My water is green for the gold fish. How do I get clear again.?

Question

My fish are in an aquarium and the water is green. I went to the pet shop and they gave me Stress Coat. I have acure to keep the aquarium chrystal clear, but it is not working. Thank you for helping me out with this problem.

Answer 1

No no... DON'T take the tank apart. That won't solve your problem - you'll just get green algae again. DON'T get a sucker fish / algae eater - they will nibble some aglae, but they can't clean green water. Same goes with snails. DON'T get a chemical. It will remove some algae temporarily, but it will have side effects on your fish - and once the chemical is gone, you will have green water again.

You need to fix the root of the problem.

Other than water, algae needs to two things to grow: light, and nutrients. Do you have too much light? Your lights should be on for 10 or so hours per day. If they are on for longer than that, they are encouraging algae growth. You can get a 5$ timer to control your photoperiod.
Is your tank right by a window? Sunlight causes huge algae blooms. If so, move your tank from the window, or cover the side of the tank that is facing the window.

The other cause is nutrients. These come from fish food and fish waste. Is it possible you are overfeeding? Fish have very small stomachs and very appetites. Only feed what your fish can eat in about 30 seconds, twice a day. Resist the puppy eyes and don't give too much food.
Do you clean your tank enough? Goldfish are poop machines. You need to clean your water every week, and vacuum the gravel - replace about 30% of the water. You can do this once every other day under the green water goes away.
Is it possible your tank is too much? Goldfish are high waste producers, and they are big heavy fish. Each goldfish needs at least 15 gallons of water.

Answer 2

If the water is GREEN, you need to do a good water change NOW...about 15% or so maybe 20%. Are you using any filtration? If so...make sure you replace the chemical media in it at least once every month. Filters like carbon are great for removing toxins, odors and discoloration from water....but if you leave it in too long it will actually start leeching toxins back into the water which can cause big problems.

I would do a few water changes over the next couple days, maybe do an intial water change of about 15% or so, then do a 5-10% water change every other day for the next week. Keep those filters clean and pumping water. It should clear up.

Answer 3

Change 10% of the water every day for fresh , clean water, or the whole tank every week. Also, do you have an air pump and water filter?

Are you over-feeding the fish? Follow the food directions.

To get a good start on the problem, clean the whole tank now and follow the top rule going forward.

Answer 4

Is there so much dirt in the tank it is turning green? or is the water itself green? If it is actually the water it sounds like an algae bloom. Do a 75 percent water change, and then leave your lights off for 24 hours. Then do another 75 percent water change. Goldfish are very dirty fish. You need to change their water more frequently than other fish. Plus make sure you are not over feeding them.

Answer 5

Clean out the tank, scrub everything and start over. You can go out and buy stuff to keep algie away as well and use that from now on. Also, make sure that the bowl is not in direct sunlight. Clean the tank every couple of weeks, taking out half of the water and replacing it with de-chlorinated water. (You can leave the water in another bowl for about 24 hours and then it will be safe for the fish)

Answer 6

Get a few snails from the pet store. They will also show you how to keep the tank clean. Fish may look easy but they do have their work in keeping them!

Answer 7

well, you can take out the fish,put them in another container with water temporarily ,clean the tank in the meantime by emptying it and washing all of its contents with clean water.don't use detergents or any other washing agents.then put it all back together,pour in clean water,get a power filter,and put the fish in again.i'm sure they'll be happy for quite a long time(say, a couple of weeks to a month)

Answer 8

change some of the water . change filter pad . get algae eater fish snails scrub the walls and a little at a time remove and wash the gravel from the bottom

Answer 9

well you can either change the filter if needed, get some algae eaters at your local pet store, change 20% of the water, or get a gravel cleaning system. thats should work good!

Answer 10

Algea Fix . My water turned green once and I found out it was an algea bloom. For me water changes didn't help so try Algea Fix. It worked great for me. And definately do not take out a lot of water you will mess up your water chemistery.