yet another cloudy water question....

[Elle2]

Hi,

I went back to other posts about this but wasn't really able to find out what to do or what the problem is. I have had cloudy water for about a week and a half and can't figure out what is causing it.

I did a pwc and gravel vac about 5 days ago.

I am testing with a master test kit and my parameters are:

Am 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 5-10 (usually closer to 10)
pH 7

Its been cycled for abut 3 weeks.

Thanks,
Elle

 

[tbonem91]

what color is the cloud? whitish or greenish? look in the tank lengthwise to get a better idea of the haze color

 

[Elle2]

Its kind of hard to tell.. with the lights on I thought it was white cloud, but if I turn the light off and look lengthwise it looks more green.. sorry.. I know that doesn't help much.

 

[rich311k]

Put some water in a white container. That should show you the color.

 

[Elle2]

Interesting... when I do that the water doesn't look hazy at all. Does this mean that I have algae (or something else) on the glass? I can't really see it but maybe its there anyway?

 

[rich311k]

How big a container did you use? Try wiping the inside glass down with a paper towel. That would be good if it was just dirty glass.

 

[Elle2]

Well I feel pretty dumb.. should have thought of that. I do get some brown dirt when I wipe the glass... I guess this isn't stuff that the oto will eat and it will be ok to clean it? I worry about him because I am not sure that he has a great food source.

 

[tdalessa01]

If your tank hasn't been running that long, oto may not be getting just enough. You could buy some algae wafers if it bothers you and put one in every now and then. I really wouldn't worry about it, he is probably finding food.

 

[Elle2]

I don't think he was getting enough at first... mostly because he didn't seem to like the driftwood. He seems happy now and I often see his belly full... though I did get a pleco today so he will now have competition. Unfortunately he doesn't like the wafers, but I will throw them in and hopefully the pleco will eat some and leave enough algae for the oto.

 

[JeffreyL]

pleco

Elle2, otos and plecos will happily feed on veggies, too. Zuchini, cucumber, possibly spinach, etc. I believe there is an article in the articles section on feeding veggies. I use the little suction cup clips and just toss em on the bottom, with a plant weight to sink em. Happy Eating!!!!

 

[Elle2]

Perfect... I am going to try this today.