Green Water

[squares67]

Hi, could anyone help me please, I received a tank for my birthday during August. I set the tank up left it for a week and then put 7 fish in. The following week I put 8 fish in. The following week the water was slightly green and cloudy, so I did a partial water change. I added the neutralising stuff to the water but it was still green the following day. Since then I've done another partial water change again water still greeen. I've bought stuff that the shop said would clump the algae together and get rid of it but no matter what I do the tank is so green you can't even see the back of the tank. I am at a real loss what to do and don't know what to do. The tank is 80 litres and now after a few deaths has 13 fish in it. Any one have any ideas please.
Thankyou in advance.

 

[OohFeeshy]

Yes. The tank isn't cycled. Read the article on it in the FAQ section.

 

[paulioo]

I'm currently fighting green water myself so i feel your pain.

One way that works for most people is to do a 3, 4 or even a 5 day blackout in extreme cases.

You need to do a few things before starting your black out though...

1. Do a 50% water change
2. If you dont have filter wool in your filter then add some.
3. Feed your fish, dont overfeed. Your fish will be fine for 3-5 days without food.
3. Cover the tank in as many blankets, bin liners, towels as possible and tape then to the tank, so that no light gets in at all. This is very important.
4. Turn the tank lights off and keep them off for 3 days if the green water isn't too bad, or up to 5 days if you cant see your fish!!
5. Leave the tank, do not peek into it whatsoever.

Once 3-5 days has passed remove the blankets, and feed your fish. You'll have crystal clear water.

But the problem will come back if you dont sort out whats causing it in the first place.

You'd really need to post all your tank stats before we could give anymore advice.

for example..

tank size and light spec
how long are your lights on
do you have live plants
whats your nitrate, ammonia, phosphate etc readings.

If your tank is still cycling then you may want to wait until the cycling is complete before trying the above method. If this is the case then just maintain your water changes every couple of days to keep ammonia levels down.

Water changes will not make green water go away. Only a blackout and then treating the cause seems to have the best chance of success.

Paul

 

[Cossack1977]

your joking me. you added how many fish then how many fish.

what!!!

r they still alive.

Pls tell me you did a fishless cycle before adding fish.

 

[spanishguy111]

your joking me. you added how many fish then how many fish.

what!!!

r they still alive.

Pls tell me you did a fishless cycle before adding fish.

[snapback]911743[/snapback]​

I'm pretty sure if he's adding 8 fish at a time he didnt do a fishless cycle either (unless those are itty bitty little 1 month old neons...)

 

[paulioo]

So i take it none of you's have ever made a mistake when you just started out in this hobby?

Most beginners make mistakes because the first place they visit is their local fish store. More often than not they give out bad advice such as...

"Fill the tank with water and wait for a week. Then you'll be ready to add your fish"

How is a beginner meant to know any different? Its only when things go wrong that they look for answers and the internet which then leads them to places like this. Where they can get the correct information.

So instead of jumping on every beginners back for making a mistake, why not give them the correct information in a nice way. Instead of scaring them away and making them frightened to ask anymore questions.

Just my 2pence worth.

Paul.