#1   Report Post  
Old 20-04-2003, 07:21 AM
Doug Sheely
 
Posts: n/a
Default algae bloom

I need some advice please. My recently converted fish only 55 gallon to a
planted tank has a severe algae problem. When I converted to a planted tank
I increased my lighting to a 110 watt power compact strip light on for about
10-12 hours a day. After converting a month ago I had some algae growth but
it wasn't too bad and I was able to control it by scraping the sides and 25
% weekly water changes. Today the tank is totally green with algae that
appears to be in the water. My plants are doing OK. Here are my water
readings as of today:
PH 7.8
nitrate 20ppm
ammonia 0
nitrite .10 ppm
KH 322.2 ppm
GH 35.8 ppm
co2 injection 18 bubbles per minute from bottle into co2 reactor.
hob canister filter with micron filter installed.
Fish Load :
4 med angels
1 rainbow shark
2 black skirt tetras
3 bala sharks
2 pearl gouramis
1 silver tip shark
1 pleco
2 pictus cats
2 big cats ???
1 clown loach
substrate small gravel
Sorry for such a long post but I would appreciate any comments or
suggestions.


  #2   Report Post  
Old 20-04-2003, 07:21 AM
Dustin
 
Posts: n/a
Default algae bloom

wow well if you didnt have a typo
and your ph is 7.8
and your kh is 322.2
Your Co2 is 154.1 ppm
which should kill your fish.

As far as the algae in teh water, its called green water.

Thats about all I can help ya with - I know the other ppl in the group know
alot about it.

Dustin


"Doug Sheely" wrote in message
...
I need some advice please. My recently converted fish only 55 gallon to a
planted tank has a severe algae problem. When I converted to a planted

tank
I increased my lighting to a 110 watt power compact strip light on for

about
10-12 hours a day. After converting a month ago I had some algae growth

but
it wasn't too bad and I was able to control it by scraping the sides and

25
% weekly water changes. Today the tank is totally green with algae that
appears to be in the water. My plants are doing OK. Here are my water
readings as of today:
PH 7.8
nitrate 20ppm
ammonia 0
nitrite .10 ppm
KH 322.2 ppm
GH 35.8 ppm
co2 injection 18 bubbles per minute from bottle into co2 reactor.
hob canister filter with micron filter installed.
Fish Load :
4 med angels
1 rainbow shark
2 black skirt tetras
3 bala sharks
2 pearl gouramis
1 silver tip shark
1 pleco
2 pictus cats
2 big cats ???
1 clown loach
substrate small gravel
Sorry for such a long post but I would appreciate any comments or
suggestions.




  #3   Report Post  
Old 20-04-2003, 07:21 AM
Doug Sheely
 
Posts: n/a
Default algae bloom

kh in PPM divided by 17.86 + dkh
322.2/ 17.86 = 18.4dkh
7.8ph 18 dkh = aprox 8 co2 ppm
I just completed a 25 % water change and increased the co2 bubble rate to 30
bpm

"Dustin" wrote in message
...
wow well if you didnt have a typo
and your ph is 7.8
and your kh is 322.2
Your Co2 is 154.1 ppm
which should kill your fish.

As far as the algae in teh water, its called green water.

Thats about all I can help ya with - I know the other ppl in the group

know
alot about it.

Dustin


"Doug Sheely" wrote in message
...
I need some advice please. My recently converted fish only 55 gallon to

a
planted tank has a severe algae problem. When I converted to a planted

tank
I increased my lighting to a 110 watt power compact strip light on for

about
10-12 hours a day. After converting a month ago I had some algae growth

but
it wasn't too bad and I was able to control it by scraping the sides and

25
% weekly water changes. Today the tank is totally green with algae that
appears to be in the water. My plants are doing OK. Here are my water
readings as of today:
PH 7.8
nitrate 20ppm
ammonia 0
nitrite .10 ppm
KH 322.2 ppm
GH 35.8 ppm
co2 injection 18 bubbles per minute from bottle into co2 reactor.
hob canister filter with micron filter installed.
Fish Load :
4 med angels
1 rainbow shark
2 black skirt tetras
3 bala sharks
2 pearl gouramis
1 silver tip shark
1 pleco
2 pictus cats
2 big cats ???
1 clown loach
substrate small gravel
Sorry for such a long post but I would appreciate any comments or
suggestions.






