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i have a 36*18*14 fry tank

in it are around 50 1-2 cm cichlid fry. the filter is a home made box type filter see link http://www.mn-aquarium.org/masart40.htm its the top one. in the filter i planted a plant of some kind (dont know what kind. ) and the tank has had fry in it for 2-3 months no deaths or any other problems.

ph 7.8
am 0
ni 0
na 20-30
temp 27

about one month after the fry went in i had brown algee growing all over every surface and the plant so i put a cat fish in who cleaned most of it up.

then last week i noticed little maggots/worms in a fry net which were eaten when the fry noticed them, then the water began to have a green tinge, i did a water change then a full blown algee bloom occoured. the water is quite green!

ive had the lights on only 2 hours a day for 2 days and not fed for 2 days, its only getting worse, the plant looks quite unhappy. the fry look ok just hungry!beging for food every time i pass!

prior to this 12-14hrs of light a day, no natural light,

how do i get rid of this?

ive heard of algge killing liqids, but id prefer somthing natural!

Sounds like a definate Algae Bloom. Keep well away from all chemical algae removers one very reason is as it kills the algae it can easy become very dangerous to the fish if they eat any of the dead algae.

Do regular water changes plus a full water perameters test to see what is missing from your water.

If you have a very good fine filtration system this will help. Some say a carbon filter helps as well, though I never use any type of carbon filters.

Have a look in [link=My Profile]http://
www.fishprofiles.com/interactive/forums/profile.asp?userid=6741" style="COLOR: #00FF00[/link] for my tank info

[link=Betta 11Gal Desktop & Placidity 5ft Community Tanks]http://photobucket.com/albums/b209/keithgh/Betta%20desktop%20tank/" style="COLOR: #00FF00[/link]

Keith

Near enough is not good enough, therefore good enough is not near enough, and only your best will do.
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Hi,
Here is a site that deals specifically with a Green
Water algae bloom:

[link=http://www.otocinclus.com/articles/greenwater.html]http://www.otocinclus.com/articles/greenwater.html" style="COLOR: #FF00FF[/link]

Hope this helps...
Frank


-->>> The Confidence of Amateurs, is the Envy of Professionals <<<--

thanks for the advice frank, very helpful, atm i've left the problem as if the fry dont mind then neither do i. i was however wondering if anyone thought the following uvsterilizer would be good to treat this problem and if it is a good price.

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/UV-STERILIZER-INTERNAL-WITH-POWER-HEAD-9W-BRAND-NEW_W0QQitemZ7730437381QQcategoryZ20758QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

also how does it work? it wont suck the fish up will it?

cheers

Robert

Hi,
UV Sterilizers will kill the floating green algae. They
will also kill anything living that passes through it.

Generally speaking, they consist of a strong UV light
that is contained within a glass cage. Aquarium water
is passed around the outside of the cage and exposed to
the concentrated UV Light, killing bacteria, algae, and
even parasites such as ich (in the free swimming stage).

Because the sterilizer efficiency depends upon the bulb
wattage, and the length of time of exposure to the light,
the aquarium water is passed through a clear glass helix
(much like the small screw-in fluorescent light bulbs) that
is formed around the UV Light bulb. This way the water
swirls around the bulb several times before it exits the
assembly back into the tank.

These things are very efficient,and also expensive. To
maintain efficiency, the bulb needs to be changed every
6 months. Also, when changing the bulb you cannot touch
the bulb with your fingers. The oil from your skin will
concentrate the light on those spots you touched, and
the quartz glass the bulb is made of will soften and
warp making it impossible to remove the bulb from its
seat within the assembly.

UV sterilizers should be run 24/7. In your situation,
it will kill off the green water eventually, and if you
leave the system running, it would keep your tank clean.
However, it would be less expensive to simply remove the
source of the green water and do some 10-20% water changes
to resolve the problem.

I cannot address the specifics of that particular system
as I've never owned that one. Generally, you would
"prefilter" the water going through a UV System by wrapping
a sponge around the intake (in fry tanks) or a screen
to prevent fish from entering it.

Frank


Last edited by FRANK at 09-Dec-2005 10:37

-->>> The Confidence of Amateurs, is the Envy of Professionals <<<--

in the end i went with a uv filter, it was more expensive than the e-bay one but i prefer to buy these things from some one i can speak to about it! anyways the price was still fantastic, $110 australian

its a 24w with a sponge on the intake to prevent fry being sucked up.

the water is allready starting to clear, its more cloudy than green (dead algee i assume) and after a 25% water change i can see the fish again!

thanks for all your help guys

rob.