Sand Has Turned Green

[Vin]

Hi all.

I have sand on the bottom of the tank and the top coat of sand has turned green in colour. I guess its algae.

Any ideas how do I get rid of it.

Cheers In Advance

Vin

 

[Miss Wiggle]

is it like a filmy coating on top of the sand? if so then if you stir the sand a bit it should just float off and you can suck it up with a siphon.

 

[england]

shame, try turning the sand over like you would a garden

 

[athomson]

shame, try turning the sand over like you would a garden

I would reduce the amount of time your lights are on each day. I had this problem and reduced by one hour. The algae gradually went away (All but a small amount). It's OK to stir it up but I think it'll be back real soon if that's all you do to eliminate it.

It doesn't help to have high levels of nitrates either, I aim to keep mine below 40ppm. The first time I checked they were more than double that! Regular PWCs will reduce them, also don't overfeed and make sure you remove left over food. A lot of what goes into the tank will ultimately become nitrates, so feed as little as possible. Some plants go some way to reducing nitrates also. Personally I rate floating ones as the best since they block a little light out also. I use hornwart and starwort.

Hope this helps.

 

[Vin]

I hope these pic helps.

 

[Vin]

shame, try turning the sand over like you would a garden

I would reduce the amount of time your lights are on each day. I had this problem and reduced by one hour. The algae gradually went away (All but a small amount). It's OK to stir it up but I think it'll be back real soon if that's all you do to eliminate it.

It doesn't help to have high levels of nitrates either, I aim to keep mine below 40ppm. The first time I checked they were more than double that! Regular PWCs will reduce them, also don't overfeed and make sure you remove left over food. A lot of what goes into the tank will ultimately become nitrates, so feed as little as possible. Some plants go some way to reducing nitrates also. Personally I rate floating ones as the best since they block a little light out also. I use hornwart and starwort.

Hope this helps.

I put my light on at 3pm and goes off at 10pm.

My nitrate level is 20ppm.

Thanks for your help.

Vin

 

[Larissa]

Sometimes anaerobic patches develop in sand as it compacts. Gas can build up and the sand can turn black in areas. From the pics the sand looks more black than green but maybe thats just the photos. I would try stirinng the sand every so often to let the trapped gas escape and prevent these anaerobic spots developing.

 

[doresy]

hi, you should vac when doing water change as you would with gravel which would clear that. Also you should stir up the sand weekly to release gas pockets which form under the sand.

 

[Proud Texan]

Ya i would just vacuum it up and see what happens