HELP. new to reef GOT green

[mikem104]

tank is 150 g. Got 4 fish and some corals
Everything was going great (6 months in)
Went on vacation for a long weekend. Think my in-laws had the lights on bright white for way too long. Came home to this. It’s been two week. Done about 6 water changes and still not clearing up.
Levels.
KH. 1.9 / 5.3
Ca. 400
Mg. 1400
Nitrate. 2.8.
Any help ?????

 

[MnFish1]

If thats the tank - I would do a huge water change. why? the algae bloom could easily starve out oxygen for the fish, etc. Siphon it all out

 

[KrisReef]

I'm no expert in Toxic Green Reef Tanks but if I guess it appears you have some kind of phytoplanktonic bloom going off in there.

Ways to attack:
Ultra Violet (UV) radiation
Lower Phosphate
Lower Nitrate
reduce lighting intensity and duration

You might be able to filter it out, but I don't know what to recommend to capture phytoplankton in your tank.

 

[MnFish1]

I'm no expert in Toxic Green Reef Tanks but if I guess it appears you have some kind of phytoplanktonic bloom going off in there.

Ways to attack:
Ultra Violet (UV) radiation
Lower Phosphate
Lower Nitrate
reduce lighting intensity and duration

You might be able to filter it out, but I don't know what to recommend to capture phytoplankton in your tank.

Or siphon it all out (ok not 100 %) - but a huge percent

 

[twelvefive]

Can Phytoplankton Reproduce On It's Own??

So I've had the little 10G nano up and running for a few months now and everything was going well until all of a sudden BOOM! For like 10 days now the water keeps getting "cloudier and cloudier" until now I have been just thinking must be a bacteria bloom. But today as I noticed it's getting...

www.reef2reef.com

 

[mike550]

Wow. I’d do a huge water change and go completely lights out for a few days. Also your Alk seems low.

How did they change your light settings?

 

[mikem104]

If thats the tank - I would do a huge water change. why? the algae bloom could easily starve out oxygen for the fish, etc. Siphon it all out

I am only running a protein skimmer. No sump. Heard a UV sterilizer would be a great option ?

 

[mikem104]

They had the lights on bright white 10-12 hrs. Didn’t use the Bluetooth setting I told them too. How do I do a 150 gallon water change at once lol. I only have a 35 gallon can for my RODI water And going lights out would not be good for my coral.

 

[mikem104]

Where I was at before vacation

 

[KrisReef]

They had the lights on bright white 10-12 hrs. Didn’t use the Bluetooth setting I told them too. How do I do a 150 gallon water change at once lol. I only have a 35 gallon can for my RODI water And going lights out would not be good for my coral.

The "trick" is to mix up 20 or so gallons and start pumping that into the system and then start pulling out water into another container, with a fine micron filter sock to start removing the green from the water. Keep removing water and then putting it back into the tank after it is filtered ( A circulation loop is the idea, with a filter in the middle). It is interesting that the skimmer isn't pulling more of this out.

 

[KrisReef]

Where I was at before vacation

From the green picture I didn't know it was an in wall tank that you used to be able to see through into the next room.

Maybe you should buy some live clams and sponges to filter the water for you?

 

[MnFish1]

I think - large water changes are the issue - not sure - just my opinion

 

[mike550]

They had the lights on bright white 10-12 hrs. Didn’t use the Bluetooth setting I told them too. How do I do a 150 gallon water change at once lol. I only have a 35 gallon can for my RODI water And going lights out would not be good for my coral.

Okay. You just reinforced my “no need to touch anything” approach to my tank.

