Serious problems with Aquarium - Please help

UnleashTheBeast

Got a (120 litre) fish tank a few months back, coldwater...

I change my water every 2 weeks but it doesn't seem to clear at all and I'm worrying about the health of my fish.

When I'm in the process of changing the water, while I'm adding it to my tank the water obviously sprays a little and when it hits the bottom a lot of dirt splashes up off the pebbles, I think this is the main problem. My filter doesn't seem to be too much kop either...

Obviously, I don't want to completely empty my tank because I hear that can be very unhealthy if you miss with the fishes environment & it would obviously stress the fish to remove them from the tank.

I'm probably gonna get a new filter in a few days (I inherited the one I have when I bought my tank), but I have no idea how to clean the pebbles without the dirt spraying everywhere defeating the purpose of me changing the water in the first place.

kylith

Do you have a test kit for ammonia, ph, nitrate and nitrite? Is that green actually the water? I'd recommend doing water changes more often, at least 30% per week (but those more knowledgeable than I may recommend more).

UnleashTheBeast

kylith wrote: »

Do you have a test kit for ammonia, ph, nitrate and nitrite?

No.

kylith wrote: »

Is that green actually the water?

Yes, but I have a very strong light.

kylith wrote: »

I'd recommend doing water changes more often, at least 30% per week (but those more knowledgeable than I may recommend more).

Interesting, I will be paying a visit to pet shop in the coming days to get a new filter I'd say. Will change 50% water tomorrow and clean the filter/spunges out.

Cookie_Monster

UnleashTheBeast wrote: »

Yes, but I have a very strong light.

could be part of the problem, encouraging algae growth...

how long is it on for every day?

UnleashTheBeast

Cookie_Monster wrote: »

could be part of the problem, encouraging algae growth...

how long is it on for every day?

From when I get up until I go to bed. Most of the day.

Sleepy

AFAIK, lights should only be kept on for a max of 8 hours (in a planted tank).

A gravel siphon would help you to clean the substrate without kicking up too much dirt into the water.

Short term: reduce the length of time you're leaving the light on, in an unplanted tank it's only purpose is to help you see the fish. As long as you're treating your water with a de-chlorinator such as Prime, Stresscoat or the likes and matching the temperature of the new water to the temperature of your tank you can't really do too many water changes... I'd go with 10-20% changes daily until your water begins to clarify.

Another thing worth looking into would be the use of activated carbon filtration. Is there a carbon sponge in your filter? If so: when did you change it last? If not, you can buy activated carbon in any pet store, place it in some material taken from an old pair of tights and drop it into your filter.

Cameron Poe

As previous people said do a water change and use a gravel cleaner.

Is the tank getting direct sunlight from a window?
I would also leave the lights off for 3 days and cover the tank in a sheet to cause a complete blackout which should kill off the algae. If there are no plants in the tank reduce the amount of light massively.

godtabh

Algae growth can be traced back to to much food and light.

cut back on both. Do a 50% water changed ever week until it clears up (or 2 25% changes every couple of days) and then do 10-20% changes once a week

donal2000

The below product is very good when doing water changes

http://www.zooplus.ie/shop/fish/pond/water_treatments/126503

Silverfish

UnleashTheBeast wrote: »

When I'm in the process of changing the water, while I'm adding it to my tank the water obviously sprays a little and when it hits the bottom a lot of dirt splashes up off the pebbles, I think this is the main problem. My filter doesn't seem to be too much kop either...

Obviously, I don't want to completely empty my tank because I hear that can be very unhealthy if you miss with the fishes environment & it would obviously stress the fish to remove them from the tank.

I'm probably gonna get a new filter in a few days (I inherited the one I have when I bought my tank), but I have no idea how to clean the pebbles without the dirt spraying everywhere defeating the purpose of me changing the water in the first place.

Hiya,

Yeah, that is a bit of a disaster! However, green water is good for goldfish but doesn't look that great overall.

The bit that worries me is the dirt from the pebbles. You need to keep the pebbles as clean as possible, as the goldfish poo / uneaten food will make the water toxic to the fish - it will also lead to high nitrates which encourage algae growth, so if you can get a water testing kit too, that will help you a lot to find out how the water is and what changes you need to make.

What you need to get is a gravel siphon, you run it through the stones at the bottom like a hoover, and it pumps the water out at the same time, saves a lot of hassle. You can get them for about 12 - 15 euro.

You'll need to hoover the gravel at least once a week, taking out 25% of the water with it each time. Your filter will remove poo or food thats floating in the water, but won't suck it up from the bottom, so that's why you need the gravel cleaner. I usually clean the gravel until the water runs as clear as possible out of it.

With the filter, does it have sponges? If so, you don't need to change those ever, just the white top one. If you pick up a new filter, put that in the tank along with the current one, for better results.

I'd start with a 50% water change, then treat the water going back in with Prime or Stresscoat or whatever water conditioner.

Cameron Poe

You will find it very difficult to eradicate this sort of algae bloom without a blackout.