Ammonia sleuthing

[urthlvr]

I've been fighting a green tank and high ammonia for quite some time. Someone in another thread asked where the ammonia was coming from. I don't know. It is still off the chart.

75 gal freshwater
canister filter w/ uv (new)
new filter media (foam, bioballs)
reused the ceramic tubes from the old filter
has not had fish for almost a month
no live plants for a very long time
started using water from the pet store when I do water changes-2 months
about 5 gal of water changed every 3 days or so for the last couple of weeks
Add Stability and water conditioner with each change
when vacuuming gravel the water is very dark green

Why is the tank still green and why do I still have such high ammonia? There are no live fish, there should be no remains of dead fish, same for plants, no food being put in, tap water is no longer being used. Somewhere I read that salts could cause it, but I don't add stuff that isn't for fresh water tanks. Help!

 

[Fresh2o]

Are you running lights on this tank? If so, how long per day? At this point you really don't need any lighting. It's only helping the algae to grow.
What ammonia levels (ppm) are you seeing in your tank? Have you tested your tap water for ammonia?
Oh, just remembered you are using water from the LFS as source water. TBH, water changes with a low percentage (6%) might not make a big difference in trying to correct the issues at hand.



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[Caliban07]

I agree with fresh. All this tank is lacking is stability and balance. It sounds as though your substrate may have been a little dirtier than you thought.

If you believe the masses then green water, ammonia, light and dissolved organics go hand in hand but ammonia is the trigger.

You must have had an ammonia spike for some reason. This can be caused by many things. Vigorous cleaning, Moving plants around, disturbing the bacteria etc etc. You got green water. So you buy a new UV filter and you don't transfer enough media over so the bacteria are in lesser numbers which leads to more ammonia and more green water.

This same thing has just happened to me. I had a stable planted tank. But the flow wasn't enough so I bought a new canister filter. I didn't transfer any media over from the old one. After about a week I have green water for the first time ever. I have a UV HOB that would clear this up instantly but I'm waiting for my filter to recolonise to see if this cures the green water. This is why green water is common in new tanks, because there is no bio filter.

If I had your tank I would put the plants back in and just wait for your new filter to colonise fully. The UV will make short work of the green water. Then you can get back to enjoying keeping fish again.


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[urthlvr]

I kept the lights off for about 10 days, it was covered with a blanket for about 5. The uv filter (now around the 14 day mark) is making a difference in the green, I can now see into the tank about 4 inches. (Do you call that short work?)

I previously would have lights on for about 10 hrs. I've readjusted that to about 8.

I know it will take time for the biological media to grow. The problem started long before I switched filters. I've had the tank and the old canister for over a year (but I think the canister was used). It was suggested to get a uv filter, the small one was $30 less than a new canister with uv. I went new canister because the old one was a PiTA to get the top off, it was big and heavy.

I used to have a 29 gal with a biowheel that hung off the back. Never had cloudy water issues. Had to take it down due to new baby and not enough space.

When I set up the 75 gal, I reused the gravel and added some new. Tank was good for several months, fish happy, plants happy. Then I got the green. After many months of green, I totally emptied the tank, carefully washed all the gravel until the water ran clear and started over. Kept same media things were good, added 4 fish, no plants, and waited and probably a month out it started to get green again.

When I test for ammonia it is off the chart. I'm not speaking figuratively, the color is darker than the darkest color on the test chart.

NitrAtes and NitrItes measure 0, pH is 7, KH is 80, GH is 180.

 

[Caliban07]

You need to change more water then if the ammonia is that bad.

UV effectiveness depends on the severity of the green water, the rate the water is pulled through bulb, the strength of the bulb and leaving lights on or off.

Once the new filter colonises you should be alright.


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[Ingy]

The used gravel was undoubtedly the source of the ammonia initially. The ammonia and lights will result in a healthy albeit ugly green algae.
Suddenly removing the lights and adding a uv filter will kill algae and that will create ammonia again.
So basically everything is going as one would expect based on your actions.
Add plants to compete with the algae. They consume the same thing. I added a co2 system to lower pH(better for plants than the algae) and my algae issue was resolved. I also added daphnia as they eat green algae but are NOT compatible with the uv filter.


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