Cloudy Water?

[1919]

Hi I have a 20 Gallon tank thats really cloudy. I have a a 30 gallon internal filter (It is pointed against the wall so not to make high current for the fish, will this have an effect on how it filters the water?) I also do frequent water changes!

-2 Platys
-2 German Rams
-6 Juli Cory Catfish
-1 Clown Pleco

Please tell me what I can do to get rid of this.

Heres a picture of the cloudiness in the tank. (You can see how the filter is positioned)

 

[AliGee]

How long have you had the tank going? How often is "frequent" water changes? Do you check your parameters?

A filter that is too big for a tank can be worse than a filter that is too small... It moves water to fast and keeps stirring everything up. Frequent water changes can do the same, especially when you do not do a drip change and instead just poor the water in.

 

[rmiller]

You're likely experiencing an ammonia spike. What are your current readings?

As for the previous poster saying over filtration is bad, wrong. Majority of hobbyists use filters rated for nearly twice the size of their tank. And who drips water into their tank as they change their water? If you are doing proper vacuums there shouldn't be gunk to stir up.

 

[AliGee]

You're likely experiencing an ammonia spike. What are your current readings?

As for the previous poster saying over filtration is bad, wrong. Majority of hobbyists use filters rated for nearly twice the size of their tank. And who drips water into their tank as they change their water? If you are doing proper vacuums there shouldn't be gunk to stir up.

Holy wow, you are extremely rude. The Internet face mask is strong with this one.

Over-filtration isn't necessarily bad, it is the -current- that is created in a small tank by a large filter.

Secondly, pouring water into your tank can cause massive spikes of all sorts by stirring up bacteria etc in your substrate. It is also bad for the fish because of the sudden chemistry changes in the water. It's late and I'm tired so I won't waste my time explaining on someone so rude. Drip was an obvious exaggeration but the point was that you need to take care when changing water...

But what do I know, I've only been surrounded by lakes and oceans my entire life and have only been successfully breeding SS Crystal Shrimp among other things for several years...

Honestly.

 

[AliGee]

^ P.S. You should learn how natural filtration occurs in the wild so you can better understand how it works in a tank. I use nothing but small sponge filters with extreme success. Anyone who uses twice the size of their tank is extremely ignorant and knows nothing about proper cycling. Period.

 

[Mebbid]

How long have you had the tank going? How often is "frequent" water changes? Do you check your parameters?

I agree with Ali that we need more information to help you out.

You're likely experiencing an ammonia spike. What are your current readings?

This is by far the most reasonable explanation for the cloudiness in the water.

^ P.S. You should learn how natural filtration occurs in the wild so you can better understand how it works in a tank. I use nothing but small sponge filters with extreme success. Anyone who uses twice the size of their tank is extremely ignorant and knows nothing about proper cycling. Period.

I use 2 filters rated for a total of 125g on my 55g cichlid tank. The choice to do that hardly makes me "ignorant" and in fact it keeps all of the debris off of my substrate where it can be sucked up into the filters to be removed through mechanical filtration.

Imho, your choice of using small sponge filters is the basis for your views on the topic of overfiltration. There are no mechanical removal methods for detritus when using sponge filters as the sole means of filtration for the tank which means there is a lot of buildup of compounds that can cause cloudiness. It makes absolute sense for your applications but in heavily filtered tanks things work a bit differently.



To the OP:
A 30g filter on a 20g tank is not going to be too strong for the fish. As long as they aren't being forcibly blown all over the tank then it's an acceptable amount of water flow.

How big of a water change is your normal amount?

If you haven't already purchased a test kit I would highly recommend that you go out and pick up an API master test kit so that you can test your water parameters, especially when you have a fish as sensitive as a German ram in your tank. If you can't get it done soon then I would highly recommend at least 2 back to back 50% water changes with waiting an hour between the changes for the fish to calm down.

