Gross Green Water

[tamara]

WHat's amatter? i moved my tank way out of the sun, it doesn't get any sunlight now, i put the light on for only about 7-10 hours, and i thought maybe it was from to much food, so i only feed them everyother day a pinch or two of flakes and some shrimp pellets.

 

[hogan53]

WHat's amatter? i moved my tank way out of the sun, it doesn't get any sunlight now, i put the light on for only about 7-10 hours, and i thought maybe it was from to much food, so i only feed them everyother day a pinch or two of flakes and some shrimp pellets.

hello tamara

Unplanted aquarium need less light, I would advise you to reduce your lighting to 4 hours on, and then a lights off for 5 to 6 hours. then lights on in the evening till dark.
This will help reduce the algae problem.
hogan 53

 

[tamara]

alright, i will try that, is there anything else? because i've boughten so much stuff and everything!!!

 

[poopsydrew]

If you can afford it UV sterilizer will take care fo the problem for good.

Drew

 

[hogan53]

hello tamara again

Are you using a lot of aeration in your aquarium?
You maybe overstocked in your 20 gallon tank, i would remove some of them to the 10 gallon.
The rule of stocking is 1 inch per gallon for a new set-up, 1-2 inches in a mature aquarium.
Hope this helps.
hogan.

 

[ArauraDiscus]

The 1 inch per a gallon rule is oudated in all cases except for small skinny fish that don't grow more than 6 inches long. By the one inch rule that you are stating, we could have 1 75 inch fish in a 55 gallon tank. I wouldn't go by that rule anymore.

Stocking doesn't make algae bloom. High nitrates and phosphates do. Phosphate removers, plenty of water changes, and such will help it. And yes UV sterilizers will take care of the problem for good. Also they will destroy protozoans, bacteria, and most fungal spores which means that your tank will be healthier as well, but they can be very expensive.

 

[BigIan]

The 1 inch per a gallon rule is oudated in all cases except for small skinny fish that don't grow more than 6 inches long. By the one inch rule that you are stating, we could have 1 75 inch fish in a 55 gallon tank. I wouldn't go by that rule anymore.

Stocking doesn't make algae bloom. High nitrates and phosphates do. Phosphate removers, plenty of water changes, and such will help it. And yes UV sterilizers will take care of the problem for good. Also they will destroy protozoans, bacteria, and most fungal spores which means that your tank will be healthier as well, but they can be very expensive.

Acctualy stocking does have a large impact on algae and plant growth.
The nitrates and phosphates come from the food you feed your fish. And so stocking, less fish means you put less food in the tank and so less nitrates and less phosphate.


try doing a water test for nitrate and phosphate as well as ammonia and nitrite, and see where they are.

Also try dong more frequent water changes. as this will hopefully remove any sourse of food for the algae

 

[ArauraDiscus]

Doing water changes alone will not always help though. Keep in mind that many sources of water have themselves high phosphates and enough nitrates to support an algae bloom. But doing enough water changes will remove a good portion of the algae, extra nitrates, and anything else that may be benefiting the algae, so I reccomend a couple daily 25 percent water changes for about a week to help. Maybe twice a day for a week if you have the time.

 

[Christine1014]

With as many fish as you have in that tank, I agree with doing at least one, maybe two water changes a week. And really dig around well in the gravel with your vac; often times the source of high nitrates (in turn the source of an algae bloom) is dirty gravel.

 

[-germ-]

Would a complete black out for a few days do the trick?
don't shout at me if i'm wrong!!!

 

[hogan53]

The 1 inch per a gallon rule is oudated in all cases except for small skinny fish that don't grow more than 6 inches long. By the one inch rule that you are stating, we could have 1 75 inch fish in a 55 gallon tank. I wouldn't go by that rule anymore.

Stocking doesn't make algae bloom. High nitrates and phosphates do. Phosphate removers, plenty of water changes, and such will help it. And yes UV sterilizers will take care of the problem for good. Also they will destroy protozoans, bacteria, and most fungal spores which means that your tank will be healthier as well, but they can be very expensive.

 

[Dave Spencer]

Stocking doesn't make algae bloom. High nitrates and phosphates do. Phosphate removers, plenty of water changes, and such will help it. And yes UV sterilizers will take care of the problem for good. Also they will destroy protozoans, bacteria, and most fungal spores which means that your tank will be healthier as well, but they can be very expensive.

If nitrates and phosphates cause algae, how is a water change going to get rid of the algae bloom? Is tap water that pure?

How about using RO water then? Put a glass of RO water in direct sunlight for a week or two and see what happens.

A high fish load could result in greater O2 uptake from the water column, resulting in less O2 for the filter bacteria colony and a subsequent reduction in bacteria numbers. The fish load will be producing amounts of waste that the filter is no longer able to cope with completely. The excess Ammonia, along with direct sunlight are the two ways of triggering green water, either in isolation or together.

In the interim, a UV steriliser will do a great job, or you could try the method on APC that I linked you to on another thread. In the long term, you are going to need to ensure that your filter can keep on top of the load your fish are exerting on it.

Dave.

 

[hogan53]

ArauraDiscus

Did you not read my thread,
best read it again the 2in rule is a good guide for mature systems
i go by that rule, you could have much more inches per gallon but you need a efficent filter system and good husbandry to have a stable environment for the fish.
Also i was just commenting that the stocking level maybe a tad high so that Tamara can avoid
problems latter on.
hogan.

 

[hogan53]

I agree with everthing in dave spencers last post.
hogan.

 

[rdd1952]

As mentioned, a UV Sterilizer will cure the problems as it will kill the diatoms in the water thus removing the cause of the green water. Normally, green water will clear on it's own but as mentioned, you are so heavily stocked, that probably isn't going to happen. I have had green water issues in newly cycled tanks before and water hanges did absolutely nothing to get rid of it. The water would clear after the WC simply because I had replaced 50% of the green water with clear water but by the next day it would be worse than ever. Here is a thread I did 2 years ago showing the results of using a UV Sterilizer on my tank.

The 1 inch per a gallon rule is oudated in all cases except for small skinny fish that don't grow more than 6 inches long. By the one inch rule that you are stating, we could have 1 75 inch fish in a 55 gallon tank. I wouldn't go by that rule anymore.

1 inch per gallon isn't a rule. It's simply a guide. For beginners, it is a very good guide to help them keep their stocking levels at a manageble point until they get their tank up and running. Obviously, one large fish doesn't work but for normal community fish such as danios, tetras, corys, guppies, etc., the 1" per gallon guide will never steer you wrong.