# green water



## taillight (May 19, 2009)

hey,

i'm new to this site and new to owning fish. i have a 48g bowfront and a 2213 ehiem filter. my question is i just did a cleaning and a 25 % water change and now my water is not clear, it has a green tinge to it. at the time of the water change i added a dose of water conditioner, the water has gotten a little greener so i did a 100% complete change of the filter and added some aqua clear... any suggestions, it was getting a lot of sunlight with the drapes open for the last few weeks


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## planter (Jun 9, 2008)

sunlight is most likey the reason for the green water. keep the shades closed for now and see if thst helps. Don't worry about the fish the green water will not harm them.


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## Darkblade48 (Jan 28, 2008)

taillight said:


> i have a 48g bowfront and a 2213 ehiem filter.


I would say your tank is underfiltered; a 2213 is a pretty small canister filter for a tank that size. What is your stocking like?



taillight said:


> ...so i did a 100% complete change of the filter and added some aqua clear...


I would keep an eye on your ammonia and nitrite levels. By cleaning out your filter, you have eliminated all the beneficial bacteria that were present. As such, your tank may experience a new cycle.



taillight said:


> any suggestions, it was getting a lot of sunlight with the drapes open for the last few weeks


As planter said, you should close the drapes. The excess sunlight is probably what caused the green water. For now, it is just a minor green tinge (you should see what pea soup looks like).


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## taillight (May 19, 2009)

i just went to big al's in concord, they tested the water and said that the amonia levels were to hi and gave me some bio something so i put it in and now will wait. thanks for the help !


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## planter (Jun 9, 2008)

I am not sure if you are aware of the cycling process. Most beginners are not. Please do not take offense if you know what it is but in case that you don't here is a link that explains it. Please be careful cleaning out filters especially in a new setup.

http://board.fishchannel.com/Topic158151-19-1.aspx

I hope this helps.


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## bluekrissyspikes (Apr 16, 2009)

sunlight can cause green water breakouts but it's actually fairly normal to have different colours during the cycling process. sometimes it's green, sometimes cloudy white or even yellow. i'd cut down the light a bit and let it run it's course. do you have a strong light on the tank as well as having sun coming in? that might be problematic.


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