Algae Problems!

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
You mentioned you do water change often, what is your frequency and how much do you take out? Also how long do you have your lights on for?
 
Water changes about once a week, sometimes a little longer, sometimes shorter, depends on my crazy work days. I normally change 3/4 of the water when i do.
Lights come on at 8:30am and off at 9:30pm, i used LED lights.
 
Have you tried using something like fluval clearmax in your filter or placed directly in tank? I help my old man out with his koi pond i put barley straw logs in it which kills and prevents algae growth when it starts to break down. You can also buy barley straw extract liquid it is totally natural and harmless to fish. Never heard of it being used in aquariums tho.
 
No I've never tried either method. I was more curious why now all the algae and never before. My tank used to be full of fish, now just 4 so I figures it would be less but its way worse.

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Basically I'll be blunt and honest:

The pleco, alone, probably has a bioload too big for that tank. 12''!? Never mind the poop machines that are goldfish. I'd go with the suggestion of losing/moving/selling the Pleco, GF and Koi. Keep the blood parrot alone in the 55... I have a 55 with a single convict in it!

Nitrate levels are probably out of control, hence the algae. You don't need something to "clean" it, you need somehting to lessen the bioload of that tank. The only way I see that happening is by getting rid of some of those fish!
 
Jonny Steele said:
I figured with the 2 aquaclear 70's and eheim 2217 that it would keep up.

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Click to expand...

Your filter is doing what it suppose to, convert ammonia to nitrates. Nitrates is the end product, and it is plant food. Since you don't and can't have real plants in your tank, microscopic plants, algae is doing the job.

One convict for 55 gallon is a little too extreme, but 3 medium blood parrots and a syno catfish is about max you can do for that tank. Koi and goldfish, how big are they?


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I do have plants in my tank, about 7 bamboo plants. Other than the pleco, the fish are under 4" each

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That should be good enough...how often do you feed them?

But do test nitrate.

Also, is bamboo completely submerged? If they are, they are not doing any good. Leave the leaf out of water.

Also LED can be off when you are not looking at the fish. They don't need it.

For the long term , I strongly suggest remove goldfish and koi, and add some medium cichlids.


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