Persistent disappointment

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AirborneAquatic

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Dec 3, 2011
135
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Fort Bragg
Despite weekly water changes and fairly consistent water levels of 0 GH 0 KH 6.5 PH 0 N02 and 0 N03 my 60 Gal tank has decided to look like the picture below. I have not the foggiest idea what is going on. At first I thought it was tannins but the color is all wrong, so then I thought it was because I had gravel in the tank which I figured was keeping a lot of the poop trapped underneath it; so I switched it out with sand. It was an all day project, and when I was done I thought I'd gotten it right. A few days went by and It started coming back. I then thought it could be little pieces of my plants falling off and breaking down in the water causing it to be murky, so I took out all my plants, and did a 50% water change. After the sand resettled it looks like I didn't do anything at all! I'm assuming it's Algae and have left the light off for 4 days now, with no signs of clearing up. I'm left scratching my head because I don't see any algae on the glass or anything, and I've only got 6 fish in the tank, and they have been on a diet to eliminate the possibility that I was over feeding and didn't know it. I'm fresh out of guesses. I would LOVE any advice/ideas you can supply. I really want to see my fish :irked:

PC180029.JPG
 
That's some nice, nutritious soup you've got going! Add a good load of cyclops and daphnia and it will vanish in a couple of days unless they all get eaten. Alternatively, starve the algae by out-competing it for nutrients with some pothos plants or a willow branch cutting.
 
I see a lot of windows reflected in the tank. How much daylight does the tank get exposed to?

While we seldom turn on the tank lights, our living room has floor to ceiling picture windows and two large skylights. Our 300 gallon tank is in daylight all day long. It didn't take long for our tank to look like this:

tank-07.jpg


Doing back two back 60% water changes resulted in the same green water the next day. No amount of water changes could clear up the green water. We maintain excellent water parameters. A UV sterilizer quickly turned things around and cleared up our green water problem.

tank-1.jpg


For us, a UV sterilizer is a must.
 
knifegill said:
That's some nice, nutritious soup you've got going! Add a good load of cyclops and daphnia and it will vanish in a couple of days unless they all get eaten. Alternatively, starve the algae by out-competing it for nutrients with some pothos plants or a willow branch cutting.
Click to expand...

Where is a good place to get that stuff? Can I only get them in a culture? What's the best way to let it cycle?
 
I've had the same problem in one of my tanks. I'm sure its cause there is too much direct sunlight. I moved my tank to a different area. you can add a UV or move the tank to take care of it
 
How much would a UV sterilizer run for a tank my size? Any brands that y'all recommend?
 
AirborneAquatic said:
How much would a UV sterilizer run for a tank my size? Any brands that y'all recommend?
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First of all, is your tank being hit by a lot of day light? If so, a UV sterilizer should help. For your 60 gallon tank, a 9 Watt UV sterilizer should work. A lot of fishkeepers like their Coralife Turbo Twist UVs
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=3578+4393+7999&pcatid=7999

http://www.petsolutions.com/C/Aquarium-UV-Sterilizers/I/Turbo-Twist-UV-Sterilizers.aspx

To get maximum benefit from a UV sterilizer, you must follow the manufacturer's recommended flow rate. Also the UV bulb should be changed every six months or whatever the recommendation is. 9W Turbo Twist--100-200 gph.

I have never heard complaints about Turbo Twists. (I use LifeGard Aquatics, but 15W is the smallest they make, and you don't need one that big.)
 
The drift wood is the cause of the problem. soak the drift wood in a big enough container for atleast a week. and that will slove it!
 
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