To all of you experts out the

Recently change the light on my 29 G tank from 2x40 wt to 55 wt from Ah
supply
add more plants and fish in about a week water start turning green.
My water have 0 ammonia, nitrates about 15
wary soft and sudden change in Ph from usual 6.5 to 7.3 .Just before lights
change did about 30% water change and add a florapride
Any suggestions would be appreciated

Alex

hi, i had that green water just last week..
my tank was so green i couldn't even see my fish..
but then i solved the problem...
and now my tank is crystal cleer...

no need to change water...
the so called 'experts' don't know what they are talking about..
my lfs gave me crazy suggestions like covering up the tank with a cloth for
3 days..
feed the fish once every other day.. reduce the population... no..
doesn't help!!



"Alex" wrote in message
.. .
To all of you experts out the

Recently change the light on my 29 G tank from 2x40 wt to 55 wt from Ah
supply
add more plants and fish in about a week water start turning green.
My water have 0 ammonia, nitrates about 15
wary soft and sudden change in Ph from usual 6.5 to 7.3 .Just before
lights
change did about 30% water change and add a florapride
Any suggestions would be appreciated

Alex

green water is caused by algae.. there are many reasons why they started..
but probably is because direct sunlight on the aquarium, not enough plants
(to absorb the nutrients),
overcrowd, overfeeding, too much light.. so on..
but i think the biggie is direct sunlight..

you need to go buy a medicine that cures green water..
my is called 'clear water particulate' by hagen.
it guarantees effect in 1 hr..
and to my amazement.. it worked in 1 hr...
if u have any questions.. email me..
or email to thank me..
_no_spam

remove the no spam..


"Alex" wrote in message
.. .
To all of you experts out the

Recently change the light on my 29 G tank from 2x40 wt to 55 wt from Ah
supply
add more plants and fish in about a week water start turning green.
My water have 0 ammonia, nitrates about 15
wary soft and sudden change in Ph from usual 6.5 to 7.3 .Just before
lights
change did about 30% water change and add a florapride
Any suggestions would be appreciated

Alex

"Alex" wrote in message ...
To all of you experts out the

Recently change the light on my 29 G tank from 2x40 wt to 55 wt from Ah
supply
add more plants and fish in about a week water start turning green.
My water have 0 ammonia, nitrates about 15
wary soft and sudden change in Ph from usual 6.5 to 7.3 .Just before lights
change did about 30% water change and add a florapride
Any suggestions would be appreciated

Alex

Well I can give several methods, all have worked for me. I use green
water for a number of culture expreiments therefore I need to induce
it. This is done by adding a small amount of NH4+, ammonium. Small
trace amounts produced by critters/fish etc are typically not enough
to cause a bloom unless you really disturb the tank, shut off the CO2,
anything that slows the normal uptake by the plants or conversion to
NH4+=NO2=NO3,

Most every occurance can be traces to something that added NH4 to the
water column.

Method #1 Blackout, sometimes doesn't work if nutrients/CO2 are not
corrected, light is allowed in during the period.

Method #2 UV sterilizer. Simple effective and always works, down side
is the cost.
Method #3 Diatom or mechanical filtration. A diatom filter can be used
and is always effective. Magnum diatom filter cartiages can be used
also.
Adding "dirt", detritus to the intake and or a flocculant to clog up
the pores
in the filter material will help remove the algae.

The algae are motile, around 2-3 microns in diameter. So the
filtration method needs to be in this size range. Generally as a
filter clogs, it becomes better at removal but you don't want it to
clog completely so make sure to clean it if clogs.
You can do this method with tightly packed filter floss, polyester
batting etc also. It takes awhile for the floss to clog up enough to
become effective.
The flocculant clogs the filter pore sizes allowing the algae to be
filtered out. The flocculant does not cause the algae itself to
coagulate into large particles.

Method # 4 Daphnia These are very effective if given enough time.
Rotifers also will work but Caldocerans(Daphnia) are better. Down side
is that fish like to eat them.

Method #5
Snake oils. Algal cures alls.
Never met one that worked in controlled plant tanks.

Make sure in the future you have enough biological media in the
filter, have a moderate fish load, don't over feed too much, have good
CO2, NO3, PO4, K, trace levels in your tank. When you do a big
trim/hack do a water change within about ~6 hours or right after. This
will remove all the NH4, algae that's been trimmed out and organic
mulm.

You added a great deal more light and pH increase was due in part to
the added plants and the added light. The plants use CO2 and if you
don't add CO2, the pH will go up during the day.

You will want to look into CO2 and DIY is fine for your sized tank.
You can look on a number of sites for dosing routines for your tank.
Adding CO2 will greatly help if you do not add it. The next items are
KNO3, K23SO4 and KH2PO4. The Florapride is the trace, the other three
I mention are the macro nutrients. You can get these from
www.litemanu.com for a few $ and they last for a few years.

Generally, folks have GW issues when they add more lighting, have a
new tank or do a major upheavel of some sort, pull up a jobe's stick
from their gravel.

You can do a number of searches for Green water on the APD, here,
various other forums. Might help you get more of a consensus. It is
particularly stubborn and you cannot water change it away. Once
inoculated, it'll hang on for dear life until removed mechanically or
killed/eaten. It does little harm to the plants though so I like to
use it as a guinea pig and it only takes about a few hours of UV or
diatom/micron filtration to remove it.

