Hazy, cloudy water issues

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Last night I did a 33% PWC but the haze wasn't noticeably affected. This morning when I checked the haze was down to less than approximately 25%. I could easily see the back and bottom of the tank. Amazingly all fish, shrimp, and snails survived. I tested again and got this:

7.2 pH
0 ppm ammonia
0 ppm nitrites
0 ppm nitrates
7-8º KH
13-15 ppm CO2 (Whew)

My KH is going up again. This time the color change was very subtle but definitely yellow on the 8th drop. On the 7th it just turned a light green. Is it possible that the carbon from my filter is causing this?

But since I don't know if the CO2 was really causing this I can't be sure of anything. Any other suggestions? I am amazed the fish all made it! Woo Hoo!
 
If you KH is actually going up it isnt the carbon from your filter or CO2 doing it.. do you have any rocks that might be hardening your water? It very well could be testing error.. liquid tests are difficult to do exactly the same every time.. You would have to do multiple KH tests with a AP liquid test and do some satistics to give you a precise reading.. If your extremly concerned about your KH and you have no reason for it going up.. Like rock or substrate(sand, aggregate) buffering it up you would have to invest in a higher quality test kit..
 
I have reread this thread And I think you have something in the tank that is leaching the KH.. you probably have a rock or the substrate that your using is disoving from the additonal acid created with your CO2 injection.. I think there is something in your tank turning it into a quasi Calcium Reactor.. I think you need to double check your rocks and gravel or sand to see if it is the culprit...
 
That's a thought greenmagi. The only "rock" I have added is Aquarium Pharmaceuticals Pure Laterite. That's it. I only added about 10 ounces, according to the instructions and mixed it with the gravel. I washed it as best I could but still had a day or so of reddish haze floating around until it settled and the filter cleared it. The gravel, some small rocks, and two decorative larger rocks have been in the tank for the full, well almost year now.
 
Your rocks could have been fine until the added acid from the CO2... I would get them out and test them.. muriatic acid from Ace hardware.. careful here.. but check for bubbles.. While I was at it I would check some of the gravel as well..
 
If the rocks are the problem your KH will keep going up until there removed and only PWC's will fix it.. You might want to take them out just to see if the KH stays stable..
 
I haven't gotten the muriatic acid (Isn't it sulfuric acid?) yet and when I checked readings this morning and they were:

7.2 pH
0 ppm ammonia
0 ppm nitrites
0 ppm nitrates
8º KH

I'll try to get the acid today or tomorrow morning. The tank is still hazy but you can see fairly well. After the PWC yesterday I noticed some "slimy" white stuff on the sides of the tank. This must be some type of algae, but I wasn't sure. After searching around this site I decided to scrub the sides of the tank and clean the mechanical filter. I'm not sure if this is some type of "green water" you were mentioning but it could be.
 
Nope - green water is free floating and not attached to anything, and if you scooped up a clear glass of it you would see it is literally green water. Hopefully you are not having that, as I would imagine you would be seeing signs by now. That is a pain in the rear to get rid of without spending money on diatom or UV filters.

I am curious about the lack of nitrate. Could the tank scrubbing have wiped out some bacterial colonies?
 
TankGirl, I never had green water algae just that slimy white stuff that coated the sides of the tank and everything inside. It was weird so I'm not sure what it was. Any clues? what it might have been? What little algae I've seen on the sides of the tank and rocks my otos and snails are picking off. I guess if that wasn't an algae bloom then you are right greenmagi my plants must be using the NO3 up.
 
I wouldn't touch the lighting right now at all. If this is greenwater starting up, more light will only compound the problem.

Take a small water sample from the tank and put it into a white cup, bucket or bowl, and scrutinize it under good lighting...if it has a hint of green, then its greenwater.

You'll need test kits for phosphate and nitrate...those are you nutrients that cause algae when they fall out of balance. And give pH and Kh levels so we can see what CO2 is at.
 
malkore said:
I wouldn't touch the lighting right now at all. If this is greenwater starting up, more light will only compound the problem.

Take a small water sample from the tank and put it into a white cup, bucket or bowl, and scrutinize it under good lighting...if it has a hint of green, then its greenwater.

You'll need test kits for phosphate and nitrate...those are you nutrients that cause algae when they fall out of balance. And give pH and Kh levels so we can see what CO2 is at.
Click to expand...
I've been looking for phosphate test kit locally but I haven't found one. As of my last tests (Last night) my readings were:

7.2 pH
0 ppm ammonia
0 ppm nitrites
0-5 ppm nitrates
8º KH
7-8º GH

My pH came up immedately when I did my last PWC on Saturday. The nitrate levels seem to be rising again, but I can't be sure. When you are that low the color change can seem very slight. As for the water itself I have pulled out multiple samples and looked at them under just about every light I have both inside and out. The water, even at its worst, was a white, hazy color. Now it's clearer, but still whitish.
 
Be careful with the pwc's make sure your % is low enough to not bring up the PH too fast, the fish can get really stressed from this.. It sounds like your going to need to order a phosphate test kit, much the better anyway LFS's want a fortune for them.. Did you test your PH before you changed the water because that number would be more accurate in telling how well your CO2 is doing?
 
Yes I did test for pH before hand. My pH was reading right at 7.2 before the white water incident. I started getting the drop after I added CO2 but just before the worst part of the haze. During the "white out" it was at its lowest 6.8 or 6.9. After my PWC it went back to 7.2 and has been steady there ever since. I added CO2 back in 2 days ago and the pH is hanging steady. My KH seems to be holding at 8 dKH now. That was as of the test last night. I now wonder if my pH drop was in fact due to the CO2 addition (I was wondering if enough or any CO2 was being diffused) or some other fact. Possibly whatever that white, slimy water was being caused by.

What reseller and brand would everyone recommend for the test kit. I currently have Aquarium Pharmaceuticals Master Test Kit and added the Aquarium Pharmaceuticals GH/KH test separately.
 
AP make great kits, and I usually find the cheapest online retailer to be bigalsonline.com.

Is there any possibilty that your CO2 mixture is coming out through your airline tube? That would certainly mess with your water chemistry and will create a white slimy substance, which usually manifests itself at the end of the airline tube, but may be getting into your water.
 
Well TG I asked about pumping CO2 through the airline running to the bubble curtain in another thread and the general consensus was don't do it so I didn't. I am only running CO2 through the silicone tubing that came with the Hagen kit and it only runs from the reactor to the diffuser ladder.

7.2 pH
0 ppm ammonia
0 ppm nitrites
5 ppm nitrates
7º KH
7-8º GH

The pH is holding steady as is the ammonia and nitrites. The nitrates seem to be up some, but only around 5 ppm. The KH dropped a tad but is definitely at 7 º KH. GH is being as difficult as ever. The color change is so subtle from 5 on up I can't decide which it is for sure. But the GH isn't my big issue is it??? :)

Thanks for the Big Al's suggestion. After reading around some more I see that a lot of people on here use them.
 
I would not consider the KH to be a particular issue - like I am known to say, don't treat the test kit, treat the tank.

It does not matter how you diffuse your CO2, but I was wondering if some of the mixture was flowing up the airline tubing and getting into your tank. Even under optimal conditions you can get an accumulation of white, slimy fluffy stuff around the end of the airline hose when you use DIY CO2 (a gas separator eliminates this problem), so I wanted to bring up that possibility. If your Hagen unit is stored well below the tank then it is unlikely some of the contents of the canister are getting into the tank, but it is worth checking.
 
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