Cloudy Water

[eric faatz]

I have a 10gal freshwater tank with a red tail shark,gold gourami,and a glo-fish.My tank is cloudy and has a weird smell.Any suggestions on how to stop the cloudiness?

 

[meegosh]

How long has your tank been set up? Most likely you are going through a cycle of some sorts. If the cloudiness is white then it is a bacterial bloom. If it is green then it is an algae bloom. Click the articles link above (in the blue bar across the top) and read some articles on the Nitrogen Cycle. This will help you understand what your tank is going through right now.

 

[Viper]

I have a 10gal freshwater tank with a red tail shark,gold gourami,and a glo-fish.My tank is cloudy and has a weird smell.Any suggestions on how to stop the cloudiness?

What color is the cloud? What type of filtration are you using? Is this tank newly set up or has it been in operation for a while? Also, what size is the tank?

 

[eric faatz]

My tank is a 10 gallon its been set up for about a year now. The cloud is white.Im using a overflow filtration.

 

[mfdrookie516]

definitely sounds like a bacteria bloom... have you recently done a major cleaning or anything like that? on a side note, that red tail shark belongs in at least a 50 gallon tank, a 10 gallon is just not adequate for them

 

[eric faatz]

i did a good cleaning about a week ago.

 

[mfdrookie516]

is that when the cloudiness started?

 

[eric faatz]

It actually started yesterday.

 

[mfdrookie516]

ok, chances are you're seeing a bacteria bloom caused by a mini cycled from a major cleaning. What all did you do when you cleaned the tank a week ago? did you change filters? clean decor? remove all the water? can you tell us exactly what you did?

 

[eric faatz]

I cleaned the whole tank.Did a complete change and changed the filter.

 

[mfdrookie516]

ok, so if you read the link in my signature on the nitrogen cycle, you'll understand whats going on. basically, your bacteria colony that converts ammonia to nitrites, then nitrites to nitrates was either completely killed or took a substantial blow. The bacteria bloom is just an outburst of that bacteria that you want that hasnt started clinging on to the surfaces of the tank, decor, and filter. Give it some time, keep an eye on your ammonia and nitrites, and it'll go away in a few days

 

[eric faatz]

Ok,thanks for your help!