cloudy water

[peaceablegarden]

TANK 2 (see below) has finally cycled. NitrItes 0 Ammonia 0 pH 6.5 NitrAtes 5. It zeroed out on the ammonia overnight and today the water seems slightly cloudy. I know it was cloudy when I first started the tank and went away on its own. Did the cycle do it or is something else going on?

 

[TheChards]

For what it's worth, I always thought that cloudiness during a cycle was due to bacteria establishing themselves although I could very easily be wrong. Are you sure the tank is fully cycled? Did you do anything to it to get it started?

 

[peaceablegarden]

This tank has been cycling for 6-7 weeks. I added some bacteria that my LFS gave me very early on (week 2-3), but haven't added any since then. The platy fry were added about a two weeks ago.

 

[mike47517]

dont worry about it just go to walmart and buy some water clearing drops in the fish section it only cost like 2 bucks and last basically forever.

 

[peaceablegarden]

I'm still curious what's causing it. Any ideas?

 

[MichaelsLilGray]

you could just be dealing with another bacteria bloom...what all have you added to it since you established its "cycled"

 

[peaceablegarden]

Nothing. And here's the interesting part, now my other tank is cloudy. These two tanks have nothing in common and have not had anything new added.

 

[satch]

This happened to me last week. It was because I was using the product "Cycle". Everyone on this board said forget that stuff so I'm not using it anymore.

 

[Alaris]

Is it white cloudy or brown cloudy? Is it still cloudy? Do you have sand?

 

[Purrbox]

Don't use any of the clarifying products. These work by coating the particles so that they stick together forming larger clumps that are easier to pick up by the filter. The problem is that they can affect the fish gills in the same way.

A white cloudiness is generally seen during the beginning of the cycle with the bacteria bloom. It can also be seen at other times if something happens to damage the beneficial bacteria, and they go through another bloom while re-establishing themselves. Take a sample of your water and place it in a white cup. Look at it to determine the color. If it's green, then you're dealing with a Green Water bloom.

 

[masterid]

There can be several different reasons for cloudy water in a fish tank, so let's take a look at the most common ones. These are debris from new substrate, bacterial bloom, chemical imbalance, or even floating algae.
Most new rocks and decorations will cause cloudy water. If this is the case then your debris should settle and go away on it's own in a couple of days. Before adding the next decorations or rocks it best to soak them in separate water to get all the loose dirt off before adding them to your tank.Be sure to remove all dead or dying plants if you have a bacteria problem. If you are changing fifteen percent of your water and using a siphon to clean debris, this type of haze will not cause the fish harm. But it is essential that you get in under control quickly.One of the best ways to cut down on the amount of algae in a tank is by adding algae eating fish. Keeping your lights on for long periods will encourage algae growth as well as sunlight shining on the tank so make sure to watch the amount of lighting your tank gets to help prevent algae growth.