Cloudy tank. Should I be worried?

[rjrossi88]

My tank has been fairly cloudy the last few days. I've tested the water, and changed the filters and everything checks out prefect yet the cloudiness hasn't gotten any better. Fish seem fine as well, so I don't know what the reason could be. Any ideas?

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[icydeath]

Could be a bacterial bloom or the like. It should go away after a few days and if your params are good and your fish are fine there isn't much need to worry. A polishing pad and a water change would help reduce cloudiness.

OH something came to mind! Is it possible you are feeding with a flake food that may cloud the water?

 

[rjrossi88]

I do use a flake daily and 1-2 times per week I give a mix of algea flake/tubifex/freeze dried bloodworm and shrimp. Just to keep a healthy diet.

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[Mebbid]

What are the parameters?
Could you post a pic?

 

[rjrossi88]

I'm working at the moment so I can't get a pic until later but the parameters as of this morning were:
Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 5-10
Ph 7.4ish

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[rjrossi88]

I'm gonna have a shipment of new fish coming in on Thursday so I'm gonna be doing a waste change and such tonight so hopefully that helps clear up

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[rjrossi88]

Here's a couple pics. The front shot doesn't really show much cloudiness but the side view gives a decent look

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[irdajoh]

My tank has been fairly cloudy the last few days. I've tested the water, and changed the filters and everything checks out prefect yet the cloudiness hasn't gotten any better. Fish seem fine as well, so I don't know what the reason could be. Any ideas?

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You changed filters. That's you're problem, you removed a large majority of your BB that keeps you're tank healthy. Now is a scary time keep an eye out the parameters since a new cycle is going on thus the cloudy water.

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[rjrossi88]

The filter cartridges were changed. Not the filter itself. The bio filters weren't touched

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[irdajoh]

The filter cartridges were changed. Not the filter itself. The bio filters weren't touched

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That's still bad. The bio filters hold some BB but the cartridges have a larger surfice area thus holding more BB. What you want to do next time is just gently rinse debris off the used cartridge in a bucket of tank water not tap.
Most will say the only time u want to replace the cartridge is when the floss is falling apart. What I do is got a piece of media foam and stuffed it in my filter along with the carbon cartridges.
So in the future when I have to change the floss I'll have a sponge media still.

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[PB_Smith]

looks like a bacterial bloom. Do the sides of the glass feel slimy?


Skip feeding for a few days then cut back on feeding to once a day and reduce the amount given at each feeding, DON'T change/rinse anything with the filtration at this point.
as mentioned above, you don't want to upset it more than it already is.
secondly as the filter pad gets dirty it traps finer and finer particles so when you replace it those particles are just being recirculated.
Most filter material works best when it is a bit dirty.

 

[rjrossi88]

The filters I'm using have bio scrubbers for the bacteria to grow on. They're seperate from carbon cartridges so I have secondary media in there already. I shouldn't have to worry about having a sponge or anything else.

As far as changing the carbon cartridges, I did it twice while the tank was cycling and had no problems. I know it wasn't necessary but the tank is in my living room so I decided I still wanted it to look clear. I will however take the advice of just rinsing them in old water as long as it's still keeping my water clear. It can't hurt to get a little more time out of them.

The cloudiness has all but gone away. It was definitely a bloom, there was some slime on the glass so I let it run its course and cut back on feedings.

It also had to do with the fact that I had moved one of my bubblers back and didn't realize they were getting sucked into the intake of the filter so it was shooting them out everywhere which made out look cloudy. I fixed that as well. Everything looks good now.

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[Mebbid]

The filters I'm using have bio scrubbers for the bacteria to grow on. They're seperate from carbon cartridges so I have secondary media in there already. I shouldn't have to worry about having a sponge or anything else.

As far as changing the carbon cartridges, I did it twice while the tank was cycling and had no problems. I know it wasn't necessary but the tank is in my living room so I decided I still wanted it to look clear. I will however take the advice of just rinsing them in old water as long as it's still keeping my water clear. It can't hurt to get a little more time out of them.

