ikarusdk Posted July 20, 2013 Report Share Posted July 20, 2013 I've been having this issue for years now. I just don't know how to deal with this issue.. Water rapidly turns green to the point where my regular water change can't keep up with it. I usually end up having to drain the entire tank and start up the new aquarium each time.. My tank is African Cichlid tank, 150L, with Aqua One external canister filter. All water chemistry is always kept in check. I feed my fish mainly with JBL Novo Rift sticks. The picture below is taken two days after a complete water change and you can already see the water turning green. I don't overfeed my fish or anything so I don't know what is turning green. It seems to me that wheenver I feed my fish with JBL Rift, the water turns greener the next several hours or overnight but from my research, people have no issues with this food. If you can please advice me what the problem is, and how to mitigate this issue, it would be much appreciated. Nothing looks worse than a sickly green fish tank... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrienne Posted July 20, 2013 Report Share Posted July 20, 2013 Hi Where does the tank sit in your house in relation to windows, over head skylights, lighting. How often do you water change and how much. Green water, which is what you have, is caused by too much sunlight light getting in to the tank either directly or indirectly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ikarusdk Posted July 20, 2013 Author Report Share Posted July 20, 2013 There's a window about 3m directly away facing the fish tank. We have a 'blinder' but the light comes through it anyway... I do a weekly 20% water change. Lighting is a standard t8 bulb, it's off most of the time. I have a 500L tank in the garage being prepared as I'm building a 3D Rockwall to install, so I don't want to move this tank any time soon.. Any suggestions how to keep the change to minimal? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zuri08 Posted July 20, 2013 Report Share Posted July 20, 2013 :smot: but is it just me or is that bristlenose massive!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Godly3vil Posted July 20, 2013 Report Share Posted July 20, 2013 Not really the tanks just small lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrienne Posted July 20, 2013 Report Share Posted July 20, 2013 The window being that close to the tank is what is causing the problem. If you can't move the tank then the best thing you can do is purchase a UV steriliser of a size suitable for the tank. It works by killing off the algae in the water as it passes through the sleeve of it. You could also put a dark backing on the tank as a certain amount of light will be reflecting off the back wall in to the tank as well however the only way to stop it is to remove the problem. More water changes won't stop it, all they are doing is removing the green and replacing it with clear clean water although I would recommend at least 30% water change weekly. The novo rift you feed is made partially up with a blue green algae. Be sure you are not over feeding. What is the nitrate reading? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ikarusdk Posted July 20, 2013 Author Report Share Posted July 20, 2013 :smot: but is it just me or is that bristlenose massive!! It's about 20cm long.. It is quite big.. The window being that close to the tank is what is causing the problem. If you can't move the tank then the best thing you can do is purchase a UV steriliser of a size suitable for the tank. It works by killing off the algae in the water as it passes through the sleeve of it. You could also put a dark backing on the tank as a certain amount of light will be reflecting off the back wall in to the tank as well however the only way to stop it is to remove the problem. More water changes won't stop it, all they are doing is removing the green and replacing it with clear clean water although I would recommend at least 30% water change weekly. The novo rift you feed is made partially up with a blue green algae. Be sure you are not over feeding. What is the nitrate reading? I might cover the tank with black sheet to see if I can block off some light during the day. I do have a second hand external canister that has UV function , but I'm not sure if it's UV steriliser.. I was thinking of using it when I get the 500L finally set up. I haven't measured nitrate level yet, but when i did, they were all average. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrienne Posted July 20, 2013 Report Share Posted July 20, 2013 If it has a UV function then it should be a steriliser. UV bulbs don't last forever though so it may not work. What sort of filter is it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angus Posted July 20, 2013 Report Share Posted July 20, 2013 The window being that close to the tank is what is causing the problem. Totally agree. If I let direct sunlight reach my tank for a minute I can guarantee a green water episode. Other folks manage but eliminate the light issue as a starting point imo. For a quick cure, I use Algaefix. It's a flocculant and some people advise against it as it might cause a build up in the gills but I've never had a problem and it works everytime. Note that it's a symptom cure and won't address the underlying problem. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cokeman Posted July 21, 2013 Report Share Posted July 21, 2013 I've got the same problem but mines a new tank set up (brought from trade me ) might be other issues at work but ,i ve tried the black outs,water changes etc didn't work still slightly green ...getting a uv filters of trade me ,they pretty cheap of there (got mine for $30 ) ...i report back if it done any wanders thou it should, as that's what its designed for ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
F15hguy Posted July 21, 2013 Report Share Posted July 21, 2013 still treating the symptoms and not the cause. check your tap water as well, some areas have high phosphates in their tap water Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David R Posted July 21, 2013 Report Share Posted July 21, 2013 I have a 500L tank in the garage being prepared as I'm building a 3D Rockwall to install, so I don't want to move this tank any time soon.. Any suggestions how to keep the change to minimal? What are you filtering the new tank with?? I hope there's usually a bit more cover in there for those loaches... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ikarusdk Posted July 22, 2013 Author Report Share Posted July 22, 2013 If it has a UV function then it should be a steriliser. UV bulbs don't last forever though so it may not work. What sort of filter is it? I am not too sure. It came with the tank I bought, supposedly quite good although the brand itself is unknown to me (a chinese brand). I will need to see a manual for it to find out how I can take out the UV bulb. I tried Algaefix once or twice. It didn't seem to help that much. Perhaps I need to use it consistently but when I did use it, the water was still green. Please do. I will look forward to hearing your feedback on UV filter. Hmm.. I will need to test phosphates level, but I will need to get a phosphate testing kit first haha. I will be filtering the new tank with a large external UV canister as well as the current one you see in the picture (AquaOne). The seller of the tank used the former filter for it but I thought I will use both. The rocks are all back in now, so there are plenty of covers for the fish. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guppy Luvva Posted July 22, 2013 Report Share Posted July 22, 2013 I had the same problem after my husband overfed - This WAS my tank before I did a 4 day blackout. I did large water changes before and afterwards and ended up beautifully clear again with no chemicals - and haven't had a problem since! I know you said you aren't overfeeding, and it does sound like too much light. A blackout will kill the algae spores but wont solve the contributing issue, so you will still need to work out what it is and fix that too. Best of Luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ira Posted July 22, 2013 Report Share Posted July 22, 2013 I've always found just rubber banding some filter wool over the filter intake or powerhead intake works well, filters all the green out pretty quickly, just need to rinse it out a couple times a day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrienne Posted July 23, 2013 Report Share Posted July 23, 2013 The cause of greenwater is 100% too much light. Other facts may not be helping it but the light is the issue. For the record as the quote linked to me was incorrect - I have never ever used algaefix and will never do so Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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