Guppy Fry Grow-out tank water is always lightly green

[Mountain Man Aquatics]

Hey guys, long time follower of the hobby and AQ Co-Op, but first time poster. I currently run a 10 gallon guppy fry grow out tank, small breeding for profit operation, but my water in said tank always seem to be green. I don't have any huge excess of algae on the tank wall, do 50% water changes weekly, and feed the Serra Micron food. I have tried and tried to get it back to clear, but to no avail. Any input?

[lefty o]

the green itself is an algae of sorts. honestly i would just leave it, as juvenile fish seem to do very well in it. if it really bothers you, my guess is the tank gets a lot of natural daylight, that needs to be eliminated, and water changes until clear.

[Mountain Man Aquatics]

53 minutes ago, lefty o said:

the green itself is an algae of sorts. honestly i would just leave it, as juvenile fish seem to do very well in it. if it really bothers you, my guess is the tank gets a lot of natural daylight, that needs to be eliminated, and water changes until clear.

I have been doing at least 50% every weds for three weeks, and have now eliminated all natural lighting to the room. My thought is maybe it is coming from the Serra Micron food? What do you think?

[Daniel]

I always consider green water in a fry growth tank a substantial benefit. I wouldn't change anything as eventually it will clear up on its on. But in the meantime, consider it a feature, not a bug!

I looked at the green water the other day from my fry grow out tank and here is what it looked like.

 

[Mountain Man Aquatics]

4 minutes ago, Daniel said:

I always consider green water in a fry growth tank a substantial benefit. I wouldn't change anything as eventually it will clear up on its on. But in the meantime, consider it a feature, not a bug!

I look at the green water the other day from my fry grow out tank and here is what it looked like.

 

I just always find myself so envious of how pristine Dean's tanks are! I am starting my own YouTube channel, creative I know, and would like to feature tanks without the uninformed feedback of "your tanks dirty". Does that make sense? I totally understand the benefits of algal blooms, I have fully embraced it in my mixed African and S. American cichlid 75G. I would just like my "feature tanks" for videos to be the best looking they can be. 🙂 

[Brandy]

34 minutes ago, Mountain Man Aquatics said:

I just always find myself so envious of how pristine Dean's tanks are! I am starting my own YouTube channel, creative I know, and would like to feature tanks without the uninformed feedback of "your tanks dirty". Does that make sense? I totally understand the benefits of algal blooms, I have fully embraced it in my mixed African and S. American cichlid 75G. I would just like my "feature tanks" for videos to be the best looking they can be. 🙂 

I get this. It is sad and ironic that we need to keep tanks looking good even though a less attractive tank would be better for the fish. I run inot this in more than just fish--people believe all kinds of false things about how animals "want" things to be.

I have 2 fry boxes in one of my tanks now. The first batch of fry had a brand new pristine box and the loss rate was high. My second batch went into the same box which is now COVERED with brown diatom algae and biofilm. I clean a little window every few days with a toothbrush so I can keep an eye on the fry. I have lost like 4 fry from that batch.

Some of the point of a Youtube channel is to educate. If you are making a channel about breeding fish, you probably need to do it the way that actually works for you.  Dean has daily water changes, zero natural light, and he keeps his lights on only when he is in the room basically. The tanks are not lit like a fish store all the time--I remember him talking about it on one of the fishroom tours.

That is a way to go, for sure, and works great for him. I am new, and I don't do everything perfect, so that scuz on the fry box is my insurance food.

[lefty o]

53 minutes ago, Mountain Man Aquatics said:

I just always find myself so envious of how pristine Dean's tanks are! I am starting my own YouTube channel, creative I know, and would like to feature tanks without the uninformed feedback of "your tanks dirty". Does that make sense? I totally understand the benefits of algal blooms, I have fully embraced it in my mixed African and S. American cichlid 75G. I would just like my "feature tanks" for videos to be the best looking they can be. 🙂 

if you watch enough co-op video's, there is one that shows dean has a green water tank.

[Biotope Biologist]

Have you tried macro-invertebrates such as Daphnia or Cyclopidae? They serve a dual purpose in that they eat the free floating algae (FFA) and are a good source of protein for your fry. I would provide some java moss or Riccia fluitans as shelter for the various animals. The plants also serve a dual purpose to actively compete with algae and reduce stress to the animals. 

 

Hope this helps!

Edited February 25, 2021 by Biotope Biologist

[Mountain Man Aquatics]

3 hours ago, Biotope Biologist said:

Have you tried macro-invertebrates such as Daphnia or Cyclopidae? They serve a dual purpose in that they eat the free floating algae (FFA) and are a good source of protein for your fry. I would provide some java moss or Riccia fluitans as shelter for the various animals. The plants also serve a dual purpose to actively compete with algae and reduce stress to the animals. 

 

Hope this helps!

I have not. I have very limited resources at my disposal here in Montana. Our LFS are very basically stocked and more are geared towards Reef/Marine tanks. I will do some research on that though, and see if I can source some online or something. I actually just moved some plants into the tank, but unfortunately again, both my local LFS have been out of Java Moss for months and are unable to get any either. Weather is a huge factor here in Montana, and it controls how often or if we can ever get live fish and or plants shipped in. 

[Mountain Man Aquatics]

The only difference between the two other tanks is I don’t feed Sera Micron to them. I’m still at a loss. I did a majority water change to test my theory, and water stayed clear while feeding something else, but the morning after my wife fed for me and used Sera Micron, it turned green.