Gorillastomp
Member
Best is to do a mssive water change like 80% plus 2 to 3 time a weeks until your water is back to normal color. But if you do jot find what cause the dye it may comeback.
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Water perfectly clear but turned dark green?
- Thread starter DogTailRed2
- Start date
DogTailRed2
Member
With the damaged light unit replaced and after examining the tank and filters I do not believe the green tint is a contaminant.
It's going to be either algae or bacteria.
UV isn't having any effect and as nutrients are low to zero also rules out algae.
Cyanobacteria can live in zero nitrate and in some cases zero light conditions (true but rare) I'm going for a cyano bacteria problem.
Conducting tests using two jugs of water shows Blue Exit turns the water cloudy when treated after five days so it's having an effect on something.
So here's the plan for the next 15 days.
Nutrients and Phosphates have been reduced to zero or near enougth.
I will remove the purigen and phosguard. Start a five day treatment with Blue Exit and then monitor for 10 days without water changes.
If this works then use Red Sea Reef Grade Carbon to remove any floating contaminants after which we replace the purigen.
It's going to be either algae or bacteria.
UV isn't having any effect and as nutrients are low to zero also rules out algae.
Cyanobacteria can live in zero nitrate and in some cases zero light conditions (true but rare) I'm going for a cyano bacteria problem.
Conducting tests using two jugs of water shows Blue Exit turns the water cloudy when treated after five days so it's having an effect on something.
So here's the plan for the next 15 days.
Nutrients and Phosphates have been reduced to zero or near enougth.
I will remove the purigen and phosguard. Start a five day treatment with Blue Exit and then monitor for 10 days without water changes.
If this works then use Red Sea Reef Grade Carbon to remove any floating contaminants after which we replace the purigen.
Andy Pierce
Member
You could try pulling out all your plastic plants, doing a water change and seeing if that clears it up. Sounds to me like one of your (presumably green) plastic plants is photodegrading now that it's been in the tank under lighting for a while and is leaching out material. Bacteria isn't green and algae wouldn't be clear and in any event your UV light would sort that out if that were the problem and the light is working as designed.
DogTailRed2
Member
Pulling out the plants would be an option of last resort. But I'll consider it if my tests prove negative.
Cynaobacteria uses algae for phtosynthesis within it's body for food so can develop a green colour.
DogTailRed2
Member
Day 7 of static testing. Day 5 of aquarium treatment.
My static water test using Blue Exit showed that at day five the treated water turned cloudy. The untreated water stayed the same.
After day 7 I ran the treated water through RedSea Marine Quality Carbon. After half an hour the water has gone clear with just a hint of green. The clarity of the water has improved 100%.
I am now treating my aqaurium with Blue Exit. I'll let the treatment run for the full 15 days without water changes. At day five there is slight clouding but no change in colour.
After 15 days I will perform a 30% water change and then run RedSea Carbon.
I tested the filter sponges in my FX6 for dye transfer but can find none. I'm also not seeing any change in colour from the plastic plants (removal is too destructive for the fish at this time).
Jury is still out on what is causing this but at least we have a soloution.
Next test will be to run the untreated test sample through carbon to see if it removes the colour.
My static water test using Blue Exit showed that at day five the treated water turned cloudy. The untreated water stayed the same.
After day 7 I ran the treated water through RedSea Marine Quality Carbon. After half an hour the water has gone clear with just a hint of green. The clarity of the water has improved 100%.
I am now treating my aqaurium with Blue Exit. I'll let the treatment run for the full 15 days without water changes. At day five there is slight clouding but no change in colour.
After 15 days I will perform a 30% water change and then run RedSea Carbon.
I tested the filter sponges in my FX6 for dye transfer but can find none. I'm also not seeing any change in colour from the plastic plants (removal is too destructive for the fish at this time).
Jury is still out on what is causing this but at least we have a soloution.
Next test will be to run the untreated test sample through carbon to see if it removes the colour.
DogTailRed2
Member
I ran the untreated water through the carbon and it did remove the colour albeit slower.
