Aquat

I dreaded this day.. My aquascapes has always been so balanced.. but now the algae bloom appears. Sad day it is..

Usually my scapes consist of several species of plants. Usually 10+ species in an aquarium. Neatly placed in a dutchly manner. Provided with a balance of light, fert, and co2. Over-filtered usually by 2.5x the normal gph ratio. Bacteria colony kept the water parameter in check and so did the massive amount of plants.
But now.. with a new setup consisting of slow - moderate growing and high tech plants. That demanded more light, co2 and richer nutrient based substrate that leeches ammonia. The usual water parameter is thrown out of whack. Aquascaping rocks will tend to cause a rise in KH and pH. Since I didn't have a RO water unit. I had to resort to regular water changes and chemicals. I went out and bought Seachem's neutral regulator. Seeing that it states that will lower pH by resolving carbonate hardness. I thought I was in luck and I trust Seachem as an aquarium product provider. Dosed it, but I didn't read the print that states that it's also a Phosphate buffer..I knew I was in trouble. Algae dine on phosphate like I dine on White Castle. Plants have a hard time taking in phosphate due to their cell structure. Plus, they don't need too much of it either. Days later, I saw cloudiness begin to rise. I just thought it was a typical bacteria bloom but days went on and it turned a green tint. I knew it was an algae outbreak. Now one week in my beloved Iwagumi. All I can see is green pea soup. Blurring in the water won't allow my T5s to provide the lighting my plants desperately need.. Plus, I have no choice but to keep it running or else my Hemianthus callitrichoides and Eleocharis Parvula might die. Since it's already stress from it's transition from emmerse to fully submerge condition. Tank is still cycling and I just want this abomination of an organism gone! I did not spent all this time and money to have green water. Though it was expected, it is dreaded..

Sorry for the long reading.. question is.. How do you guys get rid of green water? I know I should be patience and do it as naturally as possible. But I'm beginning to resort to Algae Control by Tetra. I've read several good comments on it from many forums and I just might give it try.

Well, just submit your opinion(s) how to get of green water. Thanks!

Michael

1. Large water change.
2. Reduce light.
3. Add lots of fast growing floating plants to reduce light further and absorb nutrients from the water. You can take them out later.
4. Use Seachem Excel. Some people do a purposeful overdose of 2x or 3x the recommended amount. I've never needed to do anything that drastic--just the "start" dose 2 or 3 times on alternating days.

Aquat

Can't really reduce any lighting, unless I want to stress out the HC. Which is already in total shock from the transition from emerse to immerse. Fast growing floating plant will choke out the lighting. I'm already dosing Excel and doing large water changes. It seems to be getting better, I ordered Purigen today. Hoping it'll aid in the process.

Also do you think 1bps or 1bp2s is enough for a 20 gallon? My drop checker hasn't came yet. What's a basic measurement to get my ppm to 30?

csmith

He's not saying cover the top of your tank in duckweed. Get some wisteria or something along those lines and just let it float, it'll help suck up the nutrients the algae is thriving on. If your tank is still cycling then it needs to be treated as a brand new tank, and these issues are to be expected. What lighting do you have, and how far from the substrate is it? If you're pushing more light than your CO2 can keep up with, which is highly likely, then you're best advised following Michael's advice of reducing your input.

The phosphates in your neutral regulator, while excessive, aren't the root cause for your algae. Your whole system is out of sync and will need some time to catch up to itself. With the CO2, there isn't an easy way to figure 30 ppm without lab equipment. Even drop checkers are little more than crude indicators. If you don't have any livestock in the tank I would definately up the CO2 quite a bit, it'll positively affect your tank.

What's the need for the nuetral regulator?

Aquat

No needs, I decided to try a chemical. I know I should be patience but I wanted to try it. Tetra AlgaeControl, Since it has many good reviews and that it is plant safe. No copper and I think it's 95% inert ingredients with the rest being active. Too lazy to check the bottle lol. It worked great! Within several minutes of putting it in, the top quarter began clearing up! Within an hour, the algae bloom is gone.

Michael

I'm glad the chemical worked. But unless you address the underlying cause of the algae bloom, it will come back. And do some large water changes--that much dying algae can cause problems by itself.

Aquat

I plan on doing 50% today. Tetra AlgaeControl, a dose of Seachem Clarity and Purigen. WOW, it's like there's no water at all! The water is spot less.