New Member, green water!

[Rodney]

Ok, i know im new here but the main reason i supscribed is i have green water

I just got the tank back from a friend and it was covered head to toe in alge, i cleaned it and it was all good for about a month.

-I had high PH once i first got the tank but thats pretty much perfect now.

-I bought some algi stuff that is suppost to get rid of it, all it did was kill one of my bala sharks.

My tank has more or less 12 hours of sunlight then 12 hours of darkness. Not on a timer but its around my sleeping habbits.
I havent did a 20% water change, i was planing on doing taht this weekend.

I have a 55 gallon tank with these fish!

2 pleco
1 Bala shark
1 silver dollar
2 smaller sucker fish!

I searched a little but not to hard. I can get pictures later. I just want to get this all figured out. With no dead fish!

 

[goldfishlover101]

If I were you I would limit the light to 8-10 hours per day because 12 hours per day might be the reason why you're getting algae. High nitrates will also cause algae so I would test and see what it is. Good luck.

 

[benni]

not only will lighting effect this but if you are using any RO water in your tank it will cause a floating algea bloom. I had this happen to me about a year ago when I first installed my RO system. Not sure if thats whats going on but it might be.

 

[mfdrookie516]

Do you have any plants in the tank?

 

[Rodney]

I havent been around aquariums long enough to know what RO means? I used straight tap water, added the "make safe for fish stuff" and let it sit for a few days before i got fish.


The people i got the tank from had the same exact thing happen, but they never cleaned it.
(kinda lost intrest in oscars, dont blame them)

I used all there old stuff(fake castle, fake rock, and bubbler), i scrubbed most all of it as best as i could. But there where spots i couldnt get to.

The only plant in the tank is fake, This all started to happen after i put a few algi pellets in the tank for the pleco, it got murky, and withing 3 days it was green.

ill go snap a picture of the tank. might have to be a cell picture thou...

 

[mfdrookie516]

well, if you dont have any plants, there is no reason to leave the light on for 12 hours... In my tanks without plants, I only turn mine on when i feed the fish or on the days i dont feed, just to look at them... Maybe an hour a day... your best bet to get rid of the algae is to completely remove any light source for a few days... some people wrap a blanket around the tank if its in a room that gets light as well...

 

[Rodney]

 

[Rodney]

With out feeding the fish, or with feeding the fish?

 

[mfdrookie516]

fish are fine with food every 2-3 days... id feed them, not overfeed, and then black it out for 3 days, then see how it looks... id also do a 50% water change as well before and after

 

[Rodney]

Ok, i can do that. Prolly not today because i have been doing car stuff so i dont want to mess with the water. So maybe tomarow ill be cleaner...

Then ill let it sit the weekend and monday ill do a 50% water change.

Use just plain tap water? And do i need ot put anything in... like the stuff you put in to start a tank?

 

[mfdrookie516]

make sure you use dechlorinator... prime or something of that sort is best, but just make sure you use something to remove the chlorine/chloramine or you will have dead fish

 

[Rodney]

I hope i have fish by the time i get tothis tomaro. sheesh. lost another bala shark tonight....

 

[MichaelsLilGray]

Sounds to me like you have a uncycled tank.. with high ammonia levels... the only other guess i would have as to why your fish died is you over treated the tank with the algaecide.(per the gf)

 

[Rodney]

So ima take out about 10 gallons, add new starter aquarium stuff then add fresh new water. Feed them and cover it till monday. Wish me luck...

o yea i can only cover the front and 2 sides, its too close to the wall i sure hope this works...

 

[dhemp34]

no you need to do about a 50-60% change IMO. 10 Gallons is not enough. I do 10 Gallon Mait on my 55 once a week in your case you may want to remove much more water in case you have over chemicalled(new word) your water.....also if you have excess growth on your deco rinse them real well in your old water..and like they stated dont turn your lights on.if in a few days you dont see a change go with a 10 gal change. I would do a 10 gal change at least every few days until the growth is under control...Just remember DO NOT Rinse your deco or filters in NEW water rather the old water. CLean them well though. I wouldnt add any fish..try water changes without chemicals for a while see your results. it may be a pain to get under control but once you get the tank enviroment back stablilized it'll be just maintaining then..good luck...PS...always wash your hands before going into your tank..

 

[Rodney]

ok, ill just wait till tomarow then. Im too pooped today. I may purchase a PH water tester as well because the water around here has high PH. Lol i dont remember this much work when i had jack dempseys.... sheesh!

 

[MichaelsLilGray]

Jacks like higher ph :*

 

[Rodney]

Jacks like higher ph :*

And they dont like green terrors!

 

[MichaelsLilGray]

amen =D

 

[Rodney]

So friday i did what everyone told me to do. I drained over half the water. Added clorine killer or watever it was called then added new water. Then added PH down because i know we have really high PH in the tap water. Put all new filters in. And its been covered since. Im going to peak on the fish tonight to make sure there still alive. But all in all im going to keep it covered till about tuesday. After i uncover them im going to take a water sample into the local pet store and get a PH test, and an ammonia test. If all tests out ok i will give it a week or so and see how the water looks. If all goes as planned ill buy a few more silver dollars and sharks.

Wish me luck....