New tank - cloudy water going on 4th day

[svalent007]

:sad

Hi all! fish owner newb here.

two saturdays ago my girlfriend and I bought a five gallon tank, filter ,etc... We set it up and then on monday bought three fish( 2 neon tetra and a different tetra -forgot name). Anyway for the first four days tank was fine and fish seemed alright except most of the time they hid behind a ornament. After the fourth day the water started getting really cloudy ( Milky white with looks like flim on top). the next day the fish were swimming on the top of the tank breathing really heavy so not knowing what to do we replaced the filter and changed 50 percent of the water. Soon after doing this one of the neons died. At this point we also tested the water and the ammonia was very high so we added ammo-lock. We also started searching the web trying to find a solution . The problem with this is everyone had a different solution to the cycling ammonia problem. We were confused. So going forward we did 25 percent water changing every day, stopped feeding, and added ammo-lock twice a day. This went on for 3 days. During this time the remaining fish slowly stopped swimming at the top and went back down to the bottom(still hiding though). After more research on the web I decided to stop the water changes because I was afraid this would disrupt the bateria growth however I still added the ammo lock. Today I finally feed them and they ate all of it however they still seem to hide and the water is still cloudy. Also been testing everyday hoping to see a rise in nitrite however it has been zero so far as I can tell. And because of the ammo lock I cant test the water for ammonia since it always reads high. How long will the water stay this cloudy? How long till the bacteria starts? Should I keep adding ammo lock everday? Should I start the water changes again? Also forgot to mention PH level is low toward the acidic side of the chart.

 

[sky.eyes.woman]

I'd keep up with the water changes. It will not disturb the bacterial colonization. Shame on the LFS employee that sold you neons to go in a new tank. Neons are delicate and sensitive and do poorly in a new tank, so it wasn't your fault that it died. Don't add any more fish at least for 2 weeks and feed the rest sparingly. Remember, a fish's stomach is usually about the size of one of it's eyes, so you only need to make sure they get enough 'to fill an eye'. Overfeeding contributes to high ammonia and you will have enough of that to deal with anyway. Watch when you feed your fish and if they are not eating all the food you give them in 5 minutes or less, it is too much. Remove it from the water immediately and feed a bit less next time. With time, you will learn when your fish have not had enough to eat in one session because they will look like they are still interested in food. If the tetras you have don't make it, don't be discouraged and give up. White clouds and harlequin rasboras would be a good choice for a new tank, and they stay small. You'll have to avoid the temptation to overstock that little tank or you'll have to go through this all again. Try switching to Prime for reducing the ammonia level in your tank. It will still cause a false ammonia reading because of the way it reacts with test kits that use Nessler reagents, but it also is a great chlorine & chloramine remover for water changes and detoxifies nitrates and nitrites as well. Adding aquarium salt according to the package directions for your tank size will also help reduce the stress on your fish. Hope that helps!

 

[victimizati0n]

well, you cant cycle a tank with neons.

I hate to say it, but expect them all to die.

ANother thing is that a 5g tank is only big enough for killis or bettas, tetras need 10g minimum.

Your first neon died because you need to treat the water before adding the water (He mostlikely died from pH shock)

EDIT** reading more of your post, if you keep adding ammo lock it is going to take a year to cycle that tank.

WHen cycling you cant do too much water changed, because it just kills the beneficial bacteria.

 

[jonny p]

im only a noob too so dont take my advise as gospel, but ive been set up a month now, at the start my water was ok then it got cloudy, and had an oily layer on top, after a coulple of weeks it went away, slowly though. lfs told me it was cause i didnt clean the gravel enough. but my fish had no problem breathing.

 

[victimizati0n]

im only a noob too so dont take my advise as gospel, but ive been set up a month now, at the start my water was ok then it got cloudy, and had an oily layer on top, after a coulple of weeks it went away, slowly though. lfs told me it was cause i didnt clean the gravel enough. but my fish had no problem breathing.

the cloudyness is because of bacterial blooms. NOT because of not doing gravel vacs.

I dislike it when LFS's tell people the wrong things.

 

[svalent007]

Still Cloudy day fsix

Thank you all for your responses. Btw I have been treating the new water with AquaPlus tap water conditioner.

So the tank is still not cycled and based on your info it seems my poor little fish are going to die. Is there any chance they might live through it maybe adding bacteria or something?

Regarding the Prime chemical it says it will get rid of nitrite also but then how will I know if the cycle started then?

Sorry for bugging you guys final question. If the fish all die would the tank still cycle and clear up on it's own since there was fish in it already producing ammonia or would I have to empty everything out and start again?

Thanks All

 

[Shierkahn]

If I were you I'd stop the amo lock and just change about 25-50% of the water every day with a gravel vac till you complete the cycle. It won't hurt the bacteria growth. The cloudiness in your tank is a bacteria bloom. Reducing your feeding a little bit won't hurt your fish but, will help in keeping your amonia levels down. Doing this will help keep your fish alive and you might not loose them all.

If you do loose all your fish it's not gonna stop the tank from cycling. When the cloudiness goes away just keep feeding the tank without any fish in it. Do this with either pure amonia or fish food ar even a piece of cocktail shrimp. Then, when your cycle is complete (amonia-0,nitrite-0,nitrate-showing) you can add some fish to the tank. So, don't give up. And keep up the daily water changes. You might still come out of this alive. Good Luck.