algae problems
OK. You should go to my blog and then go to the “A to Z of Fish Keeping” page and near the top of that page, there are links to two different online tutorials to teach you the basics of fish keeping. There is no charge for these services.
You cannot leave your lights on 24/7. That is a big cause of your algae problems. Your tank lighting should mimic the natural cycle of daylight and nighttime. The way I do it is around 7 a.m. when I wake up, I turn on a lamp to dimly light the room. Then I’ll turn on the room lights. Around 9 a.m., I’ll turn on the tank lights. Then I reverse this process at night. Around 6-7 p.m., I turn on the room lights and turn off the tank light. Then around 8 p.m., I turn on a lamp and turn off the room lights. I leave this lamp on as long as I am working at my desk but if I do not have work to do, then I turn this lamp off also so the room is dark, like nighttime. This procedure simulates the sun rising, getting brighter, full daylight (tank lights on), nearing dusk, getting dark and then full darkness. Leaving your lights on all of the time will also have an adverse affect on your fishes health as it will cause them stress. In nature, fish get around 12 hours of partial to full lighting and 12 hours of partial to full darkness. You want to mimic this with your fish.
You never answered my questions about how often are you doing PWC’s. It would be a good idea to at least do weekly 25% PWC’s but you may need to do them more frequently but we would need to know your test results to get you on a good schedule.
You should also work on getting a Master Test Kit, ASAP, with at least ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and pH tests. API makes a master test kit for under $20.00 and this kit will last you at least a year even with doing frequent testing. I also have a Tetra-Laborette test kit that has the GH and KH tests, as well as the others. It was also under $20.00 online.
Lenny Vasbinder Fish Blog - http://GoldLenny.blogspot.com
Category: Philippines Internet Koi Society
