# New Project, anyone fancy helping me through it?



## satsumas (Nov 20, 2006)

Hi guys, im pretty new here and havent posted in a long time, been pretty busy though to be fair!

Anyway during this time i've tried to keep 'setting up' my planted tank but have found out the hard way that planted tanks require, patience, time, effort and your full attention!
Now i have BGA! Its not too bad but if i keep things the way they are it will overrun and outcompete the plants i have in there.

I'll start at the top (this may be a long read, if your interested in helping me through this then please read and hopefully i can defeat this beast!)

(I'll try to make it as quick and informative as possible)

I found an un-used 22 gallon (27 US gallon) 3 foot tank, this looked pretty big at the time and i thought it was a 30G, anyway i brought it home (asked owner first!) cleaned it up, bleached it through re-siliconed the edges, filled it, left it over night to test for leaks and there was none so i had myself a new tank!

After this i was planning everything else but in my typical style rushed into it a bit. I did some research on high light tanks and plants and i gained a 'general knowledge' about it, i found out only what i had to basically. Or at least i thought.

I bought the following: Fluval 205 filter, Fluval 100W heater, 96W CF light, 2 bags of Eco complete.
(I didnt buy these all at once, it was very staggered)

First of all i cycled the tank, for this i was able to get hold of some seeded material from my other tank. With the bacteria in place (tested by adding pure ammonia) and eating away at the ammonia i then realised that they will need a constant food source so i kept the ammonia level at about 1ppm as best i could.
However! at one point it went right up to 8PPM!
I think this was how it happened (it was 9 months ago now) i was keeping the level at 1ppm, then after not adding some for 3 days i thought i'd add some more without testing! there was ammonia still in there so me adding more didnt help. I was expecting the bacteria to have eaten that ammonia by now so just added some.
Anyway i done a big water change and from then on resumed a much calmer, slower bacteria feeding.

When my light finally arrived (shipped from the US) i then ordered some plants and thought i was starting the 'outcompeting' game with algae. I ordered some Hygro polysperma and elodea densa, anyway it was hardly enough, also i kept adding a little bit of ammonia to keep the bacteria fed. I later found out that this was a massive mistake and low and behold within a few days, maybe a week, there was algae!

After the first algae appeared it never completely went. (I'll cut a long story shorter now.)
I stopped dosing ammonia, cleaned the tank up, bought some more plants (bacopa c and HC) and then i bought a couple of cardinia shrimp (if thats correct? amano's basically) also i transferred my female BN pleco accross, hopefully to combat any algae outbreaks.
I also started using EI:
1/8 tsp KNO3 - potassium nitrate {3 x week} 
1/32 tsp KH2PO4 - mono potassium phosphate {3 x week} 
1/32 tsp K2SO4 - potassium sulfate {3 x week} 
1/32 tsp or 2ml Trace {3 x week on off days}

Anyway algae was still appearing, it was much slower than ever before but after a week i had to take some out as it was starting to cover the plants and also the substrate.

Now, i have purchased a pressurized co2 system and after a clearout i purchased some more plants, elodea densa and what i thought was wisteria, looks extremely similair but the new leaves 'curl' open like a fern does (the non-aquatic, land type) i do have the name but not on me right now.
I set the CO2 system up and its going at a rate of about 30 bubbles a minute and the lights are on for about 5 hours a day but there's still algae!

This is where im at now and i dont know what to do next. I've heard of various treatments for BGA like blackouts and this maracyn stuff (cant get hold of it in the UK) but this is useless if i cant identify the initial problem of why it appeared in the first place. Prevention being better than cure!

I think im at my limit now and i just want to sort this tank out, kill this BGA, start planting/aquascaping and get on with watching the plants grow and finally adding some fish! I would be extremely gratefull for some advice along the way, i'll try to keep this thread as updated as possible.

I'd like to 'start again' really and do it all the right way, patiently and properly. Although i'm no expert but im interested in what i should do next and im willing to try whatever in order to get the tank that i was hoping for almost a year ago now.
(oh yes the algae in question was always BGA by the way.)

Thanks for reading.


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## ed seeley (Dec 1, 2006)

I got rid of BGA in my tank by upping the water changes and giving the filter and the whole tank a good clean out. Upping the flow rate also seemed to have a big effect on it too. Maybe syphon out any debris and algae you can at least once a week, but even better would be every couple of days for a little while and you'll be amazed at how fast you'll get rid of it.

I'd probably have the lights on for longer than 5 hours too. That's a very short photoperiod IMHO. 8 hours would help the plants grow more as that's what you really want to achieve.


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## satsumas (Nov 20, 2006)

Ok, thanks for that. I'll give what you suggested a try.


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## hoppycalif (Apr 7, 2005)

I would try doubling the KNO3 dosage too. Higher nitrates tend to inhibit BGA.


