Cloudy water

[laureen]

Great! so I'm the new girl around here and I'm probasbly starting with the perpetual-centenial question, right?
I have a ten gallon tank with several small fish in there. I've got several live plants in there, too, the problem is my cloudy water. I know the problem isn't life theatening to my fish as they all seem to be doing good and have a verocious appetite. I think that this last time it got so cloudy is because I did to water changes one after the other. I keep adding a water clarifying liquid, but in being honest with you all I don't think it's working too well. Any words of advice for the newby will be certainly appreciated.

 

[Darwin]

how long has your tank been running and is it green cloudy (algae bloom) or white cloudy (bacterial bloom)?

If you find it hard to tell in the tank you can put some of the water in a cup and hold it up against a sheet of white paper.

From what I understand it is common for tanks to have a bacterial bloom early on but it usually goes away. I'd be wary of adding a water clarifier - best to try and work out what the cause is and fix that - you'll need to work out if it is an algae or bacterial bloom first and go from there.

If you search this forum for 'cloudy water' or 'bloom' you'll find heaps of threads which might help steer you in the right direction.

 

[ggrowney]

I'm a newcomer with a very similar problem. I have been posting a lot but nothing seems to clear my cloudy water. I have apparently fully cycled but stil have VERY cloudy water. I am about 5 weeks in, and am going to just wait it out. A little frustrating, but I will follow your thread as well. I have not tried any additives.

 

[Rbishop]

Could you also post your ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, and pH levels?

 

[bobandfiona]

Even at 5 weeks and really in any tank that takes on a new bioload (adding new fish, plants, etc...) a cloudy water environment is a normal part of cycling. Often times even when the tank is "cycled" according to test kits, there is an adjustment time for cloudiness from the nitrifying bacteria to clear up.

IMHO, I would recommend you stop adding "additives" to clarify the water and let it do it naturally. Monitor your water parameters daily to be sure nothing is out of the ordinary, but it will clear with time. The more additives you put in, the less the environment can stabilize. Do frequent small water changes rather than large ones to keep the cycle stable.

I have found that for my tanks ghost shrimp do a beautiful job of making the water so clear the fish hit the glass! (just joking on that last part)

Good luck...all things with fishkeeping in time!

 

[mikesoverhere]

Funny I just had the same problem,
it might be also your gravel, did you rinse it really well before you put it in your aquarium?? I changed myne from white to black gravel, I made an 80% water change carefully, Temp, water treatment before i put it back in now my water is chrystal clear or it can be not enough oxegen in the water. I hope this helps good luck.

 

[Marinemom]

First of all please stop adding any chemicals to your aquarium. Regardless of what the bottle says, I have found in my experience that that will only slow things down. A few years back when I set up my 125 gallon tank I had the same problem about six weeks into the cycle of the tank. I was very frustrated with it but in the end I just left it alone except for regular maintenance and let it settle down. One morning I came downstairs to check on my tank and it was crystal clear, seemingly overnight. I suspect that the same thing will happen to your aquarium.Sometimes doing less is really doing more.This is part of what is called New Tank Syndrome. I know it's hard but leave it alone and let it settle down. It will fix itself in time.

Hang in there!

Marinemom