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January 28th, 2009
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| | Fish Helper
| Algae in new tank? (newbie needing advice)
I set up a 10g tank with two (divided) bettas 6 days ago. I used TSS so added the fish immediately. I put in Prime and Vita-chem. I have 2 x 20watt cfl's, silk plants, rock decorations, and some live stringy moss ( like java moss). The water temp is 80, and I am using a Hagen Elite Hush 20 power filter.
I put the lights on for the whole day ( 12-14hrs) and turn them off at night (10hrs).
Everythng looked good until Monday(5 days later) started to get cloudy. I was under the impression that it was just normal bacteria bloom that would go away in a few days. But the water has looked worse each day and now has a green tinge to it. It looks fairly green in the tank and when I put it in a clear glass and hold it to the light it looks very very slightly green.
I did water testsand my readings are pH 8
Oxygen 8 nitrite 0.5 nitrate 20 ammonia 0
I haven't changed the water yet as advised not to for at least a week, but am planning on doing a first change tomorrow.
I have included some pictures, the one of the whole tank doesn't quite show the green very well, but it;s bad enough that I can;t see my fish unless they are right at the front.
Could this be green algae already? If so, isn' it really hard to get rid of now that it is here? Should I do a complete water change? Do I need different light bulbs to get rid of it? Any advice or suggestions anyone has would be much appreciated as I am so bummed that it looks so ugly now.
TIA
Kath | 
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January 28th, 2009
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| | Fish Master
| Hi Kath..is the tank near any sunlight? the water change should help that alot..id do at least a 50% change..and maybe run some carbon in your filter for a week and if you have carbon now, take it out and change it (just the carbon part only) | |
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January 28th, 2009
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| | Fish Master
| is it near a window? direct sunlight can cause LOTS of algae problems in tanks. i'd go ahead and do a water change (maybe about 50%) and see if that helps at all. oh snap, actually, how long has the TSS been in there? you're not supposed to change the water for at least a week and it looks like you aren't quite done with the cycle yet since your nitrites are still a bit high. snails would be great for the algae, but i'd wait on them until you can see more of what's going on in there.
lol, shawnie beat me to it! ninja'd! | |
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January 28th, 2009
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| | Fish Helper
| Thank you, I don't have any carbon but I will try and get hold of some do I just put it inside my filter? What does it do?
The tank is about 20ft away from a big lounge window, but the room doesn't seem like it gets a ton of light, but perhaps it's more than I thought.
I'll do a 50% change tomorrow - that will be exactly 1 week.
Is it okay to add snails with the carbon? Do Bettas eat snails?! | |
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January 28th, 2009
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| | Fish Master
| without sunlight, im wondering what you are feeding the boys? how much? 5 days is a fast amount of time without sunlight so maybe keeping the lights on for 8-10 hours instead of the 12 will help...and if you arent overfeeding, that might be the answer..doing the water change might be all thats needed but if not, yes just buy a carbon bag and put it right in your filter and then throw it out after a week or so... | |
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January 28th, 2009
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| | Fish Helper
| I have been giving them three hikari pellets twice a day and a couple of days this week I gave them some bloodworms. They eat everything immediately but once I did notice a bloodworm that seemed not to be eaten I once tried giving them the pea thing, but there were a few bits that difted to the bottom and I couldn't get them out. I think it wasn't long after that that the water turned cloudy....perhaps it was that?
I think i will keep the lights on for only 8 hours and see if that helps. I am home all day tomorrow so I can monitor just how much sunlight is coming through the window too.
Is 40watts too much for my tank?
Last edited by redgal; January 28th, 2009 at 09:34 PM.
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January 28th, 2009
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| | Fish Master
| hmm its probably the lighting then...once the water change is done, and cutting back the lights a bit, ill bet that will help...and yes take a peek during the day because it does look like sunlight or the hours of lights on could be the culprit..your boys still look cute trying to peek out lol... | |
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January 28th, 2009
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| | Fish Helper
| Okay thanks Shawnie! I'll try your suggestions and see how it goes...I'll probably be back to give you an update in a few days. Yes, my boys are adorable...they don't seem to mind the water...or me constanly pressingmy nose to the glass to see if I can see them, LOL! | |
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January 28th, 2009
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| | Fish Keeper
| If it's the water itself that is turning green, and not the glass, I would suggest not doing large water changes.
There is information in this thread regarding possible cures for green water, including some impressive before/after shots, but most algae guides/articles I've read suggest that frequent small water changes are more beneficial for this problem that large ones. | |
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January 28th, 2009
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| | Fish Master
| she needs the large water change from cycling with safestart...but the advice for just algae I would read mathas thread  | |
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January 29th, 2009
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| | Fish Helper
| Thanks everyone. I am going to do a 50% change today and then I will do smaller 10-15% chnages every day or every other day to see if that helps. TSS suggests a 50% water change at first too, then smaller ones.