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## satsumas (Nov 20, 2006)

Cleaning out the tank is a real job and i need to know that there's a good chance of eliminating this algae to keep me feeling like what im doing is worthwhile. I've cleaned it out enough times only for it to come back so my patience and perseverance is thinning.

I've got to do water changes today and sort out my other tanks planting arrangement first, but then after that i might start again with this algae infested tank.


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## hoppycalif (Apr 7, 2005)

Looking at your set up again, you have a really intense light for a 22 gallon tank, and BGA shows up where the light is most intense, like where sunlight hits the substrate. So, it may just be that you have too much light for the other conditions you have.


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## carpguy (Feb 3, 2006)

I'm running a 96w CF over a 30g and don't have any trouble with BGA. 

Your ferts look very low. I'd test for levels and work out a scheme that works for you, but I dose KNO3 at about 1/2 teaspoon 2 or 3 times a week in a similar sized tank (may have wildly different plant or fish loads: your mileage may vary). 

BGA is associated with low Nitrates. You're dosing seems very conservative. I'd start there.


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## hoppycalif (Apr 7, 2005)

You can use 3+ watts per gallon if you maintain very good control over the amounts of all of the fertilizers in the water, so they never drop too low, and maintain CO2 concentration high, always at the same level every day and reaching that level very close to when the lights come on in the morning. Plus, you need to maintain good water circulation throughout the tank and do regular maintenance - pruning out excess growth, cleaning up dead leaves and debris, etc. But, if you are like me, and tend to let some of the maintenance slide, or allow the plants to get too thick, which kills the water circulation, you are very likely to have algae problems with that much light.

I gave up the battle and switched my 110 watts of light down to 72 watts, on a 45 gallon tank, and have had no regrets at all. When I had the 110 watts on a 29 gallon tank I learned what virtually all forms of algae look like and how fast they could grow. I didn't really want that knowledge.


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## carpguy (Feb 3, 2006)

BGA is associated with low nitrate levels. You have BGA. You have low nitrate levels.

According to the Fertilator you're currently dosing 3.9ppm Nitrate. That's your high point. If you're zeroing out between dosings, that's your range: 0 to 3.9ppm. That's low for Nitrate. The usual recommended range is 10 to 20 ppm.

I've run both 72 watts of CF and 96 watts over my 30g. When I wasn't as able to stay on top of ferts and maintenance, I've had problems. When I've been able to devote the energy, I've been more successful but its always a work in progress. The time and energy your willing and able to devote is up to you and in the long run you its true that you may be happier with lower light.

But before I had another lamp shipped across the pond, I'd try increasing your dosing. Change one thing at a time. If that doesn't work, try something else.

If you do decide to drop your lighting down you may be able to DIY it so that you can keep the better part of your investment. When I went from 2x36w CF to 1x96w, I just changed the bulbs and the endcaps. Same (DIY) canopy, same ballast. Worth looking into.

(And fair or not fair, most folks assume US gallons: if you're going to use Imperial take care to call it out).


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## satsumas (Nov 20, 2006)

Right! Thanks for all those replies, they do help me a lot and its good to get some advice and help like that.

I do let my maintenance slide, i was due to do water changes yesterday and was about to when the man from SKY turned up early to fit my SKY+ box and another standard one. (I think he wanted to get the 'nightmare' job out of the way so turned up earlier)

Anyway i think what would be good for me is to have a tank that allows for a little slip in maintenance, im not the most lazy person in the world but i am a little and having a tank that doesnt have such high demands would suit me more. Im a true believer in the saying, 'whatever you put into life you'll get out' and i hope that whatever tank i have reflects the effort that i put into it.

Also im new to the high light/heavily planted tank so starting off as it seems in the deep end isnt a good idea.

I think what i need to do is get a bigger tank or new light, a bigger tank will take the demands of maintenance down. As a begginer i think i need to feel my way into EI and find a schedule that works for me by experimenting a little, now i need to know certain amounts that would be catastrophic obviously but i think common sense would come into play there.
One good thing about the idea of getting a new tank is that i didnt buy the original so i wouldnt loose out so much if i did.

However i did buy the light and it wasnt too cheap either, i think about £80-120 in the end, with shipping costs etc...
I was thinking that my light fixture is 36" long or 3 foot and a bigger tank for example a 4' it obviously isnt going to fit, so what would i do? DIY would seem to be the solution

I do think in the not too distant future 6 months maybe, i'll take one tank down and replace it with a new one, a much bigger one, maybe a 60 gal or even 80+. I could drop my lighting on the 22 gal and take down my 20 to be replaced by a new tank.
That tank would probably include some of the fish i've wanted or kept in the past, almost like a 'favourites' tank, i've been interested in some fish that were just too big to keep, so i could consider those. Also some of the fish that i could've had but werent compatable, available or ones that i overlooked in favour of something else.

I have some serious thinking to do!

My main priority comes first though, and it happens to be a car!
Typically an expensive, money saving priority.
Well i can do my thinking in the process i suppose.


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