Freaking out!!!

Question
QUESTION: So here's my short version of what's taking place.  I have a 10 gallon tank w/ substrate and living plants, as well as about 12 or so fish (one loach, 4 danios, 3 chinese bottom feeders and four fish I have no idea what they are) and I had to upgrade my light to accomodate the plants growing in the tank.  I now have green algae growing on the plants only (even though the timer on the light is set for 8 hours) and all chemical levels seem to be where they should be (7.4ph, 0 ammonia) but my Nitrates and Nitrites have gone way up over the last two weeks (1.5 and 40).  The tank has been around since September, so it's not new tank syndrome.  I did have problems with cloudy water before, so had to use a water clarity drop but otherwise don't use much else in the way of chemicals.  I've been told by the pet store that my water is too soft (I live in a soft water zone) and have to put about a liter of water in a week because of evaporation from the tank.  Temp has been between 76-78.  One danio showed signs of stress and died within 12 hours.  What do I do to fix this issue?!  Sorry for the long winded email.

ANSWER: Hi Melanie: hmmm:  your pH is fine most fish like a pH of 7.0-8.0 and yours is just fine.  Algae is not a bad problem to have... it is basically a sign that your tank is healthy.  The plant light puts off more energy which plants then convert to food... so as long as your  main plants are healthy try to reduce the amount of light per day... if your tank is getting any kind of filtered light then count that as 30 minutes of light per one hour of time.  If your tank is getting direct sunlight then count that as one hour of light time.  When you add up the sunlight time of your tank and compare that with your goal of 8 hours of  light... you might find that your tank is getting 10-14 hours of light... so plan on reducing your plant light bulb time to = all the sunlight plus tank light bulb light into an 8 hour time period.  If this is confusing to you... then please let me know and I will break it down... lighting issues can be confusing... but basically algae needs light and oxygen to grow... reduce one or the other and the problem usually goes away... dave

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: What about the Nitrate / Nitrite problem I have?  I don't want my whole tank to drop dead.  I checked the levels again last night and they are still the same.  I don't overfeed the fish (they only get enough that they can devour in 2-3 minutes) so that's a little more of a concern.

Answer
Nitrate/nitrite issues are mostly due as the result of an ammonia issue... when they occur in situations where the ammonia is not present then I tend to look toward the filter cartridge of the tank... it may be time to change the filter media... add new carbon.  a good cleaning of the tank will also help to get rid of unwanted chemicals... you'd be surprised what seeps into the the gravel.  fish poop, etc are excellent contributors of bad chemicals in water.... keep me posted... dave