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Whats this algae and how do I rid of it?

So what you guys are basically saying is I should clean all of my filter media with tank water?

Should I go buy a product that helps bacteria to grow in the tank/filter, like sera filter biostart?
 
Yes, just use tank water de-chlorinating after you've bathed the filter in chlorine does nothing :)

I wouldn't worry about the filter boosting products you have everything you need in your tank already you just need to let it move to the right place. Let it run for a week and then remove as much as you can from the tank whist leaving the filter well alone.

If you have no fish then personally I'd let the filter run for at least two weeks mabe even more before cleaning it again. Let the bacteria build up inside it but keep doing your weekly water changes.
 
Jaap

Did you take a look at the algae threads i linked too?

Johno has strengthened my diagnosis of brown algae :)

Strangly enough though i am going to tell you add NH3.

wait.........

Although Nh3 is contributing to the algae, this is because you are spiking the Nh3 by cleaning your filter in tap water and as johno says tank water is better or declorinated.

Adding NH3 will help kick in the nitrogen cycle, this is how you achieve a "fishless cycle". and this will produce good bacteria within your filter.

Add some fish later and this will keep the bacteria going. :)
 
Thanks everyone.

Can I ask, how do I get ammonia spikes when there are no fish in the tank?
 
Johno2090 said:
That sounds like your most likely problem right there mate, running the sponges under water is killing the good bacteria and the sponges are what converts the waste. By doing this the bacteria are choosing to live in your tank and not your filter.

I thought the ceramic material is what did all the job and the sponges just collected large particles floating in the water like dead leaves etc.
 
The sponges are your first port of call in the filter you'll always get bacteria growing there in large quantities, your tank has no fish thus the ammonia will be small and due to organic breakdown amongst other things. Probably enough for the sponges to convert but not for a decent amount to grow on the ceramics to counter the chlorine bath which then adds ammonia from the dead bacteria on the sponges.

Just my opinion mate what have you got to lose, try it and see!
 
Johno2090 said:
The sponges are your first port of call in the filter you'll always get bacteria growing there in large quantities, your tank has no fish thus the ammonia will be small and due to organic breakdown amongst other things. Probably enough for the sponges to convert but not for a decent amount to grow on the ceramics to counter the chlorine bath which then adds ammonia from the dead bacteria on the sponges.

Just my opinion mate what have you got to lose, try it and see!

Thanks mate...I will definitely try this don't get me wrong :)

I am just trying to understand how I get ammonia spikes when I have no fauna in the tank. So basically ammonia spikes come from the dead bacteria I kill when running the sponges under running water and from dead leaves?
 
clean your filter sponges in tank water. Just a quick rinse is all it needs. you do not want to remove all the good stuff. Also, your filter is not mature-because there is not enough waste for it to consume.
 
So let me get this right....if I leave my filter for a couple of weeks without cleaning it, and after that if I clean my filter with tank water....will that eliminate the nasty thread brown algae?
 
I doubt you'd need to worry about cleaning the filter at all, the bacteria level should build up and there will be little to no physical muck in the filter to clean out as there are no fish.
 
Nry that was my initial thoughts, cleaning it probably does more bad than good at this stage.
 
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