Cloudy Water!

[lightningryan]

Hi,

I have had my 10 gallon for a while and the past couple days i noticed that the water is getting a little couldy?
I have a filter.

How can this happen?
What causes this?
How can I fix it?
How can I prevent it?

Help

Thanks

 

[Bhunsucker]

How long has the tank been setup? What is the Ammonia, Nitrite and Nitrate levels?

 

[lightningryan]

about a month
I dont know the levels
I havent got into testing the water.
I just do a 25% water change each week

 

[talloulou]

Well it could just be that your tank wasn't fully cycled yet and you are having a bacteria bloom. Or it could be something else all together. I would normally recommend that you change your filter pad if your tank is cycled. But if your tank isn't cycled yet changing your filter pad is a horrible idea.

That's why those test kits come in handy....they take alot of the guess work out of the hobby.

 

[lightningryan]

oh my, what is cycling, i read some articles? i still dont get it? what do you do to cycle? how long ?
I dont want annother dang article I want to hear from someone with experience!

 

[talloulou]

You need to buy a test kit and test your water. If your tank is cycled you will have 0 ammonia and 0 nitrite. You will have measurable nitrates preferably somewhere between 10-40 ppm. If you have an ammonia or nitrite reading higher than 0 your tank is cycling. Part of the cycle involves a bacteria bloom that clouds your water and then clears up as the cycle is finished. As far as how long it takes a tank to cycle...that depends and varies. A tank that has been set up for a month with fish in it should be cycled or very near cycled.

Once the tank is cycled you should always have a reading of 0 for ammonia and nitrites. If you don't something is wrong, either you have damaged your biological filter and are experiencing a mini cycle or your tank is overstocked or dirty. Your nitrates will fluctuate depending on how heavy your bioload is and how often you clean your tank but ideally you want to keep it under 40ppm

 

[lightningryan]

ok, so do i cycle once then im done cycling for ever? or do you cycle again?
when?

 

[zenkatydid]

you cycle the whole tank once, when it's set up. but whenever you make changes to your tank - like adding new fish, changing your filter, etc - you'd have a sort of mini cycle while the bacteria re-establishes to take care of the load.

 

[lightningryan]

ok, so to cycle, i do weekly water changes till my test strips say
0 ammonia and 0 nitrite. nitrates between 10-40 ppm

 

[Bhunsucker]

ok, so to cycle, i do weekly water changes till my test strips say
0 ammonia and 0 nitrite. nitrates between 10-40 ppm

You need to do PWC as long as the ammonia and nitrites are high. This could be more than weekly. If the levels are high enough it could mean daily PWC's. The test strips can be inaccurate. You should invest in a liquid reagent test kit. They are also cheaper in the long run, you get more test for your money.

I would also advise you to read this article that will explain the cycle to you.
http://www.aquariumadvice.com/showquestion.php?faq=2&fldAuto=21

Welcome to AA!!

 

[lightningryan]

ok, so to cycle, i do weekly water changes till my test strips say
0 ammonia and 0 nitrite. nitrates between 10-40 ppm

You need to do PWC as long as the ammonia and nitrites are high. This could be more than weekly. If the levels are high enough it could mean daily PWC's. The test strips can be inaccurate. You should invest in a liquid reagent test kit. They are also cheaper in the long run, you get more test for your money.

Welcome to AA!!

Ok so i do partial water changes and test the water each time till I get
0 ammonia and 0 nitrite and that means i'm done cycling? or is there more things that need to be 0?

 

[Bhunsucker]

You dont have to do PWC unless your ammonia gets to high >1ppm also once your ammonia spikes the Nitrites will start to rise and your should then see a decrease in your ammonia level. At that point you will need to be on the look out for high nitrite levels because they can be just as deadly as the ammonia. Once the Nitrites and ammonia are at 0 and your Nitrates are >5 then your tank has cycled and then you go to a maintenance mode.

 

[Bhunsucker]

also this process will take at least 30 days unless you have away to "seed" your tank. My cycle took me 7 weeks.

 

[lightningryan]

seed? Whats that?

 

[talloulou]

Sometimes people use filter media or gravel from an established tank to help jump start their tanks cycle. There are also products available like bio spira which supposedly cycles your tank right away. This is what is meant by seeding.

 

[lightningryan]

whats No2 ?
Whats No3?

 

[talloulou]

No2= nitrites
No3=nitrates

 

[Bhunsucker]

lightningryan,
How are things going with your tank?

 

[lightningryan]

ok, after i get it cycled, above said that i need to keep a maintence mode. what does that mean? testing? changes?