Evolution of a nano 9.5 gallon long

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Anonymous

Guest
Evolution of a nano 9.5 gallon long

Nothing to do here so since I've been sharing my successes with planted tanks and fish keeping I thought I would share my great nano failure.

My smallest of tanks is my biggest of headaches. I so wanted this tank to be a mini show tank. Algae and death, parameter inconsistency, crashes. Ugh... This is my last attempt before I toss it in my driveway. I've been working on keeping the parameters stable with buffers and minimizing foods in the tank.

Past thread

Here is the tank. This actually looks good, ha! I've been cleaning it out EVERY WEEK. This is ONE week of accumulation. Dusty algae, slimy algae covering everything.


After a front glass scrub.


Water change and re scape. I've put some woods in that I've attached plants and mosses to some time ago with hopes of putting them back into this tank. Then put in 5 Amano shrimp , and now my fingers are crossed.



If anyone wants to throw in their $0.02 about algae control, nano experience (good or bad), or just something to add along those lines please jump in.
 
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cichlid-gal

New Member
Re: Evolution of a nano 9.5 gallon long

I have my dwarf blue panda guppies and a couple of snails housed in my 9G nano.  I had some algae start to take off in it when I first set it up as I had two lights on it (the Eheim ones that are for the setup).  I removed the 2nd light going down to one light only.  The light is on about 10 hours a day.

The substrate is a plant substrate so I do not add ferts.  About once a week I dose Excel at the daily dose.  I only have low need plants in the tank - cryptocorynes and needle leaf java attached to a big piece of wood.

I do water changes once a week, 50% out.  I clean the intank filter once every two weeks.  The tank has been up and running since January.  I'll get an updated pic later today after the sun comes up :).

EDITED TO ADD PIC (doesn't look much different from setup...LOL)
 
pbmax

pbmax

Active Member
Re: Evolution of a nano 9.5 gallon long

My only truly successful nano tank is a 3g picotope with amazonia 2. It has a carpet of m. minuta and some narrow-leaf ludwigia that does pretty well. I used to have a 13w CFL over it, but I have a 10" fugeray on it now.

It has a sponge filter and a 25w heater and some RCS in it. I change the water every few months at best, I feed the shrimp about once a week, and I add no ferts. I clean the glass about every 2 months and there's no other algae growth to speak of. I know right away if I've added too much food because I get a green water bloom - that's been the challenge with this tank. It's been crystal clear for the last 6 months or so, however.

I just tossed the contents of a 2.5g planted out under the rhodies yesterday... that one I never could stabilize. Nanos are a pain.  :suspect:  I won't go less than 10g again, personally. And I keep my 10g tanks very low tech with minimal ferts to avoid frustration.
 
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Anonymous

Guest
Re: Evolution of a nano 9.5 gallon long

I like pictures :)please do share.

@ Donna, The current lighting is an AquaTop 7,000K LED, switched this with a FugeRay planted+ thinking the change in spectrum would do someone different. It hasn't. When I had the planted+ on it I played with lighting duration, intensity by attaching mesh to block lighting. I've trying no ferts, little bit of ferts, lots of ferts. There is a large (for this tank) canister filter & spray bar. I can adjust flow using a ball valve. So, I've tried minimal flow, high flow.... Humm

This time I'm trying full light from the AquaTop, and blasting CO2 into the tank, PH buffered by coral. Let's see what that does...

@ pbmax, you know... I think after this last attempt I may try low tech. No CO2, low light plants only and perhaps completely mesh out the AquaTop. I've been told many timse to keep the CO2 and fert constant. But most that I talk to are thinking the system is still new when in fact it's been running since last summer. It's got everyone scratching heads. Thanks for the input. It's reassuring that other fish keepers with experience have the same troubles.
 
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cichlid-gal

New Member
Re: Evolution of a nano 9.5 gallon long

My 10g tank just had a near green water situation I think.  I got one of the 10" fugeray planted lights at the auction and put it on the tank along with the single bright marineland that I'd been running on the tank.  I also think I overdosed by putting in too many of the root fertilizer tabs.  It almost looked like I was going to have green algae everywhere in the tank.  

I panicked as I've never had that happen.  I pulled the new light (the fuge-ray), I did a big clean on the tank with a gravel vac and did a large water change.  I darkened the tank for a day and then ran short spans of light for a couple of days (where I did like 3 hours on 3 off 3 on in a day) and I seem to have staunched whatever was going on.  The tank has cleared.  I am watching that one closely.  Pics of that one will come too Chad.

Have you done a substrate clean Chad?

EDITED TO ADD PIC (this tank looks pretty dirty as it hasn't had it's weekly cleaning...oh well)
 
pbmax

pbmax

Active Member
Re: Evolution of a nano 9.5 gallon long

I had a brief green water bloom when I switched to the 10" fugeray also, but thankfully it didn't last long and it never came back.
 