Sorry. Didn’t realize it was a 150. Daily 35G changes will get you to around 15-16% of “old water” in a week. No idea how big algae are if you try to use a mechanical filter. As far as lights out goes for the coral think of it like cloudy days in the ocean. Also heard great things about “green machines” as well

 

[mikem104]

tank is 150 g. Got 4 fish and some corals
Everything was going great (6 months in)
Went on vacation for a long weekend. Think my in-laws had the lights on bright white for way too long. Came home to this. It’s been two week. Done about 6 water changes and still not clearing up.
Levels.
KH. 1.9 / 5.3
Ca. 400
Mg. 1400
Nitrate. 2.8.
Any help ?????

tank is 150 g. Got 4 fish and some corals
Everything was going great (6 months in)
Went on vacation for a long weekend. Think my in-laws had the lights on bright white for way too long. Came home to this. It’s been two week. Done about 6 water changes and still not clearing up.
Levels.
KH. 1.9 / 5.3
Ca. 400
Mg. 1400
Nitrate. 2.8.
Any help ?????

tank is 150 g. Got 4 fish and some corals
Everything was going great (6 months in)
Went on vacation for a long weekend. Think my in-laws had the lights on bright white for way too long. Came home to this. It’s been two week. Done about 6 water changes and still not clearing up.
Levels.
KH. 1.9 / 5.3
Ca. 400
Mg. 1400
Nitrate. 2.8.
Any help ?????

 

[MnFish1]

Here is a calculator - that helps you determine how much water to change - I'm not sure of your parameters - and they are probably not that helpful. https://www.hamzasreef.com/Contents/Calculators/EffectiveWaterChange.php

 

[harrylarry]

Try a uv?

 

[vetteguy53081]

tank is 150 g. Got 4 fish and some corals
Everything was going great (6 months in)
Went on vacation for a long weekend. Think my in-laws had the lights on bright white for way too long. Came home to this. It’s been two week. Done about 6 water changes and still not clearing up.
Levels.
KH. 1.9 / 5.3
Ca. 400
Mg. 1400
Nitrate. 2.8.
Any help ?????

High white intensity is one cause and issue. Is this tank near a window and receiving indirect sunlight?
I would look at filtration for anything clogged, Phosphate levels to see if they have become elevated and assure there was no overfeeding in your absence. Something caused a sudden rise in either bacterial colonies or organics to support algae causing them to be suspended in the water column causing the milky appearance due to increase in Phos-nitrate-nutrients.
Back in the day a diatom filter, even a canister filter with high grade carbon can remove many of the matter and entrap it thereby polishing the water.

 

[keithmeseroll]

Less light and feed less. I do a lot of fresh water (happens on occasion with too much nutrients and light) and this can be a bad thing for oxygenation of the water so put an air stone in to help keep oxygen levels up during this time. You will deal with lots of salt creep so just be aware of that. Lower your light time to about 8 hours and use lots of fine filtration. It'll clean up eventually. On the bright side you don't have to feed any corals. My quess is they left the light on and fed too much unfortunately. Everything will be fine though as long as your pets are getting the oxygen they need. Actually dreading having to leave my tank in the hands of my mom soon so I feel your pain

 

[mikem104]

I'm no expert in Toxic Green Reef Tanks but if I guess it appears you have some kind of phytoplanktonic bloom going off in there.

Ways to attack:
Ultra Violet (UV) radiation
Lower Phosphate
Lower Nitrate
reduce lighting intensity and duration

You might be able to filter it out, but I don't know what to recommend to capture phytoplankton in your tank.

How many watts UV sterilizer would I need for 150 g

 

[KrisReef]

How many watts UV sterilizer would I need for 150 g

They are rated by flow through the UV, more watts is faster flow, obviously. I have not used one in decades but was actually thinking about these yesterday, with the same question. I saw a few different UV, straight light, uv + filter and they all had claims that were not linear by watts from what I casually gathered. I didn't buy anything because I need to research the same question.

I don't know what turn over rate is recommend (or minimum) for a 150 gallon tank? My best recollection is a 25W unit is going to do the job, but I'm not familiar with what is recommended these day.

The secret is to find folks who have used one to verify manufactures claims.

(And since you asked, I had to go looking, found this;)

Not tested by me.