Cloudy water from sand

[Smonkey15]

hello, just a quick question. i bought some aragonite sand and it said minimal rinsing required, so i rinsed it out FOREVER, definitly not minimal, and it was still cloudy. so i put it in my tank thinking i got most of it and the filter would take out the rest of the cloudyness. now it has been over 24 hours and i can't even tell a difference. i cant' even see the sand on the bottom of the tank except for where it is touching the glass. is this every going to disappear? i can wait a week if thats what it would take but i assumed i would see some difference in 24 hours. its a 90 gallon tank and i'm running a 500 gph power filter. i know thats weak but it should haev some effect. thanks.

 

[BillyZ]

Welcome to Aquarium Advice


this is typical, there's nothing to worry about at this point. It can take a few days for it to settle.

Is this a new set up? do you have anything else in the tank yet? Is this the start of your cycle? If so, drop in 1 fresh cocktail shrimp from the local grocery store. (please don't use live fish for your cycle) and it will kick off the ammonia spike. Once you're cycle gets going, bacteria will form in the tanks water (thats what you want to happen) and the bacteria will attach itself to all the silt and sand, making it heavier, and will help to clear up your tank.

As I said, this will take a few days, but if you're cycling your tank, the cycle usualy takes at least a couple weeks anway.

 

[Smonkey15]

Thank you. yes this is a new setup so i have nothing in the tank except sand and water. i didn't even add the salt yet because i wanted to make sure i wasn't going to have to change the water again before i added in $20 worth of salt. thanks for the tip, i will go get some shrimp. most stuff i have read says to put in some small starter fish and i had planned on putting in a couple of damsels in a week or so, but i like the idea of starting the cycle without the risk of killing fish. thanks again.

 

[razman]

adding substrate

This is the same thing I did and made a complete mess of my tank. Atleast in your case u r starting out.

It takes some time atleast give it 3-4 days. Leave the filter running and everything should be normal within 3-4 days. Check some other posts in the newbie forum. Quite interesting methods of releasing sand in the tank.

1. use a funnel to lower sand at the bottom
2. drain water out of the tank, put sand cover it with an aluminium foil and then fill it with water. Once done or atleast half way remove the foil.

have fun..

 

[BillyZ]

if you're just getting started, read up in our Articles section for some info on the cycle, how ammonia is changed to nitrate and the berlin method.

BTW, be sure to add that salt BEFORE you add that shrimp. or you'll get the wrong bacteria in your tank. If you plan on having LR, you'll also want to get that in the tank as well.


This may, actually, be a good place to press pause and research a little more before moving forward (before the shrimp even). Things can be tough to change or start over in a SW aquarium.

give us some info on your tank, size, lighting etc, and what you want to put in the tank when it's "all finished"

 

[Smonkey15]

hey guys, thanks for all the info. actually i have been researching my life away for the past few weeks. my cousin gave me the tank but i couldn't pick it up for a few weeks so i'm sure, like you guys, i spent night and day thinking about it. i have a 90 gallon, planning on fish only. like i said i have a 500 gph power filter but it was given to me, so i figure worst case is that i buy another one and double up on filters. can't go wrong. for light i just have one four foot flourescent light, not sure on watts.i can't afford all the live rock so berlin is out of the question right now. i may slowly buy rock over the next few years and work my way up. as far as fish go, i am planning on a few damsels, a tang, and a couple clowns. thats about maxing out then. any tips/hints/suggestions? i put the salt in yesterday and now its stable at 1.0225, ph 8.2/3, temp 76 degrees. the water has actually cleared up already so now i will attempt to put the shrimp in and just wait. thanks guys. this site is awesome. sorry, my normal psts wont be this long.