No more fish are dieing :)

[AmandaB]

Ok so I finally have this new tank figured out.... I think my fish aren't dieing anymore and my tank is almost done with its cycle, but now I have brown allege growing. I talked to the someone at the fish store and he said I need to drain my tank and clean it, let it dry a day then put it all back. My problem is now that I have moved my fish into a container and started cleaning the tank they look really really bad.... no color to them at all, they are moving around a lil but not much. So my question is do I really have to let the tank and rocks dry for 24 hours? and if so is there a way to dry all of it faster? My husband told me to bake the rocks to dry them but they are colored and I'm afraid that could be a very bad idea..... What should I do?

 

[cnicole995]

I'm not 100% sure on this but I'm pretty sure scrubbing everything down and letting it dry out actually kills the good bacteria you just worked so hard to establish.
I read somewhere that to deal with this algae its best to do little bits at a time (water changes) and possibly switch to LED lighting if you don't already do so.
Again, I'm no expert but I definitely wouldn't let everything dry out and put the fish back in there because the cycle will start over and kill more fish...

 

[Fishdude3233]

Ya dont let anything dry out, just reduce the time the lights are on, and do water changes, can I see pics? It may be diatoms which are normal for new tanks, and will go away.

 

[twiddlemuffin]

Probably diatoms. They will go away when they're food source is gone.

 

[NYgiantsRP]

No need to dry everything out. Water changes, and less light usually help the most. You could also do a black out, just leave that lights off for a couple days. That way the algae dosent have any light to grow.

 

[enrgizerbunny]

+1 Don't let the tank dry out!

It's likely diatoms seeing as how you're "almost done with your cycle" (expect it to be slightly prolonged now that you've cleaned).

Also, letting the tank dry out for 24 hours will all but start your cycle over again, or at least prolong it. Yes, bacteria lives in the filter, but it also clings to the substrate and your decorations. By cleaning them and drying them out you are destroying the bacteria.

 

[gilpi]

Some algae is ok, if it bothers you scrub it off from the front glass. You can scrub it off plants or decorations, rocks etc. whatever you do, do not change your filter or over clean the filter, just a rinse will do The bacteria you have so long worked for in the cycling process lives in your filter.

 

[Mebbid]

Ok so I finally have this new tank figured out.... I think my fish aren't dieing anymore and my tank is almost done with its cycle, but now I have brown allege growing. I talked to the someone at the fish store and he said I need to drain my tank and clean it, let it dry a day then put it all back. My problem is now that I have moved my fish into a container and started cleaning the tank they look really really bad.... no color to them at all, they are moving around a lil but not much. So my question is do I really have to let the tank and rocks dry for 24 hours? and if so is there a way to dry all of it faster? My husband told me to bake the rocks to dry them but they are colored and I'm afraid that could be a very bad idea..... What should I do?

Good lord.... Where do the stores find these idiot employees.

The algae you have growing is definitely diatoms. It is a self limiting algae that nearly all new tanks have at the beginning until it consumes all the available silicates in the water. Get everything wet again or you will just set your cycle back. They are perfectly normal and healthy to have in a tank.

 

[Mifsud]

This is a very aggressive approach to fighting algae and will stress your fish, potentially harming them.

Aqueon manufactures an algae cleaning magnet for around $10 that can be used to mechanically scrub algae from the glass (or acrylic) of your aquarium. Additionally, you may want to consider vacuuming the gravel from time to time.

 

[abw0004]

This is a very aggressive approach to fighting algae and will stress your fish, potentially harming them.

Aqueon manufactures an algae cleaning magnet for around $10 that can be used to mechanically scrub algae from the glass (or acrylic) of your aquarium. Additionally, you may want to consider vacuuming the gravel from time to time.

I have the Aqueon cleaning magnet and it works great! BUT I dont use it as much anymore due to the snails doing a really good job.

I hate to hear that you drained the tank and let it dry out. If your fish die I would try to get a refund from the guy who told you to drain the tank. I don't know if he knew what he was saying!