  #4   Report Post  
Old 20-04-2003, 07:21 AM
Cannibul
 
Posts: n/a
Default algae bloom

On Mon, 3 Feb 2003 18:15:52 -0500, "Doug Sheely"
wrote:

I need some advice please. My recently converted fish only 55 gallon to a
planted tank has a severe algae problem. When I converted to a planted tank
I increased my lighting to a 110 watt power compact strip light on for about
10-12 hours a day. After converting a month ago I had some algae growth but
it wasn't too bad and I was able to control it by scraping the sides and 25
% weekly water changes. Today the tank is totally green with algae that
appears to be in the water. My plants are doing OK. Here are my water
readings as of today:
PH 7.8
nitrate 20ppm
ammonia 0
nitrite .10 ppm
KH 322.2 ppm


I hope this is a typo as it makes your hardness 18.5 dh. That means
you with that pH you don't have hardly any CO2 in the water. Also
your nitrates are rather high. Do you know what your PO4 level is?
What fertilizers are you dosing? If you have a micron filter going
you should not have green water.

GH 35.8 ppm
co2 injection 18 bubbles per minute from bottle into co2 reactor.
hob canister filter with micron filter installed.
Fish Load :
4 med angels
1 rainbow shark
2 black skirt tetras
3 bala sharks
2 pearl gouramis
1 silver tip shark
1 pleco
2 pictus cats
2 big cats ???
1 clown loach
substrate small gravel
Sorry for such a long post but I would appreciate any comments or
suggestions.


  #5   Report Post  
Old 20-04-2003, 07:21 AM
Doug Sheely
 
Posts: n/a
Default algae bloom

I am not sure what my po4 level. no test kit available at this time for po4
and no I do not dose with any fertilizers. I did increase the bubble rate
tonight and I will check co2 level tomorrow.
"Cannibul" wrote in message
...
On Mon, 3 Feb 2003 18:15:52 -0500, "Doug Sheely"
wrote:

I need some advice please. My recently converted fish only 55 gallon to a
planted tank has a severe algae problem. When I converted to a planted

tank
I increased my lighting to a 110 watt power compact strip light on for

about
10-12 hours a day. After converting a month ago I had some algae growth

but
it wasn't too bad and I was able to control it by scraping the sides and

25
% weekly water changes. Today the tank is totally green with algae that
appears to be in the water. My plants are doing OK. Here are my water
readings as of today:
PH 7.8
nitrate 20ppm
ammonia 0
nitrite .10 ppm
KH 322.2 ppm


I hope this is a typo as it makes your hardness 18.5 dh. That means
you with that pH you don't have hardly any CO2 in the water. Also
your nitrates are rather high. Do you know what your PO4 level is?
What fertilizers are you dosing? If you have a micron filter going
you should not have green water.

GH 35.8 ppm
co2 injection 18 bubbles per minute from bottle into co2 reactor.
hob canister filter with micron filter installed.
Fish Load :
4 med angels
1 rainbow shark
2 black skirt tetras
3 bala sharks
2 pearl gouramis
1 silver tip shark
1 pleco
2 pictus cats
2 big cats ???
1 clown loach
substrate small gravel
Sorry for such a long post but I would appreciate any comments or
suggestions.






  #6   Report Post  
Old 20-04-2003, 07:21 AM
Iain Miller
 
Posts: n/a
Default algae bloom


"Doug Sheely" wrote in message
...
I need some advice please. My recently converted fish only 55 gallon to a
planted tank has a severe algae problem. When I converted to a planted

tank
I increased my lighting to a 110 watt power compact strip light on for

about
10-12 hours a day. After converting a month ago I had some algae growth

but
it wasn't too bad and I was able to control it by scraping the sides and

25
% weekly water changes. Today the tank is totally green with algae that
appears to be in the water. My plants are doing OK. Here are my water
readings as of today:


The general wisdom seems to be that it will clear in time - it might take
several weeks. Doing big water changes only seems to exacerbate the problem
so although you must still do them, keep them at the 10-15% level. Keep the
nitrates & phosphates down - don't overfeed. Get some fast growing plants in
there.

