Are you trying to ensure that backup water supply is safe from algae? Read on to find out how to keep algae out of you water tank.
When most people think about where our oxygen comes from, they think about trees and other terrestrial plants. But the truth is the vast majority of oxygen on our planet comes from algae, not trees. In fact, scientists estimate that almost 90% of Earth’s oxygen comes from algae!
That makes algae extremely important for our survival. At the same time, it is just as important that we do not have algae where we don’t want it, especially in water storage tanks. Algae compromise the quality of water, making it unsafe for both humans and animals.
How to Keep Algae Out of Your Water Storage Tank
Water and energy are some of the most important things in a survival situation.
For most people, the most important thing is to know how to prevent algae from growing in a water tank in the first place. Although it is always helpful to know how to remove grown algae, knowing how to prevent it will help you avoid cleaning your tank regularly.
o, How to Keep Algae Out of Your Water Storage Tank? Read on to learn all about the most efficient techniques you can use to keep your water storage tank free of algae!, you need to deprive it of the things it needs to reproduce. Algae depend on sunlight and nutrients, such as nitrogen and phosphorus, to grow. Although you can target either nutrients or sunlight, it is often easier to target sunlight.
If you can keep any sunlight from getting into your water tank, it will be impossible for algae to grow inside. That is why it is important to pick water tanks that are opaque. A sufficiently opaque water storage tank will not allow any sunlight in at all.
But what if your water tank is only partially opaque? You need to keep absolutely all sunlight out. And what if your water tank is transparent?
In either case, you can paint the water tanks, making them opaque and thus keeping sunlight out. Depending on how transparent your water tank is, you might need to use more or less paint. The more transparent your water tank is, the more layers of paint you will need to use.
Understand How to Clean Water Tanks With Algae Growth
Even if you eliminate all sunlight, it can take a long time for algae to go away if it had already grown. In most cases, people want a faster way to kill the algae growing inside their water tank.
Bleach is an effective tool for killing the algae in your tank. You need about a quarter teaspoon of bleach for every gallon of water you store. That might seem like a tiny quantity, but bleach is powerful. This quantity of bleach will kill all the algae inside your tank.
It is important not to use more bleach than recommended. You will still be able to drink the water as long as you do not use too much bleach in it.
Use the Right Amount of Chemicals to Ward off Algae
You can use other chemicals to keep any algae from growing in your water tank. Chlorine is a good example. This chemical is proven to reduce bacteria and viruses in water.
As long as you do not use too much chlorine, the water in your storage tank will be safe to drink. If you add about four parts chlorine for every million parts of water, it will keep algae from growing.
Is Algae in Water Tanks Dangerous?
Unfortunately, no matter who is drinking your water, human or animal, if it has algae in it, there will tend to be negative effects. First of all, it will taste and smell much worse than pure drinking water. This is actually a good thing since it keeps people from drinking it without noticing.
However certain kinds of algae create toxins. If people drink them in, breathing complications can develop.
In some cases, it can lead to skin irritation. That is why water with algae is not even suitable for washing clothes.
There are similar problems with trying to give water with algae to animals. It can cause serious health problems in cats and dogs and even lead to poisoning.
You shouldn’t use algae-contaminated water to wash your pets either. Just as with humans, water with algae in it can cause skin irritation in pets.
You might imagine that you can at least use this water for plants. However, algae can interfere with the proper growth of plants. You want to keep it far away from any plants that you care about.
Additionally, if you try to eat plants that have been exposed to algae, health problems can occur. The harmful toxins from the algae can end up in the plant and the fruits that might grow on it.
How Can I Recognize Algae in Water?
You can generally tell if your water has algae in it by the color. Algae will usually turn water green. In other cases, it might turn water blue-green.
Additionally, you can detect algae in water by the smell. Algae cause water to have a grassy or fishy odor.
How to Keep Algae Out of Your Water Storage Tank?
Algae has its fair share of advantages to humanity, but it can also turn deadly when it finds its way into drinking water. Water storage tanks are especially prone to algae growth if proper care isn’t observed.
If you have a water storage tank, you now know the steps you can take to prevent algae growth, as well as what you can do to kill the algae if it has already grown in your tank. Although it can take a little bit of time to combat this problem, it is more than worth it to keep your water clean.
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