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Anonymous

Guest
Re: Evolution of a nano 9.5 gallon long

I cleaned the substrate as much as I could with a carpet of dwarf chain sword on the bottom. Lots of debris accumulate over the week and I vacuum as much as I can out. I've never seen so much debris accumulate. There is a couple Malaysian trumpets in the tank but not enough to clean this mess. Perhaps I should dump another 20 snails in there to munch on the debris? Ive cut feeding down to just a couple blood worms a day for the remaining 2 puffers. I was going to remove them and just go fishless, then dump a bunch of snails and shrimp in.
 
pbmax

pbmax

Active Member
Re: Evolution of a nano 9.5 gallon long

Dump some shrimp in and your debris problems go away, provided you don't have those puffers in there to eat the shrimp. ;)

I don't think more snails will help here; shrimp are more effective at mulm-elimination in my experience.
 
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KaraWolf

Member
Re: Evolution of a nano 9.5 gallon long

my 2 gallon has massive hair and fuzz algae problems. I have mostly given up on keeping it clear. Though Friday I took a stick and ripped at the grass. Was amazed at how much of the fuzz algae came out because it was living on dead yellow grass. I actually don't feed nearly ever because the endlers are always picking at stuff in the tank and not too interested in any food.the hair algae comes out when I twirl a stick in there but never all of it.
 
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cichlid-gal

New Member
Re: Evolution of a nano 9.5 gallon long

Thanks Chad and maybe adding some floaters to your tank to pick up those extra nutrients and give a little cover also. Both of these tanks have them.
 
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Anonymous

Guest
Re: Evolution of a nano 9.5 gallon long

I tried them. At one time the surface was covered with Salvinia. And eventually they just rotted out. At the moment I have the spray bar pointed up for surface current and on full power. Basically trying to see if high current will make a difference. I've been looking into lilly pipes. Maybe I'll try installing something that provides a gentle flow while still providing the same circulation, then floaters may do better.

I've tried everything Donna.  :scratch: still trying different system combo's.
 
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bronzefighter

Member
Re: Evolution of a nano 9.5 gallon long

Maybe I've just had crazy luck, but my Spec V has been the easiest tank to take care of. I sort of...um...negelect it :|Aside from topping off evaporation, I did the first water change in like 3 months yesterday. I don't dose anything, and I forget to turn the light on (or off!) all the time. I do get a small amount of hair algae growing in the fissidens, but that's about it. Stock is a ton of RCS, which probably helps with any algae control, 2 otos, a single dwarf honey gourami, 3 celestial pearls, and few pseudomugil 'neon-red blue eyes.'

The tank still looks just like this, aside from the stargrass being pulled and replaced with rotala rotundifolia green, the hydrocotyle has tripled in size, and the fissidens has spread almost all the way across the top of the tank. only floaters i have is some stray duckweed and riccia.









As far as your tank goes, what are you doing about ferts and lights?
 
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Anonymous

Guest
Re: Evolution of a nano 9.5 gallon long

Thats super nice bronzefighter! I've been monitoring PH closely and making adjustments. 3 days ago PH was so low it didn't even register, added some buffer. Yesterday was at 6.2 maybe... Added more buffer. I am thinking maybe the low PH maybe contributing to the algae dysfunction? Ill check again this evening and update.
 
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bronzefighter

Member
Re: Evolution of a nano 9.5 gallon long

Do you normally have low PH coming out of the tap? If not, what could be causing the PH drop?

And, just because it happens, is your testing method reliable?
 
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Anonymous

Guest
Re: Evolution of a nano 9.5 gallon long

Tap has always tested neutral. In all 3 tanks the PH will drop and does so without CO2. I have figured over time its decomposing plant matter and woods. One piece of wood I have in my 140 is over 10 years old SUBMERGED. In spots the surface of the wood is so soft I can attach plants using tooth picks. I digress, back to the 9.5; So, I am adding crushed corals to boost the PH back up. Its been 24 hours amd there is already a layer of algae covering all the plants and a layer of dust algae on the glass. So frustrating...
 
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Anonymous

Guest
Re: Evolution of a nano 9.5 gallon long

I use a master test kit. API? ADI? Something like that.
 
dwarfpike

dwarfpike

Well-Known Member
Re: Evolution of a nano 9.5 gallon long

Can't say I've ever done a nano tank, and my algae treatments usually start and end with excel so won't be of any help, but I find your pH really odd. Maybe take some out, airstone it for a while and test it? Let the CO2 gas off and get a better idea?
 
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Anonymous

Guest
Re: Evolution of a nano 9.5 gallon long

I'm on it... Going LOW tech.
 
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bronzefighter

Member
Re: Evolution of a nano 9.5 gallon long

fishNAbowl said:
I use a master test kit. API? ADI? Something like that.
Click to expand...
The API one liquid one? Might want to check the expiration dates on the various reagents, just an fyi. anyways, any possible source of excess nutrients, intentional or not? fert dosing, weird substrate additions?
 
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