Green Water!

[Jazzyc]

I posted a week ago about Algea in my external filter pipes and everybody guessed there was no harm in it. Well...... now I am having a really bad battle with green water! its so bad im thinking about getting a UV Sterilizer! Not really sure if the two are related.

Is there any other way of getting rid of it apart from water changes???

 

[JackoUK]

I posted a week ago about Algea in my external filter pipes and everybody guessed there was no harm in it. Well...... now I am having a really bad battle with green water! its so bad im thinking about getting a UV Sterilizer! Not really sure if the two are related.

Is there any other way of getting rid of it apart from water changes???

I bought a UV sterilizer for the exact same purpose but have yet still to use it because after i'd put a carbon in my filter it seemed to clear the water without the need for the UV sterilizer. I'm not sure if it was coincidence but it's certainly gone.

 

[smmetz]

I had previously written up a small guide on green water. Here are my recommended steps:

1. Do not place the tank where direct sunlight will shine on it.

2. Do not over-feed your fish. They will be fine with 1-2 feedings per day. The food should be all gone in 2-3 minutes.

3. Do not put too many fish in your tank. If unsure, the rule of thumb for small freshwater fish is 1 inch of fish per gallon of water maximum.

4. Do not leave your tank light on too much. For best results, get a timer for $5, and set the light to come on for 4-5 hours in morning, off for at least a couple hours, and 4-5 hours on in the evening. Algae needs light for a few hours to start photosynthesis, while other plants in your tank start using light right away. This lighting schedule takes advantage of that.

5. Maintain your tank. I recommend taking out 15-20% of the water weekly, and adding new water. Vacuum your gravel while taking water out. Treat the new water so it does not contain chlorine.

6. Try adding live plants to your tank. They will compete with algae for nutrients, reducing the algae in the tank. However, you need LOTS of fast growing plants in the tank for this approach to work.

7. You can manually clean algae from the walls and surfaces in your tank. The glass walls should only need a wipe every couple weeks in a healthy tank. Some fish eat algae on surfaces, which could eliminate this task altogether. Beware, these fish will not help with green water. They may in fact contribute to that problem due to the waste the fish produce, which feeds algae.

8. If all above steps don’t clear your water within a couple weeks, you may consider buying a UV filter. This will kill all free floating bacteria and algae.

 

[celaeno]

i'd monitor your ph and get a uv sterilizer.

 

[Sysiphus]

I have used Diatom filters for a long time as part of a regular monthly maintenance program. It will clear out the worst green water in about an hour in a 90 gallon tank. Diatoms even filter ich and other parasites out of the water and it has no effect on water chemistry. You do have to treat the green water problem tho. Mine was a combo of a pretty new tank and not having my plant ferts correct *potasium was the key for me! Wow does a little of that stuff knock down the algae.

http/www.diatomfilters.com/

 

[Jazzyc]

I Think the main issue for me is the fact that mmy tank in my conservatory... thus getting a lot of sunlight! I have taken o covering the tank during the day with a sheet and I have done a 70% water change today as well as clean out my plants.. all the dead ones anyway!

Ill keep an eye on it... if i have no luck then im getting one of these.. http/cgi.ebay.co.uk/9-Watt-Fish-R-Fun-In...1QQcmdZViewItem

The shop is 5 mins from were I work... and thats dirt cheap!!!

 

[mygsp]

ok if you go to pet smart you can get some stuff to get all that crud out of there
your fish could die if you dont get it out

 

[mygsp]

I have used Diatom filters for a long time as part of a regular monthly maintenance program. It will clear out the worst green water in about an hour in a 90 gallon tank. Diatoms even filter ich and other parasites out of the water and it has no effect on water chemistry. You do have to treat the green water problem tho. Mine was a combo of a pretty new tank and not having my plant ferts correct *potasium was the key for me! Wow does a little of that stuff knock down the algae.

http/www.diatomfilters.com/

insted you should try algey eatters! they clean your tank and suck all the green out! that is also called algey also you could get snails and mabe they will eat them or just let them do there job

 

[stang1]

I have used Diatom filters for a long time as part of a regular monthly maintenance program. It will clear out the worst green water in about an hour in a 90 gallon tank. Diatoms even filter ich and other parasites out of the water and it has no effect on water chemistry. You do have to treat the green water problem tho. Mine was a combo of a pretty new tank and not having my plant ferts correct *potasium was the key for me! Wow does a little of that stuff knock down the algae.

http/www.diatomfilters.com/

insted you should try algey eatters! they clean your tank and suck all the green out! that is also called algey also you could get snails and mabe they will eat them or just let them do there job

Sorry but not the best bit of advice. Until the OP sorts out the current problem, adding another fish will probably do more harm than good.

 

[rdd1952]

Green water in itself isn't harmful to the fish. It's mainly just an inconvenience since you can't see your fish. It is quite common in new tanks and will eventually clear on it's own but it takes a while. And doing water changes won't help clear it at all. You still need to do them for normal maintenance but they don't help with the problem. The diatoms just reproduce and put you back to where you were.

UV Sterilizers will definitely get rid of the problem in a hurry. Here is a link to a thread I did about 2 years ago that hows how mine cleared. I had actually already used this same one on my 75 gallon tank and it cleared it in 2 days but I didn't think to take photos of it.

 

[Zeoth]

Adding Carbon (mentioned above) takes care of all that algae growth.-FACT
However, since ur tank is in a conservatory i doubt it will do much.-OPINION

 

[rdd1952]

Adding Carbon (mentioned above) takes care of all that algae growth.-FACT
However, since ur tank is in a conservatory i doubt it will do much.-OPINION

I may be wrong and if you have a site you can provide a link to that backs up your claim, please post it, but to the best of my knowledge, carbon won't do anything to remove algae. It wll only remove chemical from the water.

Jazzyc, you mentioned the dead plants, its quite common for non-aquatic plants to be sold for aquariums. While they are pretty and look good for a while, they can't live underwater. As a general rule, anything with varigated leaves is not suited for an aquarium. Under your circumstances, in a conservatory, I would think the UV Sterilizer would be the perfect solution. It should keep the diatoms killed off before they ever form. Just run it inline with an external filter.

 

[three-fingers]

Yeah the carbon doesn't remove the algae at all, but in some situations it can remove whatever is causing the algae.
I would say UV as well, these things have added benefits like killing parasites and the like when they are in the water, so if you buy a new fish with white spot your other fish are much much much less likely to get it.

 

[cleekdaFish]

Although many will argue with me that a UV sterilizer is not necessary, it sure does help a lot. After trying to combat my first outbreak of green water by myself with blackouts which killed half my plants, I invested in a cheap UV sterilizer and it has made the difference between having crystal clear water and pea soup. Even if you don't have green water, it cleans up the water so well the water is extremely clear.

 

[Zeoth]

Adding Carbon (mentioned above) takes care of all that algae growth.-FACT
However, since ur tank is in a conservatory i doubt it will do much.-OPINION

I may be wrong and if you have a site you can provide a link to that backs up your claim, please post it, but to the best of my knowledge, carbon won't do anything to remove algae. It wll only remove chemical from the water.

Jazzyc, you mentioned the dead plants, its quite common for non-aquatic plants to be sold for aquariums. While they are pretty and look good for a while, they can't live underwater. As a general rule, anything with varigated leaves is not suited for an aquarium. Under your circumstances, in a conservatory, I would think the UV Sterilizer would be the perfect solution. It should keep the diatoms killed off before they ever form. Just run it inline with an external filter.

I read it in a guide i got with my aquarium kit. bad advice?....