The cloudiness has all but gone away. It was definitely a bloom, there was some slime on the glass so I let it run its course and cut back on feedings.

It also had to do with the fact that I had moved one of my bubblers back and didn't realize they were getting sucked into the intake of the filter so it was shooting them out everywhere which made out look cloudy. I fixed that as well. Everything looks good now.

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You can have a perfectly clear tank without carbon. You just have to keep it healthy and clean.

 

[Paul1792]

........

As far as changing the carbon cartridges, I did it twice while the tank was cycling and had no problems. I know it wasn't necessary but the tank is in my living room so I decided I still wanted it to look clear ....
Everything looks good now. .....

For maximum crystal clear polished water in your living room aquarium, I suggest the combination of micron polishing pads and Seachem Purigen.


Go here to post #10 and follow the link:


http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/f60/purigen-336890.html


You can do a search of Purigen on this site and find all kinds of testimonials.
Purigen is far superior to carbon.

 

[TXaquaFanatic]

I am really new at this so take this post as more of an observation of what worked for me. I had the same issues of my water being cloudy like that. Tested the water and everything was perfect or pretty stinking close to it. So I was completely stumped on what to do. So came here and asked everyone for some advice. Everyone told me up your water changes and let your tank finish cycling (my tank is about a month and half old now, not sure how old yours is.) And it worked perfectly after about 2 weeks of upping my water changes (which I was terrified to do because I thought I was taking out all this good bacteria people told me that I need to build) it worked. my tank has been crystal clear for about a week now and I couldn't be more happier! I hope you are able to figure out the problem and clear it up. Happy Fishkeeping!

 

[rjrossi88]

For maximum crystal clear polished water in your living room aquarium, I suggest the combination of micron polishing pads and Seachem Purigen.


Go here to post #10 and follow the link:


http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/f60/purigen-336890.html


You can do a search of Purigen on this site and find all kinds of testimonials.
Purigen is far superior to carbon.

So you just put these into a filter bag and put it in where the carbon cartridges are now?

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[rjrossi88]

I am really new at this so take this post as more of an observation of what worked for me. I had the same issues of my water being cloudy like that. Tested the water and everything was perfect or pretty stinking close to it. So I was completely stumped on what to do. So came here and asked everyone for some advice. Everyone told me up your water changes and let your tank finish cycling (my tank is about a month and half old now, not sure how old yours is.) And it worked perfectly after about 2 weeks of upping my water changes (which I was terrified to do because I thought I was taking out all this good bacteria people told me that I need to build) it worked. my tank has been crystal clear for about a week now and I couldn't be more happier! I hope you are able to figure out the problem and clear it up. Happy Fishkeeping!

My tank is 4-5 months now. I fully cycled it in 3 months so I assume that it was just a bacterial bloom which I believe is normal for a new tank. All my fish are happy now ?

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[TXaquaFanatic]

Glad to hear the problem was solved!

 

[PB_Smith]

For maximum crystal clear polished water in your living room aquarium, I suggest the combination of micron polishing pads and Seachem Purigen.


Go here to post #10 and follow the link:


http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/f60/purigen-336890.html


You can do a search of Purigen on this site and find all kinds of testimonials.
Purigen is far superior to carbon.

I recommend reading the FAQ as some water conditioners are not compatible with Purigen.
They also recommend running carbon and Purigen together as they compliment one another.


Seachem. Purigen FAQ

 

[Caliban07]

Removing or even disturbing anything in an aquarium can cause a bacterial bloom. When new surface area is presented within the aquarium it can cause bacterial blooms. Uprooting plants and vaccuming the gravel can do this too or cleaning a canister filter. Just leave it be for a couple of days and it will clear. Also just leave the cartridges in and just rinse them in tank water for cleaning.


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