No willow branches around us here right now as it is -20...otherwise i would try that for sure.
I am still going to try the carbon bag for a week and I am cutting the time my lights are on, Today shoud give me an indication of how much sunlight the tank is getting too.
On the link above it suggests using a "flocculant" - is this a water clarifier like AP Accu-Clear? What is the difference between using carbon and a water clarifier? Would using a water clarifier help?
I have some stringy moss ( like Java moss) would this consume the algae or should I look into getting more live plants?
UPDATE: I did a 50% water change about two hours ago. It looks a little better but still is VERY green. The water that I took out was thick green. This is so frustrating! I measured the exact distance from the window - it is 10ft. There does seem to be some light coming through so far but not a whole lot so it surprises me.I have nowhere else to put the tank so I will just have to leave the lights off a lot more, but I guess that would rule out keeping live plants too. I have blacked out the tank now to see if that helps. Should I try carbon AND clarifier?
What about the algae removing products?
This is so disappointing!  
Last edited by redgal; January 29th, 2009 at 01:46 PM.
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January 29th, 2009
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| | Fish Helper
| Okay I figured out what is causing it - mathas I am madly x-posting with the lighting forum sorry!
I have way too much light in the tank. 40w a 10g  . lol, total newbie!
So, I am going to reduce it.
In the meantime I need to get rid of the algae in there, so I am trying a blackout for 3-5 days to see if it helps and daily 20% water changes. Will this kill the algae completely, and now that I have found the cause and rectify the lighting, what are the chances of it returning? Would a complete water change and re-add TSS so starting from scratch be a better option?
PS my fish gobble each pellet immediately - no wastes so can I still feed them during the balckout?
Last edited by redgal; January 29th, 2009 at 05:23 PM.
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January 29th, 2009
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| | Fish Master
| a few water changes of 20-30% with the carbon bag for a week or so should do it..after 2 weeks, the carbon has to come out...you wont need more TSS if you dont mess with the filter...the water doesnt carry alot of bacteria in it as much as the filter media does..vacuum half the subtrate one week, then the other half the next....im not sure how the betta boys would like a black out ...lol...they are such personable fish and need to see humans to not get depressed...although you could cover the tank during the time the sun shines on it...but having 40w for a 10 gal tank is most deffinately your issue..I didnt read that you had that much wattage...im not sure how the bettas will do with algae removing products..they dont handle chemicals to well... | |
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February 1st, 2009
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| | Fish Helper
| Hey Shawnie/everyone,
I tried the blackout method but after threee days there is not much change in the water. My fish seem in good health though and the paramters are good.
In terms of the carbon, I have just relaized that my filter uses a carbon cartridge. I have read here on fishlore that carbon can leach phosphates into the water and feed algae. Perhpas my cartridge is making things worse? Can I just get a different cartridge for this filter ( if so, which one) or would I have to buy a completely new filter?
Thanks again,
Kath | |
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February 14th, 2009
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| | Fish Addict
| When you do a blackout it has to be for 5 days zero light no peeking no feeding 50% water change before and after, also add fiber fill to the the media chanber before to help filter out the aglea pods trow it away after the blackout and change media pads.This will kill the algea it will kill you not to look for 5days but when you uncover the tank the water will be clear | |
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February 14th, 2009
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| | Fish Addict
| ps Carbon will not get rid of green water. Only a 5day blackout or adding a UV Sterilizer will solve this problem | |
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February 14th, 2009
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| | Moderator
| Green unicellular algae will reproduce so fast that the water looks green... http://www.plantgeek.net/article_viewer.php?id=9 solving the lighting issue,doing a total black out for at least 3 or 4 days(don't feed,the fish will be fine I promise,don't let the tiniest bit of light in) and using polyester floss in your filter for a few days should solve your problem. When the floss gets green it needs to be changed. Do a large water change before so the water is good and fresh for fishies and do one after to remove dead algae. keep us posted 
Carol | |
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February 14th, 2009
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| | Fish Helper
| I had the same thing in my 55, blackout for 5 days, I added some airation with a stone, for added precaution. I was thinking the algae would use oxygen during the blackout. I cut my light output in half in my hood also. Here is a link to my thread Posible Algae Bloom ? | |
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February 14th, 2009
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| | Fish Addict
| Butterfly I try only 3 days and the algea always came back stronger each time 5 days is what I found does the trick Toxic just went thru it 6 days ago check out the pics on his thread. | |
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