Great progress but need help

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I tried willow and it leached off worse than algea. Hope it works for you. Mine got very slimy and my plants died off. They got thin and turned to mush. Good luck
 
I'll go ahead and buy that filter then. U guys said that it was bad to leave it in the tank for too long because it kills the good bacteria too. Do the plants need tht bacteria? Because if fish are the concern I don't plan on adding them for quite a while so maybe I can have it running in there to really make my water crystal clear and then later on when all the plants have flourished add fish
 
running a UV filter isn't going to ruin anything, but there is good bacteria floating in the water along with the greenwater algae, you use it to kill the greenwater algae it will also kill the good bacteria. i've never read about a aquarium get ruined because of it but if there is no green water algae then it isn't worth wearing out the bulb or using electricity, for prevention against deceases and algae it isn't good (i.e. running 24/7/365). but for removing it, it is a good way(i.e. running it while there is a problem with the water). but imo if you get a UV filter that is the recommended size for your aquarium i doubt it will kill your plants.

sincerely,
nereksnad.
 
Bcuzimbatman said:
I'll go ahead and buy that filter then. U guys said that it was bad to leave it in the tank for too long because it kills the good bacteria too. Do the plants need tht bacteria? Because if fish are the concern I don't plan on adding them for quite a while so maybe I can have it running in there to really make my water crystal clear and then later on when all the plants have flourished add fish
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The good BB is mostly in the filter and then attached to substrate, DW, plants, etc. There is hardly any in the actually water as BB needs to attach and grow on something so no need to worry about it killing "good" bacteria. That is why if you have ich UV won't kill it in your tank as it can only "kill" what passes through the tube and is "exposed" to the UV light. It can in general keep bacteria down in a tank. I run mine 24/7 and yes it will help keep water crystaline because it keeps bacteria and free floating algae counts down. That is why UV's also clear tank water of those hated bacterial blooms. You can run it how you want it, it won't hurt anything in the tank. You do need to get the proper size UV for your tank size and know the slower water passes through it the better sterilization you get. UV's usually tell what is the highest water flow can pass through in order to sterilize or clarify properly.
You also have to replace bulbs yearly and periodically clean the clear inner tube so UV light isn't obstructed by buildup.
 
The one you posted a link to is too strong isn't it? It's rated for 50 gal tanks and I only have a 10
 
Rivercats said:
Someone just recently just posted about getting one of these and having good luck clearing their green water... Green Killing Machine Internal UV Sterilizer with Power Head at PETCO I've never used that one before. I have an Advantage 2000 hooked into one of my canister lines that I run.
Click to expand...

This uv sterilizer works great!! I bought it when I had a "pea soup" out break. Cleared it up no problem within a week. Very happy with the results. Now I use the power head above my co2 diffuser to distribute the co2 even better throughout my tank.
 
Weirdly. The water just cleared up. Without adding or taking away anything
 
Even tho the water is clear new weird things are happening. Firstly the top of the soil has gotten really brown and ugly, there are bubbles coming up from out of the soil as well. The plants seem to be doing fine except for one crypt that I have in the back right. It looks like its dying and idk why. I added a piece of one of those moss balls and it seems to be what cleared my water right up. Also there seems to be algae growing on the floor now. Please help!
 
Yeah I cut it down to 2 bulbs. Could that be what is causing my crypt to melt?
 
The crypt prefers dimmer light. I'd be just fine under one lamp. You may want to remove all of the dying leaves and stems. The crypt should grow back quickly afterwards.

It could be that when the algae died it sank to the gravel and is decomposing. Best to siphon it out and rinse off the filter pads in your filter with tank water. If enough algae dies it can pollute the system some.
 
Yea but I'm afraid that one bulb won't be enough for my DHG or telanthera
 
Bcuzimbatman said:
Yea but I'm afraid that one bulb won't be enough for my DHG or telanthera
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Oh, I didn't mean that you should only run one bulb. I just meant that your crypt would be fine even if it was under just one. Definitely run both. I meant that it melted because of something other than light. Crypts are so prone to melting. I can't explain why but I've had mine for about 10 years and treated it roughly sometimes and it's never melted on me yet. I kinda feel like I've missed out on part of the hobby in a funny way.

Have you tested your water since the algae died? I'm interested to see if anything may have spiked or not.
 
Bcuzimbatman said:
Even tho the water is clear new weird things are happening. Firstly the top of the soil has gotten really brown and ugly, there are bubbles coming up from out of the soil as well. The plants seem to be doing fine except for one crypt that I have in the back right. It looks like its dying and idk why. I added a piece of one of those moss balls and it seems to be what cleared my water right up. Also there seems to be algae growing on the floor now. Please help!
Click to expand...

Okay on a dirted tank for the first 4-6 weeks you will have alot of gas forming due to the organics in the soil breaking down. This is normal and what you have to do is about 3-4 daily take something like a BBQ fork with long thin prongs and poke all around the tank, down into the soil. This will release the gas buildup. With time this will stop, you will occassionally have a small release of gas bubbles but nothing you have to worry about.

Next you said the the soil has gotten brown and ugly... you did cap the soil correct? Dirt tanks need a cap of sand, gravel, or commercial substrate. You shouldn't be able to see soil.

I can't address the algae on the substrate until I know what your top substrate is.
 
I'm currently using a regular aquarium sand substrate for it and it used to be really nice and black and it has turned completely brown
 
Not sure what diatoms are. Tank is brand new tho. I just filled it about a month ago cuz I was mineralizing the soil for it
 
You will hear many people refer to them as brown algae and are common in new setups. They can be yellowish brown to brown. They are caused mostly from excess silicates in the water and will eventually go away on their own. In a non planted tank you can use phosphate remover as it removes silicates as well. In a planted tank nerite snails IMO are the best way to remove it, plus they will eat other algaes, even green spot algae which no other algae eater can remove. Oto cats and bristlenose pleco's also work. Plus don't worry about population explosion with the nerite snails as they can't breed in freshwater.
 
Just came back after a while of not being able to see my tank. Algae has over run the floor and walls of the aquarium. It's like a cobweb on my DHG. And there are mosquito larvae in the water now. My water is not yet safe for fish. Will the little bloodsuckers survive?
 
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