Green water

[angelina]

(I hope this is the correct place to post this!)
The water in my P. waltl newt tank suddenly has a green tinge to it. I'm assuming it's algae. How do I get rid of it...or do I need to?
I currently exchange 1/3 of the water weekly. I tested the Ph and it's perfect, plus it's filtered. I siphon the bottom on a regular basis. The tank doesn't get any sun, just incandescent light.
So, what's up?

 

[david]

Incandescent light can cause algae

 

[jennifer]

If you don't mind the appearance of it, you can just leave it alone, it's harmless. If your tank has gravel, consider that there may be decaying material down there that is feeding the algae.

 

[colin]

How long is your tank's photoperiod? could it be too long?

The most common reason for green water is a long photoperiod coupled with excess nutrients in the water.

Personally I dont mind it so much as not all amphibians live in chrystal clear water in the wild... Adding carbon to a filter will help remove any impurities in the water and a trick i was once told about is to put the lights on a timer and in the middle of the light cycle get the lights to switch off for an hour, apparantly the algae cant adapt to the disruption in its photosynthesis.... maybe worth a try?

(Message edited by colin on March 29, 2004)