Cloudy haze in 5 month tank (pic)

[Anthony8858]

This is my first post to this board.

Besides my daughter's 5 gallon, this is my first tank.

Below is a pic of my 36 Gallon bow tank. You can clearly see the haze, and get an idea about my fish condition.

I'm running a Fluval 204 filter, with BioMax rings, carbon, and sponges.

My fish are:

2 Angels
2 Geos
2 Albinos
1 Shark Cat
1 Pleco

The Angels were about the size of a nickel when I bought them for my daughter's 5 gallon, but I put them in the 36 gal 4 months ago.

BTW...They've been "Going at it" lately. Any idea what's going on with that?
Here's a link to a pic:
http://home.earthlink.net/~achiusano/images/Angels.jpg

I feed basically every other day, and have NOT lost any fish. They all appear healthy.

I change about 25% water each week. And carbon gets changes monthly.

My water readings are:
Ammonia= 0
Nitrite=0
PH= 6.8

My tank has been running for 5 months.
Why the Haze?

http://home.earthlink.net/~achiusano/images/tank2.jpg

[resk]

it doesn't sound like the cloudy water is due to any lack of tank maintenance, and you have adequate filtration

fill a glass from the same water source as your tank, wait a couple of days and check this to see if you have the same results

algae blooms can make the water appear hazey, those are normal for newer tanks and go away after a few days

[750t]

Try some filter floss in one of trays of your fluval. Im not for sure thats your problem. But I use it and my tanks are crystal clear. Just out of curiosity what declohr are you using and do you add anything to your water? Tim

[fish_freak]

Its a bacterial bloom and the only way to get rid of it is to do nothing for a while. Moniter your water conditions and as long as nothing changes let the tank go a month without a water change it should allow the bacteria to form into colonies and stop free floating in the water. You can also use a diatomatic filter but there expensive but will make your water sparkle.

[Anthony8858]

I'll put some filter floss into the filter today.

Should I put more space between feedings? Maybe every third day?

When should I do my next water change?

I use "Stress Coat" as a water conditioner.

[somefinnfishy]

try a poly filter.
When in doubt I use them work great.

[~*LuvMyKribs*~]

I added a quickfilter 301 w/ powerhead to my 33 gal. (quickfilter has a very fine sponge). Water was clear in a few days.

[MJMiller]

I don't know if this will help, but the water conditioner that I use will make my tank appear cloudy. I think that there is something in it that stays suspended in the water for a couple days and flouresces a bit in the light. I tend to not use it very often or in large quantities when I do...

[MJMiller]

the reason I mentioned it is because my tank "cloudiness" will look just like your picture after I put it in....

[Anthony8858]

Ok, I pulled all the stops.

Today I added an Emperor 280 filter to the tank. This along with the Fluval 204 is probably overkill. But I'll see what happens in the next few days. If anything, I'll just have to get another tank for my new filter :-).
The Fluval is giving me about 150gph, and the Emperor is rated at 280 gph. This should give me a nice water exchange in the tank.

In addition, I added some filter floss to the Fluval.

Also, for my next water change, I'm going to use water that I'll let sit in 5 gallon jugs for a day or so before using. I won't add any conditioner.

I think I just about covered everything.

Now it's wait and see.

[fish_freak]

anthony- I know this is off topic but I notice your from NYC and was wondering if you know of any large LFS in the city. I ussualy go down two or three times a year and have no idea where to find one although ive never reasearched it just wathced for one as I wonder around. I would appreciate it if you good give me the location of one or two good stores thanks
-Jeff

[sumoschro]

i had the same thing in my tank a couple of weeks ago.
feed your fish less for a while and it will help it clear up.

[750t]

The reason I asked about the water cond. I had the same problem with stress coat. I even had a white slime build up in my filter. I stopped using it and the water cleared and no more white slime. I know that other people use it with no problems , but for me ?

[ewok]

Anthony8858: i sent you a private msg when you get a chance....

[Must4ng s4lly]

I sometimes have a bacterial reaction when I do tank maintenance after a long time (5 weeks). I have had it get so cloudy that the fish gulp for air and have lost a few in the past. I wizened up and now the BIG thing that fights the cloudiness is to keep the filer clean and flowing well. Regular vacuuming and water changes are very important too. If I notice after a water change that I have cloudiness, I clean the filter and all mechanisms carefully and the cloudiness always clears up. I have not had any fish loss since I have done this. Of course, don't clean the biowheel part of the filter, but I am sure you know that! ;)
The live plants I have get caught in the filter and restrict flow ( I am sure my fish nibble and break off bits of the plants at night).....