# Algal Bloom wont go away!



## platinum1683 (Nov 17, 2006)

I have had an algal bloom in my tank for about a week now, usually when I add tetra algea control to the tank and scrub the sides it clears up in a few hours.

I have left the light off in the tank for about 3 days now and have not fed my reds. I siphoned the sand as best as i could and have done 2 large water changes in the past week. Also, I have taken my filters apart and cleaned my sponges in a bucket of tank water. I did add a large piece of driftwood to the tank but it has been wire brushed and heat treated to kill all the parasites etc and the water isnt a tanin brown, it's green.

I am thinking it could be my sand because alot of times it is hard to siphon the tank w/out getting a bucket full of sandy water and stuff gets stirred up in the bottom and doesnt come out, but i always try to get as much as possible and always clean up after my ps eat. Any helpful advice would be great.


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## donkeyfish (Apr 24, 2007)

There is no outside light source hitting the tank ? Sun from a window etc.

Ive heard of an UV sterilizer working...on the expensive side ($100+)....Im sure someone here has used one


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## SNAKEBITE (Oct 7, 2006)

sounds like i believe you have diatoms...dont decide to buy a uv yet, try to remove as much as possible and leave the light off and be very patient, mine took a little less than amonth before it was algae free


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## skubasteve! (Feb 14, 2007)

donkeyfish said:


> There is no outside light source hitting the tank ? Sun from a window etc.
> 
> Ive heard of an UV sterilizer working...on the expensive side ($100+)....Im sure someone here has used one


Im pretty sure petsmart.com has a cheap little one for like 20-30 bones. Also you could try a chemical like algae destroyer or something like that if you want.


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## BlackSunshine (Mar 28, 2006)

IIRC you have a planted tank? If so you want to stay away from alagicides. Most do not discriminate between algae and live plants. 
If your water is getting all greened up then your best bet is getting a UV filter to clear it up. As mentioned Petsmart sells a good inexpensive internal unit that works great.

Now if plants are an issue here then you're probably adding ferts and stuff as well. Depending on the amount of light your pumping another issue may be CO2. or lack thereof. DIY setups only do so well. they are incosistant and cannot be relied on. So you may skip that and get a full on pressurized CO2 setup. mutch easier to manage the delicate balance when you actually have control of the CO2.


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## platinum1683 (Nov 17, 2006)

donkeyfish said:


> IIRC you have a planted tank?


No, I had plants in there w/out much luck so I took them out. I am still using the same pc lighting I was with the lights on the tank now though. It has (2) 65W lights on it.

Will this algae hurt my ps, or is it just unsightly?


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## skubasteve! (Feb 14, 2007)

skubasteve! said:


> Ive heard of an UV sterilizer working...on the expensive side ($100+)....Im sure someone here has used one
> 
> Im pretty sure petsmart.com has a cheap little one for like 20-30 bones. Also you could try a chemical like algae destroyer or something like that if you want.


Yes I have tried an algae destroyer that has worked for me in the past but am not having any luck with it this week. *I was thinking of a UV sterilizer but I knew they were expensive, would a 20 or 30 dollar one from there work on a 75g tank? 
*

Im sure it would work just fine, it will probably just take awhile longer to work since there is 75g of water to flow through it.

EDIT: Heres a link for the petsmart UV, there is a 9watt for 29.99 and a 24 watt for 49.99. LINK!


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## platinum1683 (Nov 17, 2006)

Thanks scubasteve for all your help! I guess its time to get one.


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## black_piranha (Jan 12, 2006)

yeah, ive had the same exact problems as you. mines been going for a few months and always green even though i keep up with the water changes. i think im gonna try a algaecide first and i'll deal with it from there.


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## ChilDawg (Apr 30, 2006)

If it's diatoms, you actually need to keep the lights on more.


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## BlackSunshine (Mar 28, 2006)

platinum1683 said:


> IIRC you have a planted tank?


No, I had plants in there w/out much luck so I took them out. I am still using the same pc lighting I was with the lights on the tank now though. It has (2) 65W lights on it.

Will this algae hurt my ps, or is it just unsightly?
[/quote]

Thats the problem right there. 
Yes you can get a UV sterilizer. this will be a bandaid however. 
you should either ditch the PC's or at least turn half off. Its simply too much light for a non planted tank.

Waterchanges are not going to help you.


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## platinum1683 (Nov 17, 2006)

Ok. I was thinking about going down with the light some. I just love my lighting because it has two blue leds that stay on at night for a moonlight effect. I just didnt want to get rid of those. If I took out one of them then I would only have light on one side of my tank.


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## BlackSunshine (Mar 28, 2006)

huh? your banks are left and right not front and back? thats odd. 
If thats the case just unplug two of the PC bulbs. then you can still use the fixture.

Never mind. for some reason I was thinking 4x 65 like mine. Yeah unplugging wont help you. Maybe pick up some lower wattage bulbs. like a pair of 36w.


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## platinum1683 (Nov 17, 2006)

Yeah i went to petsmart today and they didnt have anything lower than a 65W bulb for PCs, and they didnt have a UV sterilizer in stock. I guess tomorrow I am going to have to go to the LFS and pick one up. I am changing my sand tonight too and putting in black tahitian moon sand so we will see how it goes.


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## platinum1683 (Nov 17, 2006)

went ahead and got a turbo twist UV sterilizer so we will see how it works.


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