Cloudy water

[Dakota97691]

I am somewhat of a newbie. I have a 55 gallon tank with about 5 fish in it. I shave done 25-50 percent water changes. Added stress coat prime etc. Everything reads fine except the ammonia is at 1 ppm and phosphate is off the charts. I have a phosphate remover pad in my filters. Nothing seem to be changing. At my wit's end. What do I do so it will be good to go with balance so I can start adding fish. I've done water changes twice a week for over a month now.. PLEASE HELP

 

[OrionGirl]

How old is the tank? How big are the fish? How often do you feed? Have you tested your tapwater? What filter are you running?

It sounds like this is a new tank, and the ammonia indicates it is still cycling normally. Patience and water changes are needed to allow the bacteria colonies time to establish themselves.

Phosphate is probably in your tapwater. The pads will help, but depending on what your goal is, might not be the option. You could get a filter on your tap, for example, like RO, and use 50/50 to have lower phosphate to start. If your tap is low phosphate but the tank is not...overfeeding is the likely cause, which may also cause the ammonia levels.