Things that will get rid of it quickly

a) A UV sterilizer - expensive but permanent cure - also will kill parasites
etc - you'll never get Ich with one of these on your tank!

b) Black the tank out completely for 3-4 days but obviously this won't do
your plants too much good and it may come back.

c) There is some stuff you can buy that will clear it (by making the tiny
bits stick together into bigger bits that your filters can catch) - again it
may come back.

Otherwise keep persevering & looking after the tank & it should eventually
clear itself.

HTH

I



  #7   Report Post  
Old 20-04-2003, 07:22 AM
Jody
 
Posts: n/a
Default algae bloom

Your nitrates are a bit high, and probably phosphates too if you could
measure. You seem to have some bigger fish that could create a large
bioload on your tank. Make sure you are not feeding too much; once a day is
enough, and only as much as they can eat in five minutes. Actually, you
should get rid of some of the big guys, especially any big plecos.

For a 55g, I would think you need about a bubble of CO2 per second. Look
for pearling on your plants; if it's not there you are probably not
injecting (or dissolving) enough CO2. You also need to make sure you have a
few fast-growing plants to help absorb the nutrients. The Cabomba is good,
but you need others.

Also, you might want to put your lights on a timer. You said 10-12 hours,
and that's a 20% difference. Since you are not sure, could it ever be more
than 12? A timer will cut out the guess work; set it for 11 hours and
monitor the results.

Jody

"Doug Sheely" wrote in message
...
I need some advice please. My recently converted fish only 55 gallon to a
planted tank has a severe algae problem. When I converted to a planted

tank
I increased my lighting to a 110 watt power compact strip light on for

about
10-12 hours a day. After converting a month ago I had some algae growth

but
it wasn't too bad and I was able to control it by scraping the sides and

25
% weekly water changes. Today the tank is totally green with algae that
appears to be in the water. My plants are doing OK. Here are my water
readings as of today:
PH 7.8
nitrate 20ppm
ammonia 0
nitrite .10 ppm
KH 322.2 ppm
GH 35.8 ppm
co2 injection 18 bubbles per minute from bottle into co2 reactor.
hob canister filter with micron filter installed.
Fish Load :
4 med angels
1 rainbow shark
2 black skirt tetras
3 bala sharks
2 pearl gouramis
1 silver tip shark
1 pleco
2 pictus cats
2 big cats ???
1 clown loach
substrate small gravel
Sorry for such a long post but I would appreciate any comments or
suggestions.





  #8   Report Post  
Old 20-04-2003, 07:22 AM
Doug Sheely
 
Posts: n/a
Default algae bloom

Thanks for your reply Jody. I have increased my bubble rate to 38 per
minute. As far as the pearling goes it would be nice to just see my
plants. I am still trying to locate a phospjhate test but you are probably
correcrt that they are high. The thing about the fish load is this was an
established tank and I have not added any fish for at least a year. I will
however be adding a timer and cut back the light to 11 hours a day.

"Jody" wrote in message
...
Your nitrates are a bit high, and probably phosphates too if you could
measure. You seem to have some bigger fish that could create a large
bioload on your tank. Make sure you are not feeding too much; once a day

is
enough, and only as much as they can eat in five minutes. Actually, you
should get rid of some of the big guys, especially any big plecos.

For a 55g, I would think you need about a bubble of CO2 per second. Look
for pearling on your plants; if it's not there you are probably not
injecting (or dissolving) enough CO2. You also need to make sure you have

a
few fast-growing plants to help absorb the nutrients. The Cabomba is

good,
but you need others.

Also, you might want to put your lights on a timer. You said 10-12 hours,
and that's a 20% difference. Since you are not sure, could it ever be

more
than 12? A timer will cut out the guess work; set it for 11 hours and
monitor the results.