Ran Blue Exit for 14 days with no noticeable change in colour although water did get a fraction cloudier.
Added 1000ml of Redsea Marine Spec Carbon in both (half and half) filters and performed a 25% water change over three days.
One filter started to block and noticed what looked like a green algae blocking the sponges.
This is the result.
Water still has a slight tinge to it so I may replace the carbon this weekend in case the Blue Exit and Bacteria / Algae has blocked it.
Parameters are PH 7.6. High PH 7.5. Amonia 0. Nitrite 0. Nitrate 20ppm. I suspect the nitrates have increased because of the water changes. My tap water has 25ppm. My Nitrates are normally 0ppm.
Jury is still out on what has caused this. Lets see if it goes completely clear or comes back after treatment?
Ran Blue Exit for 14 days with no noticeable change in colour although water did get a fraction cloudier.
Added 1000ml of Redsea Marine Spec Carbon in both (half and half) filters and performed a 25% water change over three days.
One filter started to block and noticed what looked like a green algae blocking the sponges.
This is the result.
Water still has a slight tinge to it so I may replace the carbon this weekend in case the Blue Exit and Bacteria / Algae has blocked it.
Parameters are PH 7.6. High PH 7.5. Amonia 0. Nitrite 0. Nitrate 20ppm. I suspect the nitrates have increased because of the water changes. My tap water has 25ppm. My Nitrates are normally 0ppm.
Jury is still out on what has caused this. Lets see if it goes completely clear or comes back after treatment?
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Wolf6
Member
Have you tried removing the plastic plants yet? You said it would be last resort but it sounds like you tried everything else.
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DogTailRed2
Member
No I never removed the plants. The tank is now clear but I am still running carbon. Once the carbon is removed (I'm not intending to use carbon permanantly) I'll wait to see if the green returns. If it does I'll look at the filter sponges then the plants. Why look at the plants last? Well it's going to be quite destructive to the tank to remove them and I'm still not convinced plastic could impart such a colour change. But we will see 🙂.
DogTailRed2
Member
Yes it was. Fortunately it wasn't harmful to the fish. I'm still not convinced what the problem was (and trawling the internet still none the wiser) but my hunch is that the bio balls that shipped with my media (they were pond bio balls but I doubt they would be much different from tropical) caused a spike in nutrients that caused an unusual strain of bacteria that neither resulted in a bloom or caused algae problems. Possibly fueled by the fact I have almost zero nitrate.
DogTailRed2
Member
Time for an update as it's been two months since I removed the green colour.
Have been running without carbon now for two weeks and there is no sign of the green colour returning.
I believe my problem was due to adding bio balls (the bio balls I was supplied with my media was for pond use but I'm not sure they are any different to aquarium use?) and having very low to zero nitrate.
Best possible cause was a type of blue green algae that survives in low light, low nitrate water. The bio balls perhaps introduced or fueld the algae. Too much biology?
Cure was dosing with Blue Exit at double dose for 14 days after which colour was removed using carbon.
I never removed the plastic plants.
I will say the RedSea Reef Spec carbon is awesome.
Have been running without carbon now for two weeks and there is no sign of the green colour returning.
I believe my problem was due to adding bio balls (the bio balls I was supplied with my media was for pond use but I'm not sure they are any different to aquarium use?) and having very low to zero nitrate.
Best possible cause was a type of blue green algae that survives in low light, low nitrate water. The bio balls perhaps introduced or fueld the algae. Too much biology?
Cure was dosing with Blue Exit at double dose for 14 days after which colour was removed using carbon.
I never removed the plastic plants.
I will say the RedSea Reef Spec carbon is awesome.
DogTailRed2
Member
Final update.
Definitely a strange form of blue green bacteria that feeds on zero nitrate and zero light level conditions.
Caused I believe by addition of bio balls for some reason.
Blue exit dosed at double for 14 days fixed it.
Definitely a strange form of blue green bacteria that feeds on zero nitrate and zero light level conditions.
Caused I believe by addition of bio balls for some reason.
Blue exit dosed at double for 14 days fixed it.
