Cloudy water only when lights are off

[libertybelle]

Anyone have an explanation for this one? For the last few days When I first turn the lights on the 29g tank it appears ever so slightly cloudy. Within an hour or so of lights turning on it’s crystal clear again.

Thoughts?

If it were bacterial bloom I wouldn’t expect them to care about the lights. If it were algae I’d expect the reverse...

 

[Fishlegend]

It may be

Do you have fish? When you turn off the light quickly eveything will run and hide in the tank very quickly and thy will kick up debris which clouds the tank water.

 

[libertybelle]

I do (Details in the about me section of my profile.) but they’re not kicking anything up. Good thought, but I use a light which gradually turns on so no one bolts.

 

[libertybelle]

It grew less pronounced after a big water change. Maybe extra organic in the water causing a minor bacterial bloom. Still can’t figure out why it cleared up after a little while with tank lights on.

I have a ton of plants and the dependence on light makes me think they’ve gotta be part of the equation... Plants taking up extra organics and starving the bacteria... could that really happen over the course of a couple hours, I wonder.

 

[Fishlegend]

Yep it's possible