foggy on and off??

[ahollland92690]

my water will be foggy one day and the next it will be clear...i did a water check and all the nitrates, nitrites, and ammonia are at 0ppm. the pH ranges between 6.6 and 7.0..., Its a 26 gallon bow front with 3 plants, 2 guppies, 1 corey cat...any ideas as to why my water goes foggy for a bit and then will be clear and then back to foggy?

 

[mommytron]

how long have you had the tank running for? how long have you had the fish for? was the tank cycled prior to adding fish? what is your maintenance schedule? feeding schedule? what kind of plants do you have?

are you sure the pH swings that much? a swinging pH is never good news...

 

[ahollland92690]

I have had the tank running for almost a year probably...and i was told it was cycled because i started getting brown algae and then i got green algae...I have had the fish for a little over a week, i usually do a small water change (prob 20% wc) once a week, i feed once in the morning. my plants consist of one Anubis, one cryptocoryne, and 2 small bunches of grass.

the pH has been staying around 6.6 for the most part...hard to tell on the color chart that came with my water test kit.

I am attempting to post pictures so you can see...its not terribly bad but was just wondering if it was normal...


This is when it is clear...



and just a few hours later, this is when it gets foggy looking

 

[mommytron]

you said you've had your tank running for a year but only had the fish for a week? i'm confused, did you have other fish prior to adding these ones? maybe you could elaborate.

you say you were told it was cycled, but did you do the water tests and see for yourself that it was? if the tank is not cycled, my guess is that the foggy water is a bacterial bloom. in that case, yes, the foggy water is normal.

 

[ahollland92690]

i haven't put fish in it because i wanted to make sure that it was definitely cycled before i touched it (had a bad experience with un-cycled tanks)...and i was out of a job till now...altho i have had a cory cat in there forever from saving him from my other tank...and there was not a problem with any type of foggy water until i set up a CO2 thingy and put fish and plants in it....yes it has to be cycled because because i test it all the time since iv had it up and running.

 

[mommytron]

how did you cycle the tank? please give as many details as possible. also, what kind of CO2 set up do you have? i don't know a ton about it, but i'm sure that could be a factor as well (i've heard of yeast getting into the tank and clouding it up) what kind of light do you have on the tank? the plants you have are low light plants (not sure about the grass, what kind is it?) and may not even need CO2. CO2 always helps, but maybe you could take it out for now until you get your water situation cleared up.

and you said you test it all the time? what have the results been?

 

[brimac41]

Were you dosing your aquarium with ammonia to cycle the aquarium ? Without an Ammonia source then there is nothing to feed the bacteria , so it just sat full of water for a year , then all you had was a box of water .you stated you had 0 across the board with your tests , what brand and type of water test are you using ? It would be hard to have a cycled aquarium with 0 nitrates . Most aquariums register some nitrates , mine is planted and I have 5.0 nitrates . If you are using API liquid test kit Are you shaking bottle 2 of the nitrate regent enough ? 30 seconds as the bottle says is not enough , you will need to shake bottle 2 well for close to two minutes to get proper readings

 

[mommytron]

If you are using API liquid test kit Are you shaking bottle 2 of the nitrate regent enough ? 30 seconds as the bottle says is not enough , you will need to shake bottle 2 well for close to two minutes to get proper readings

why do you say that? i always get accurate readings and always shake for exactly 30 seconds. what is your basis for this conclusion??

 

[brimac41]

why do you say that? i always get accurate readings and always shake for exactly 30 seconds. what is your basis for this conclusion??

I always shook it for 30 seconds as stated on the bottle and always had readings of zero nitrates . I read on this very forum that the bottle needs to be shaken longer (can't remember who) and I started shaking it for close to two minutes than I started getting proper readings .

So I ran a side by side test to double check . one nitrate test in which I shook the bottle for 30 seconds , readings 0 nitrates .

Then in another test tube , I shook the bottle for 2 minutes , test reading 20 ppm .

So I did again , same redings as above , then I did it one more time , same reradings as above .

If you are getting proper readings by shaking it for 30 secs. then that is great . But I was not , and thanks this very forum , I now get the proper readings .

 

[mommytron]

weird. maybe your tests are older? i've never even heard of that issue.

to the OP, what kind of test kit are you using? also, what kind of CO2?

 

[brimac41]

weird. maybe your tests are older? i've never even heard of that issue.

to the OP, what kind of test kit are you using? also, what kind of CO2?

Brand new test kit . I buy a new kit every six months rather I need it or not .

 

[mommytron]

maybe it's just in how you shake it i guess i'm a good, quick shaker