Cloudy Water - Algae

[waterdrop]

Well, we need to be careful about making blanket statements about water change percentages. If (for example) something has gone wrong and stats are showing ammonia or nitrite in significant quantities, then 50% water changes, even an hour apart, may indeed be called for as the effects of the poisons are far worse than the mild risks of larger water changes.

~~waterdrop~~

 

[leeh]

Hi leeh, forgot to say i do 50% weekly anyway. Also airpumps dont circulate the water around, they just break the surafce and creat agitation which alows gaseous exchange.

50% weekly wow .Surprised any fish survive in your tank.

 

[Miss Wiggle]

again, care to substantiate your claim

i do 50% or more weekly as well....... been keeping fish for 5 years now with reasonable sucess so i can't be going all that far wrong.

you know leeh were always willing to learn and to discuss these things here, if you have a different way of working things we'd love to hear about it. But if you keep popping up and making comments like that without giving any explanation or evidence to support your statements then you'll get people's back's up pretty quickly!

 

[leeh]

Hi there leeh, welcome to the forum

I don't mean this to be a baptism of fire but i'm a little confused by some of your statements, can you please elaborate on them for me, I'm always willing to learn if you have good evidence to back up what you've said, but I'm afraid some of the statements go against accepted wisdom.

I would never do a 50% water change that is just to much,

firstly why is a 50% water change too much? The bacteria that we grow to keep our filters and tanks healthy do not live free swimming, they live attached to the filter media so swapping water around doesn't harm the bacteria in any way, what it does is reduces the pollutants in the water. The only time you should be wary of large water changes is if you have adjusted the levels in your tank like the pH where changing a large amount of water can cause the levels to fluctuate which can be dangerous, although even with this there is debate about the dangers as the pH will fluctuate in the wild in some circumstances like when it rains.

I would have just a done a 25% change which should be done about every 4/5 weeks,

while the maintenance routine will vary from tank to tank as there are a lot of variables the ballpark figure is to change 30% of the water every week, a 25% change once a month is very little maintenance indeed and could lead to the build up of pollutants and nitrate in the water

And covering with a rug is not a good idea the tank needs to breath.

yes the tank does need to get oxygen into it, but putting a rug over it is not going to form an airtight seal, certainly no more airtight than a standard aquarium hood don't you think?!

No I wouldnt put a rug over my tank but that's my opinion. I never heard of this before.

As you have said your problems have only happened since the 50% water change, that is why this amount is to much.

What filter do you have?
What size is your tank?
Do you have plants?

 

[aaronnorth]

how come? Like said beofre, your bacteria live in your substrate, decor and filter. Most people whoo have planted tanks need to do this especially if you have heavy fertilising. It puts a cap on nutrients and 'resets' the water if you like. It also neautralises any ammonia which isnt always detectable. I wouldnt come on here and disagree like that. Put up a poll and see how many other people agree with you. It will be minute.

 

[Miss Wiggle]

As you have said your problems have only happened since the 50% water change, that is why this amount is to much.

oh come on! there's a million different variables which can affect a tank, particularly when it's been left alone for 2 weeks for a holiday.

i've done several 50% changes and more without any problems, byu your method of 'proof' that's as sold an argument as yours which leaves us at deadlock.... except for the fact that I have provided an explanation to support my statements and will happily provide some research to support it if you like. You've yet to offer any explanation.

 

[aaronnorth]

the 50% w/c was a good idea. The feeding blocks could of leached NH3 into the tank, they are well known for polluting the tank. this is a major trigger for algae - especially algae blooms. Take a look at the algae guide in my sig. Not one of them is caused by a 50% w/c. Neither is anything in a tank, unless like MW said earlier, it causes a large fluctaution in your water parametres. in which case you do less percentage more often.

 

[leeh]

As you have said your problems have only happened since the 50% water change, that is why this amount is to much.

oh come on! there's a million different variables which can affect a tank, particularly when it's been left alone for 2 weeks for a holiday.

i've done several 50% changes and more without any problems, byu your method of 'proof' that's as sold an argument as yours which leaves us at deadlock.... except for the fact that I have provided an explanation to support my statements and will happily provide some research to support it if you like. You've yet to offer any explanation.

Ok no probs,


What pumps, filtertation system are you running?

I feel if I offer advice with what I know etc I'm being attacked? for putting my point of view across

 

[Miss Wiggle]

aaronnorth, perhaps you can answer this for me, i'm not so hot on the planty side of life

i know unstable CO2 is one of the main triggers of algae, can unstable ferts also cause the problem i.e. just doing the ferts when you remember not having a set routine?

 

[aaronnorth]

point of view - you need to back your answers up. Anyone can say this is why it is to much.

Have you ever done a 50% w/c?

 

[Miss Wiggle]

I feel if I offer advice with what I know etc I'm being attacked? for putting my point of view across

leeh i'm sorry if you feel attacked, if you re-read my first post i said i didn't want to be harsh to you, just asked for some evidence to support the advice you were giving, since then you've posted 3 times more without offering any more of an explanation.

surely you can understand why that would annoy people, if you've genuinely got an explanation or any evidence to support what you are saying we'd be happy to hear it and discuss it in a civilised manner, if you just keep posting blanket statements without any more advice or explanation people will challenge them.

 

[leeh]

point of view - you need to back your answers up. Anyone can say this is why it is to much.

Have you ever done a 50% w/c?

Aaron you get books look on the internet you show me evidence of 50% weekly jesus christ,

What fish have you got in your tank, do they hover round the top gasping for air

 

[aaronnorth]

imbalanced may be the better word, you can miss a few doses, the plants will be ok, if you have nutrient substrate, then most of the pressure can be taken of the water column as there is still a way of sourcing nutrients. It is when you dose not enough that can also cause algae, this is linked to the green water.

 

[leeh]

I feel if I offer advice with what I know etc I'm being attacked? for putting my point of view across

leeh i'm sorry if you feel attacked, if you re-read my first post i said i didn't want to be harsh to you, just asked for some evidence to support the advice you were giving, since then you've posted 3 times more without offering any more of an explanation.

surely you can understand why that would annoy people, if you've genuinely got an explanation or any evidence to support what you are saying we'd be happy to hear it and discuss it in a civilised manner, if you just keep posting blanket statements without any more advice or explanation people will challenge them.

Im only trying to help with solutions Ive asked you several times what pumps, filteration system your using but getting no response

 

[aaronnorth]

here it is, i run the CO2 high, aboout 35ppm, 5ml TPN+ daily, 2.5wpg, 50% water change weekly.

endlers
RCS
Ottos

As you can see they are all well, and they are not the hardiest of fish. It is my 60l (in my sig) if you want to se the whole journal.