 

[1919]

I do water changes every 2/3 days and do not check water parameters

 

[Rivercats]

I just answered in another of your posts asking a lot of the same questions plus you also stated you have a Geophagus surinamensis in the tank as well.

Not harping here but you need to know at least your ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, and ph. A lot of things could be causing the haze. If ph is at 6.5 biological activity in a tank slows, in a ph of 6 biological activity stops and BB begins to die off. So you need to see where your ph is for starters. If it's too low that can trigger ammonia to rise.

You could have a bacterial bloom. One way to know if it's a bacterial bloom is to do a 50% WC and see if the tank clouds up again within a few hours. If it does then your having a bacterial bloom.

How long has the tank been set up and did you do a fish in or fishless cycle? If you didn't cycle the tank and just added fish, depending on how long the tank has been set up again you could be having a bacterial bloom. You need to provide a lot more information.

As for the filter, it's fine for the tank. As already stated as long as the outflow isn't blowing fish around the tank extra filtration is a good thing. I've been in the hobby over 30 years and always have a lot of filtration. You simply can't compare a closed tank system to outside water sources such as lakes and oceans. Filtration also has nothing to do with cycling other than providing a place for bio-media.

I do a weekly WC of 50% on all my tanks and water is pristine and crystal clear. I have tanks ranging in size from 6g up to 220g all planted. WC's are not responsible for cloudy water. In your other thread I asked how much water are you changing out with each water change?

In your other post your having fish behaving oddly which can have a lot to do with what is causing your cloudy water. You should ask the mod's to combine both threads.

 

[Blitz]

^ P.S. You should learn how natural filtration occurs in the wild so you can better understand how it works in a tank. I use nothing but small sponge filters with extreme success. Anyone who uses twice the size of their tank is extremely ignorant and knows nothing about proper cycling. Period.

Sorry, The fact is, with higher output animals, a rated filter system will not keep up with their waste as well as a heavily stocked tank, most people who know what they are doing, are looking for 5 times turnover on a tank. Minimum. The amount of filtration also has nothing to do with how fast a cycle takes nor does it have anything to do with natural vs man made, you simply cannot duplicate the water exchange in a natural environment, therefore natural filtration is not possible, at best you can mimic portions of it.

 

[aluo18]

Hi everyone, I just joined today and saw this familiar problem...if the cloudiness just bothers you so much you can add water clarifies to the water at the time and figure out what's wrong. I normally have the filter rated right for the size of the tank then I add a powerhead in it fresh or saltwater to help circulate the water which improves the efficiency of the filter.

 

[Thumper828]

Hi everyone, I just joined today and saw this familiar problem...if the cloudiness just bothers you so much you can add water clarifies to the water at the time and figure out what's wrong. I normally have the filter rated right for the size of the tank then I add a powerhead in it fresh or saltwater to help circulate the water which improves the efficiency of the filter.

If the tank is new it would be safe to assume its a bacterial bloom. It will go away on its on. A lot of times over feeding will contribute extra organics to your water column causing a cloudy look to your tank for a bit, despite what kind of filtration you have. Over feeding is very easy to do.

 

[Rivercats]

As posted in your other thread you need to buy an API master test kit and start testing your levels. Then read this article since some of your fish are in distress.... I just learned about cycling but I already have fish. What now?! - Aquarium Advice

 

[rmiller]

Aluo18, the issue with adding water clarifiers is that it doesn't fix the problem. Adding extra chemicals to a tank can cause more problems than what they help. The best course of action is to find the source of the issue and correct it.

 

[aluo18]

Aluo18, the issue with adding water clarifiers is that it doesn't fix the problem. Adding extra chemicals to a tank can cause more problems than what they help. The best course of action is to find the source of the issue and correct it.

I stand corrected

 

[Thumper828]

Aluo18, the issue with adding water clarifiers is that it doesn't fix the problem. Adding extra chemicals to a tank can cause more problems than what they help. The best course of action is to find the source of the issue and correct it.

Definitely!! This is great advice!!