Green water

[Beling]

I have a 10-gal outside for a little mosquito control, with just one platy, lots of plants, sponge filter for now. The water is always green. Would that be a problem for a dwarf gourami?

 

[jaylach]

Please keep in mind that I'm sort of guessing here but....

First the green water. Since you say that the tank is outside I must assume the water color is caused by suspended algae and normally not an issue for most fish. Actually I like some algae in my tank as it helps supply oxygen. Consider that algae supplies ~70% of the oxygen we breathe world wide.

My question here would be the tank being outside. Are you able to sustain a consistent water temperature? Is the tank protected from a bird looking for a quick fish fry?

 

[Back in the fold]

What Jay said about temperature consistency is the biggest thing . In the summer that small amount of water could get lethally hot if it’s in direct sunlight .

 

[Beling]

I'm in Hawaii, but about 3,000 ft up, so the temperature isn't extreme. I've used heaters in the past, for just a few months. Not much direct sunlight, maybe an hour or so in the afternoon, depending on the season, but I can see temperature might be more important than the green water. Thank you for the advice!

 

[Naughts]

Green water has low oxygen content. If you can't eradicate it you should provide extra aeration and stock very lightly. It may seem to be going well, then one day the whole tank will die.

 

[MaloK]

These need to be shaded nearly all the time. Only a pump that brings water from one inch of the bottom to one inch above and drop on the surface should clear your water.

You live in a beautiful place.

 

[Beling]

Any suggestions for a single fish that might do well with the platy? He (she) misses the guppy. But I had to remove her. Even over 4 months isolated from any males, she started dropping babies again. Don't want babies. I love gouramis but 10 gallons is pretty small. I've heard the dwarf if okay, though. (?) We don't get cool fish like sparkling gourami here, not since The Fish Shack closed down.

 

[MaloK]

Let the babies go, Feed a fixed amount no matter what happens, don't let water parameters shift.

Let nature balance the population. The hardest thing is not to feed more and more..