Need help with algae!

[BoxTurtle52]

I've been having a terrible algae problem in my turtle tank. It's a 120 gallon (high) tank filled up about halfway. I'm using two 40 gallon Tetra Whisper power filters. I change the filters' cartridges every two weeks. I've tried everything I know, but the algae just keeps coming back! I heard about uv sterilizers which are supposed to eliminate the uv rays in the water (from the heat lamps) which can cause algae. Has anybody tried these, and if so, do they work?

If anybody has any tips, I'd love to hear them.

[Pikey]

UV Sterilizers use a High power UVC (i think) bulb to kill the bacteria in the water, never used one in a tank before, but they work great as a drinking water purifier.

They are usually really expensive (last i knew)

[the enigma]

UV sterilizers are expensive the cheapest I've ever seen was about $99. But They work great. When I kept Turtles I had a twenty gallon tank and I used some of this tetra algae remover. The way it works is like this: You scrub all the algae off then you add the Algae treatment solution (find at pet store). One thing you should be careful of if you go with the UV sterilizer is that It will kill the algae and give you the wickedest ammonia spike immaginable.

[laurarfl]

I just use the algae treatment drops found in the pet shop for my gator tank. I don't mind a little algae to oxygenate the water, just don't want a bloom in there!

I would imagine anything that uses UV to kill living organisms would also be harmful for the living organisms we keep as pets. I'm not sure how one works, but I wouldn't want it to contact the turtle in any way.

[Pikey]

they work (in the most basic terms) by pumping water in to a chamber that has a clear plastic tube that the mini tube light fits into the light then sterilizes the water then it pumps back to the tap/tank/or where ever. the light it's self is sheilded from ever being seen (cuz it will REALLY screw your eyes up real bad) so your pets or what not will never come incontact with the light it's self just the water that passes around it.

[BoxTurtle52]

Alright, now I'm getting kinda freaked out by the UV sterilizers. Maybe I'll just give the algae treatment stuff a try?

[tupinambis]

The other things to think about are A)plant nutrient availability and B)photoperiod. With turtles, there is simply going to be a high amount of nutrient availability for the algae. Turtles are natures greatest crap production machines. You can try lowering the amount of some of the nutrients by using special filter media that specifically absorbs phosphorus and other elements.

As for the photoperiod, from what I've understood is the longer your lights are on, the greater the algae problem you will have. Anything longer than 12 hours of light is going to greatly increase algae levels.

As for the sterilizers, in most ways they are perfectly save. The UV rays they produce are not going to escape and harm your animals, they're designed to avoid this issue. This being said, there is a possibility of a different hazard. Some compounds photoreact to produce other, harmful compounds. I was once told by a marine biologist that some copper based products become deadly to fish when a UV sterilizer becomes used. I've seen first hand the troubles that UV sterilizers can cause with some dissolved chemicals, and can say there appears to be some truth to this. However, I have also used UV sterilizers with turtles and had NO problems whatsoever. I would have no hesitation for recommending UV sterilizers for use with turtles. The only thing I would say is the water going through the sterilizer needs to be filtered first, otherwise the density of large particulate matter that accompanies most turtles will severly truncate the effectiveness of a UV sterilizer.

[the enigma]

I beleive the only thing you can't use a UV on is like a saltwater reef set up. (clams, corals and stuff like that are filter feeders and feed off of the stuff that the UV is killing)

[BoxTurtle52]

I got another idea. What about a pleco? I've heard they eat algae, but wouldn't my turtle rip him to shreds?

[the enigma]

Most Likely...also it is kinda hard to keep them alive of pure algae