Sands_88
Aquarium Advice Apprentice
On Thursday I bought a second hand tank with fish, substrate, plants and ornaments included.
I initially didn't clean anything, and chucked everything back as it was on the other lady's house.
Yesterday I began to clean (stupidly didn't check water parameters before) as there was absolutely huge amounts of algae - she told me hair algae but I think its actually black beard algae.
I cleaned:
rinsed out all the filter media and pipework which was blocked (in tank water don't worry!)
Scrubbed algae off the glass
Scrubbed as much algae as I could off ornaments
Removed as much of the algae from the plants
I haven't cleaned the sand as I thought it probably has a huge amount of BB in - and I wasn't really sure how to do it, vacuum obviously sucks it right up!
The tank was quite overstocked but today I sold 2 large clown loaches and a striped raphael catfish to my mum this morning so is now much much better (Aq advisor reckons about 60% stocked now)
Readings -
Temp 24 celsius
pH 8
Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 10
Phosphate >5
I haven't fed the fish since I got them, and obviously they had a 100% water change from moving. Where has all the phosphate come from!?
Is it in the plants or alage or sand or ornaments?! Would it have built up in the water from being overstocked in just 2 days?
I initially didn't clean anything, and chucked everything back as it was on the other lady's house.
Yesterday I began to clean (stupidly didn't check water parameters before) as there was absolutely huge amounts of algae - she told me hair algae but I think its actually black beard algae.
I cleaned:
rinsed out all the filter media and pipework which was blocked (in tank water don't worry!)
Scrubbed algae off the glass
Scrubbed as much algae as I could off ornaments
Removed as much of the algae from the plants
I haven't cleaned the sand as I thought it probably has a huge amount of BB in - and I wasn't really sure how to do it, vacuum obviously sucks it right up!
The tank was quite overstocked but today I sold 2 large clown loaches and a striped raphael catfish to my mum this morning so is now much much better (Aq advisor reckons about 60% stocked now)
Readings -
Temp 24 celsius
pH 8
Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 10
Phosphate >5
I haven't fed the fish since I got them, and obviously they had a 100% water change from moving. Where has all the phosphate come from!?
Is it in the plants or alage or sand or ornaments?! Would it have built up in the water from being overstocked in just 2 days?