Jody

"Doug Sheely" wrote in message
...
I need some advice please. My recently converted fish only 55 gallon to

a
planted tank has a severe algae problem. When I converted to a planted

tank
I increased my lighting to a 110 watt power compact strip light on for

about
10-12 hours a day. After converting a month ago I had some algae growth

but
it wasn't too bad and I was able to control it by scraping the sides and

25
% weekly water changes. Today the tank is totally green with algae that
appears to be in the water. My plants are doing OK. Here are my water
readings as of today:
PH 7.8
nitrate 20ppm
ammonia 0
nitrite .10 ppm
KH 322.2 ppm
GH 35.8 ppm
co2 injection 18 bubbles per minute from bottle into co2 reactor.
hob canister filter with micron filter installed.
Fish Load :
4 med angels
1 rainbow shark
2 black skirt tetras
3 bala sharks
2 pearl gouramis
1 silver tip shark
1 pleco
2 pictus cats
2 big cats ???
1 clown loach
substrate small gravel
Sorry for such a long post but I would appreciate any comments or
suggestions.







  #9   Report Post  
Old 20-04-2003, 07:22 AM
Doug Sheely
 
Posts: n/a
Default algae bloom

Iain,
What are the pros and cons of a UV sterilizer? Will it inhibit plant growth?
I do not want to add any chemicals to the water as I believe that would just
throw the balance off. Is there a test for phosphates? I have not seen one
at LFS. I will look again tonight.
"Iain Miller" wrote in message
...

"Doug Sheely" wrote in message
...
I need some advice please. My recently converted fish only 55 gallon to

a
planted tank has a severe algae problem. When I converted to a planted

tank
I increased my lighting to a 110 watt power compact strip light on for

about
10-12 hours a day. After converting a month ago I had some algae growth

but
it wasn't too bad and I was able to control it by scraping the sides and

25
% weekly water changes. Today the tank is totally green with algae that
appears to be in the water. My plants are doing OK. Here are my water
readings as of today:


The general wisdom seems to be that it will clear in time - it might take
several weeks. Doing big water changes only seems to exacerbate the

problem
so although you must still do them, keep them at the 10-15% level. Keep

the
nitrates & phosphates down - don't overfeed. Get some fast growing plants

in
there.

Things that will get rid of it quickly

a) A UV sterilizer - expensive but permanent cure - also will kill

parasites
etc - you'll never get Ich with one of these on your tank!

b) Black the tank out completely for 3-4 days but obviously this won't do
your plants too much good and it may come back.

c) There is some stuff you can buy that will clear it (by making the tiny
bits stick together into bigger bits that your filters can catch) - again

it
may come back.

Otherwise keep persevering & looking after the tank & it should eventually
clear itself.

HTH

I





  #10   Report Post  
Old 20-04-2003, 07:22 AM
Doug Sheely
 
Posts: n/a
Default algae bloom

LeighMo,
I currently am running a Magnum 250 cannister filter with a micron cartridge
installed. I have several species of plants :
purple cabomba (sp)
amazon sword
micro sword
red ludwig (sp)
giant hair grass
and a couple other taller plants to total about 20 bunches in tank.
I have susprected that my fish load is a little high but I have had most of
theese fish for a couple of years and am reluctant to part with them. I will
check the nitritre levels again tonight. thanks for your input!
"LeighMo" wrote in message
...
nitrate 20ppm
ammonia 0
nitrite .10 ppm


What kind of filtration do you have? Nitrite should not be measurable in

an
established tank.

Your tank may be overstocked. Some of the fish you have can get quite

large --
too big for a 55 gallon tank, in fact. They may have been fine when you

set up
the tank, but as they grow, it becomes harder and harder to maintain water
quality.

And you don't say what kind of plants you have. Your tank should be

heavily
planted, with a lot of fast-growing stem plants. That will help your

water
quality, and help keep the algae in check.


Leigh

http://www.fortunecity.com/lavender/halloween/881/



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