green water...*SIGH*

B

breaker_1113

AC Members
Sep 13, 2002
103
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0
Coquitlam, BC, Canada
ok ive been having major problems with green water for about a year now. when i first got my tank the water was crystal clear and i noticed that my ph was low so i decided to add proper ph 7 the powder stuff. i think this was the biggest mistake every because a week after i added this i literally couldnt see like a foot into my tank. btw its a 45 gallon long.
i did many water changes and the green water would get better but then itl come back again.
i tried turning of my lights for a week or so and the green water didnt get worse but rite when i put it back on, it came back. i talked to the people at the LFS and they told me to put green X in my filter. that didnt work. then i bought accu clear( some liquid stuff) and put it in. to my surprise the water became crystal clear but once again came back in a week.
plz help me ive had this for about a year now and i cant stand green water.
sorry for the long post but plz help
ty
 
What is your water change regiment? Do you vacuum the gravel? Green water is from to many nutrients and to much light. It is generally an indication that your tank is overstocked and/or that you overfeed. Look here for more info under algae. I believe cyanobacteria. HTH.
 
I think Scott is on the right track. My guess is overfeeding, most people do, especially when fairly new to the hobby. Another thing to consider is weather or not the tank is getting direct sunlight. This can trigger an algea bloom.
The lights out method has worked for me in the past, but in my case I had to cover the sides of the tank with black paper to keep all ambient light out.
I had an outbreak of cynobacteria, (BGA) once and it was more like a bright green carpet all over the substrate and plants...not a bloom in the water.

Algea and bacteria are like any other living thing. Take away its food source and it goes away. Best of luck to you.
 
UV definately works wonders but IMHO it is better to figure out if there is a deeper issue and solve that instead of relying on the sterilizer. This way the water quality will remain high w/o using a "crutch".
 
ok thnx alot guys i feed my fish about 1-2 times a dayjust as muchas they can eat in a couple of seconds.
the fish are small sa/ca cichlid.
i clean my water about 50% every 2 weeks and clean my filter.
my tank is neer a window and i think some sunlight mite be going in.
ill try some of ur guys's suggestions and get back to you
thnx alot

one more thing my filter is an ehiem 2213
 
All of my tanks are directly across from windows and none of them have algae. Your problem is something else. When I had green water in my 90 it is directly across from french doors and everyone at the LFS said it was sun. It turns out it was the nine CA/SA cichlids they recommended for the tank, not to mention the three times a day I was feeding them (as recommended). The cichlid population took care of itself, unfortunately, and I started feeding once a day and now the tank is crystal clear, always. When I had green water I was changing thirty gallons every other day to try and stop it, and it didn't make a dent. Now in the cichlid forum you are talking about the ph dropping (sorry I just realised you were the same person before I posted there) to below 6! This is major bioacidification IMHO which is from over feeding and not cleaning properly.
 
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