Regards,
Tom Barr

Hi, thought I'd put my 2 cents in here.

I had MAJOR green algae headaches!

I tried reducing/increasing fish load/plant load. Didn't work.

Tried diatom filter. Worked initially, but green water returned in a
few days. Then wouldn't work at all.

Tried diatom filter with something to particulate smaller algae.
Worked - but green water would eventually return.

Tried Daphnia. Didn't work (but mollies enjoyed tearing holes in
nylon bag containing Daphnia and eating them up).

Tried UV sterilizer (at the suggestion of Jim at The Bug Farm whom I
had called to buy more Daphnia - THANK YOU JIM!). Worked like a
charm. My tank has never looked better. I bought a small 8 watt
sterilizer (for a 38 gallon tank). Perfect.

Good luck! Cindy

(cindy) wrote in message
Tried UV sterilizer (at the suggestion of Jim at The Bug Farm whom I
had called to buy more Daphnia - THANK YOU JIM!). Worked like a
charm. My tank has never looked better. I bought a small 8 watt
sterilizer (for a 38 gallon tank). Perfect.

Good luck! Cindy

Big Al's online sells a CSL 9w for around 62.99. Not a bad price.
Diatoms do work well and typically take care of the issue. Most Diatom
filters cost more than this. HOT magnums with a micron cartiage are
about the cheapest method of polishing.

Folks with presistent GW problems often need more biofiltration if it
keeps coming back, need to add NO3 or more CO2. These folks often have
higher light PC lighting. If disturb the tank good, do a water change
after.
I've loaned out UV's to folks and the GW still came back even if they
ran it for a week.

GW appearence is not some mysterious unknown occurance. In every case
it related back to high light + NH4. If the NH4 level exceeded the
uptake of the plants, you get GW. If the bacteria also cannot cope
with the NH4 influx/variations, then the leftover NH4 induces GW at
high light.
This is how I culture GW.

Lower light tanks such as 2w/gal using regular NO FL lights seldom if
ever got GW.

I never once had GW till I had high light PC's. Even then, I needed to
induce it with NH4. Well growing plants normally remove any traces of
NH4.

I've added everything except NH4, to a tank, NO3, PO4, high PC light,
traces etc and have never been able to induce GW. I stop adding CO2 or
add NH4 etc, I'll get GW. Once you get it, it hangs on for dear life.

You can try the above approaches, but the UV method is one of the
better/best methods for those with persisent GW issues. Cost and other
concerns play a role in your choices. Blackout works well and doesn't
cost a dime. But if that doesn't work for you, try the next step up.

You have time. GW doesn't hurt plants at all. This is one reason why I
use it. Easy to induce and get rid of. It does drive folks nutty
though.

Regards,
Tom Barr

For what it is worth, I just recovered from a severe outbreak of
'green water' and the solution was simple.

As to what caused it, a recent water change comes to mind. When the
tank was first set up, the tap water here was perfect, pH of about 7,
KH around 2. For some reason, the water quality has changed
radically, and the pH is now 8.4 (!) and the hardness remains the
same. Apparently the water company has decided to add 'something' to
the water. I have also had trouble with terrestrial flower seedlings
damping off when using the tap water. Blamed everything - pots, peat
moss, bad seeds. Bleached everything and started over, and got the
same results. Turned out to be something in the water - I started
using rain water, and it stopped! I really think there is bacteria
and fungus in the crappy (big) city tap water here!

Anyway, the solution - for me - was a thorough cleaning of the debris
on the bottom of the tank, couple with a 20% water change, and a
temporary reduction in lighting to 1/2 normal duration. Within days,
the green water cleared up, and now the tank never looked better.

All of this has me thinking seriously about an RO unit. I know my
Orchids would appreciate it as well. When I kept reef tanks in
Florida, it made the difference between success and failure.

Greg

Thanks to ALL responded.
I'm able to get red of my problem by reducing light to the minimum and stop
feeding fish for 2 days. its almost all clear "for now"
"Greg G." wrote in message
...

For what it is worth, I just recovered from a severe outbreak of
'green water' and the solution was simple.

As to what caused it, a recent water change comes to mind. When the
tank was first set up, the tap water here was perfect, pH of about 7,
KH around 2. For some reason, the water quality has changed
radically, and the pH is now 8.4 (!) and the hardness remains the
same. Apparently the water company has decided to add 'something' to
the water. I have also had trouble with terrestrial flower seedlings
damping off when using the tap water. Blamed everything - pots, peat
moss, bad seeds. Bleached everything and started over, and got the
same results. Turned out to be something in the water - I started
using rain water, and it stopped! I really think there is bacteria
and fungus in the crappy (big) city tap water here!

Anyway, the solution - for me - was a thorough cleaning of the debris
on the bottom of the tank, couple with a 20% water change, and a
temporary reduction in lighting to 1/2 normal duration. Within days,
the green water cleared up, and now the tank never looked better.

All of this has me thinking seriously about an RO unit. I know my
Orchids would appreciate it as well. When I kept reef tanks in
Florida, it made the difference between success and failure.

Greg