Impossible Algae!

[spikecomix]

Hey everyone, I'm a noob to this forum and a noob to tropical fish keeping. I've been keeping coldwater fishes for awhile now and was leery of doing the jump and it seems justifiably so The problem is that since the first week I've had this tank it's been so horribly cloudy with what I can only assume is algae, and I have tried so many things to get rid of it, to no avail!! The algae doesn't grow on the walls (well, hardly), but it does grow on the heater, it's all in the water making it so cloudy I can hardly see to the other side (of my 10gal). It also grows on the leaves of the plants, making them look fuzzy on top. My remaining 7 tetras seem to be ok, they school and swim actively about.

The story:
- My tank is a simple 10gal. It has some kind of over-the-back filter that came with the tank.

- It has a came-with-the-tank flourescent light that I turn on when I leave (7am) and turn off when I go to bed (12ish?). The tank is in a corner that receives virtually no natural light.

- It has a heater and I keep the tank at around 26C (78F)

- It has a bed of black, coated-seeming gravel for about 1.5 inches deep.

- It has one large silk plant, another smaller plant that I transplanted from my betta tank where it was doing very well (and seems to be doing well in this one, too), and another small plant that has round leaves. I can't remember plant names for the life of me (sorry!).

- I ran the tank for about a week before I put fish in. I didn't do a fishless cycle and apparently that is bad. ) I started with a modest stock of 10 neon tetras and 3 platys. I helped these fish cycle using a product called nitrivic biostarter. The cloudy problem started RIGHT away (after the first week or two), but all of the fish survived the first few weeks. One or two tetras died, and so did two of the platys. Of course I was concerned about them, but I have never had such an algae problem so I wasn't sure what to do! I continued to do my weekly or bi-weekly water changes of about 25-30% (I do as much as possible to try and get rid of the darn algae!!) I siphon out the water making sure to get as much gunk out of the gravel as possible. I treat my water with aquarisol (dechlorinator) and I always make sure it's at the right temp. At this point, apart from the cloudiness, there was also a LOT of plant matter in the water.

After a few weeks of this cloudy water when I was reasonably assured that it could not be a cycling problem, I went to the LFS for advice. The LFS for me is a dedicated aquarium store, which is nice, but naturally the advice will vary from clerk to clerk The guy I spoke to that time recommended that I try to start over, and to get rid of the plant that was always in the water, so I did. I bagged my fishes, drained the whole tank, took out ALLLlll the rocks, scrubbed them clean, cleaned the whole tank, rubbed nitrivic into the gravel, at the advice of LFS guy, filled the tank back up with treated water, got the temp stable, acclimated the fishies and tried again.

The fish tank was finally clean for once, but as I cycled the thing again, once again the algae came back!! My last platy didn't survive this second cycling. A few more weeks elapse, and I go back to LFS to ask for more advice. This guy recommends that I fill the gaps in my filter with fluff and use aquaria-clear (product) to increase the size of the particulates so the filter catches them. This *did* help, but only to a point. It's less cloudy, but still horribly cloudy. And also now my tank is very very loud x_x

I'm about at my wits end, so I would appreciate any help that anyone can give!

 

[Steve C]

Have you tested the water with a good test kit ?

If so what are the levels ?

 

[Pixie25]

if your tank has no natural plants the aquarium light should be on for no longer than 8 hours a day. 12 hours for a planted tank.

 

[modernhamlet]

if your tank has no natural plants the aquarium light should be on for no longer than 8 hours a day. 12 hours for a planted tank.

Exactly. 17 hours of light per day is probably the cause of your algae problems. Put your lights on a timer (they're pretty cheap) for the time you'll be viewing them... say 4pm-midnight. Increasing the frequency of your water changes may help alleviate your current algae problems while the light reduction kicks in...

 

[rdd1952]

I agree with everything that has been said. "Green water" is a common problem in a new or cycling tank. It isn't necessarily a bad thing for the fish but just looks like crap. One other thing I will add is that the original stock of 10 neons and 3 platys is pretty heavy for a 10 gallon tank. That too probably contributed to your algae problem as your nitrates would have likely been high. Throw in possible overfeeding (a common problem for all of us) and you have even higher nitrates. High nitrates + high light = algae.

 

[spikecomix]

Thanks for the replies, I really appreciate the help!

Could anyone recommend a good testing kit? I'm very new to the whole 'testing' thing and it's very new to me so the more specific you could be the better 0_o I already have a PH-kit and my pH is within normal ranges.

I'll look into a timer for the light It is pretty hard for me to get back in time to turn it off.

You really think 10 tetras and 3 playts is 'overstocked'? For the tetras that are in there right now, its tons of space, and even with the platys there was more than enough space for everyone... This is the tank, if it matters...

Do you think I should take out all but the plastic plants?

Thanks again!

 

[modernhamlet]

Could anyone recommend a good testing kit? I'm very new to the whole 'testing' thing and it's very new to me so the more specific you could be the better 0_o I already have a PH-kit and my pH is within normal ranges.

Just get an Aquarium Pharmacueticals Master Test Kit. You can get them for like C$35 ($16US). It has ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, pH, and high range pH tests.

You really think 10 tetras and 3 playts is 'overstocked'? For the tetras that are in there right now, its tons of space, and even with the platys there was more than enough space for everyone...

It's not necessarily about the "space". It's about controlling water quality. You can't put too many fish into a 10g tank because it can get polluted very quickly. You might be ok, but don't add anything else. Personally, I'd add more plants (see below).

This is the tank, if it matters...

From the tank description: One 18 watt 12000K straight pin PC bulb

Now that you mention this, the lights are even more definitely your problem. This isn't even your standard low light aquarium fixture, which can cause algae in their own right. This is a power compact bulb, which is frankly going to make SOMETHING grow in your tank, even if you only have it on 8 hours a day.

Have you considered more live plants?

They'll also stablize your tank and keep the nitrates down.

 

[spikecomix]

The light *is* pretty bright, but I never really thought about it... Should I try to replace it with something more low-key? What application would that light be for, if not for general tank purposes?

I hadn't considered more live plants, but there's already a lot of plant in there. There's two live and one silk right now...

 

[modernhamlet]

12000K is even a bit high on the spectrum for aquarium plants. You usually see these in marine reef setups. Even if you were to replace it with a 6500K bulb, you'll still need to cut back on the hours and preferrably add more plants. 2 plants isn't really "a lot" is it? Do you know what kind of plants they are?