.  Bacteria, like algae are very hard to exterminate.

 
 
30 or so Empty Snail shells  in the tank

That is enough to probably last 30 to 60 years.

 
 
As for the Uneaten food, its  mostly the Shrimp food from what i can see.

You don't want to see any uneaten food.  uneaten food can act like fertilizer to algae.  You are probably overfeeding.  

 
Water Changes 30-40% every 2 weeks
Weekly Water vaccume on bottom of tank 10% water changed after cleaning substrate ( weekly added to my major Change  )

i generally do a 50% water change every week.  Once every two weeks may not be enough.
 
Is your GH parameter degrees or PPM?  if it is PPM you have soft water and might be running out of micro nutrients.  That can stall plant growth and possibly free up nutrients the algae can use.  If that is the case a trace fertilizer may be needed.  Also are you adding any fertilizer or salt added to the water?  

 

[BaylorPerez]

Since i have snails ( assassin snails ) and shrimp in my tank i dont add any ferts besides Aqueon Plant food once every 6 weeks.
 
And i put maybe 3-4 Pellets of shrimp food in my tank. Enough for 2 Big Amanos and the corydoras Catfish. I do believe its in PPm. As thats the only test ive ever done on it

 

[StevenF]

 
Since i have snails ( assassin snails ) and shrimp in my tank i dont add any ferts besides Aqueon Plant food once every 6 weeks.
 
And i put maybe 3-4 Pellets of shrimp food in my tank. Enough for 2 Big Amanos and the corydoras Catfish. I do believe its in PPm. As thats the only test ive ever done on it

20 ppm means you have very soft water so adding trace nutrients is necessary for good plant growth and fish health.  I have used Aqueon plant food before and It is lacking one key element. As a result plant growth can stall freeing up nutrients for the Algae.  Currently I am using SeaChem Flourish Comprehensive and the affect on plant growth was immediate and over time the plants consumed the excess nutrients and the algae growth stopped.  I have 5 Ammano Shrimp, 2 flower shrimp, and  4 nerite snails The change in fertilizer had no negative affect on my tank.  
 
Whats different Between SeaChem and Aqueon?  Copper.  Copper is necessary for plant growth. At the correct dose is not harmful to your animals.  I would advise switching to Seachem Flourish Comprehensive.  For soft water tanks Aqueon is a great algae fertilizer but not a great plant fertilizer.  

 

[BaylorPerez]

Copper no matter the levels will kill or poison Snails. I dont want to even tempt that with my Assassins 

 

[StevenF]

 
 
Copper no matter the levels will kill or poison Snails.

If that were true there would be no plants present in streams and lakes without copper.  Also steams and lakes with copper would not have snails.  However you can easily find plants and snails in the amazon river.  In fact you can find snails all over the place and water quality reports always list copper levels.  It is generally found on all streams and rivers on the planet.  In fact home plumbing is frequently made from copper pipe.  That alone does put some copper in most tanks in the world and and many have snails and plants.  
 
SeaChem Flourish is one of the most frequently recommended fertilizers on the web.  If it kills snails it would not be receiving as many recommendations.  Furthermore the bottle states "Flourish is safe for invertebrates such as shrimp."  I have been using it for about 2 years now and I have not lost any fish, Amano shrimp or Nerite snails.  I also have a pond snail infestation that has not been affected by Seachem.  For Invertebrates it is the dose and type of copper that maters.  SeaChem puts enough in the water to help the plants but not enough to hurt invertebrates..