Newbie: Help with cloudyness playsand

[RobDeanH]

I bought a 29 gallon tank. Cleaned the glass ect... I bought 50lb bag of playsand from lowes. I spent all day yesterday washing it out in buckets. I have it in the tank now and the water is cloudy. It's not horribly like brown but definitely cloudy. What can I do? I'm new to the hobby and thought sand would be good for a nice look and very beginner plants. Also all I have is a hang on filter heater and air pimp with airstone as well as lid with LEDs. Can someone help me out, give me some tips, or let me know what to expect and how long this will take. I don't want my water getting like this when a pleco or something goes crazy in the sand in the future. What should I do?

Edit: This is for a freshwater aquarium. Also I have 3 1/2 inches of sand in there. I'm thinking I should remove a lot of it and have 2 or 2 1/2 inches.

 

[BillD]

Stir it up and drain all the water out. Refill. The sand was still dirty when you put it in. Sand needs to be washed in small quantities to get really clean.

 

[PassengerTN]

I wouldn't drain it. Sand will always produce cloudiness on initial fill up no matter how much you clean it. It will usually settle down in 24-46 hours by itself. I'm impatient, so when I fill a tank for the first time I will attach a water bottle with the bottom cut off onto a powerhead and fill the bottle with filter floss. Clears it quickly. Pics below might be 6 hours apart at most.




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[RobDeanH]

I wouldn't drain it. Sand will always produce cloudiness on initial fill up no matter how much you clean it. It will usually settle down in 24-46 hours by itself. I'm impatient, so when I fill a tank for the first time I will attach a water bottle with the bottom cut off onto a powerhead and fill the bottle with filter floss. Clears it quickly. Pics below might be 6 hours apart at most.
View attachment 278596
View attachment 278597


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Thanks for the info. Mine looks a little more cloudier than yours. I will try refilling it with a pot maybe that will help. Does your tank get cloudy if a fish kicks up sand? I have 3 1/2 inches of sand. Do you think I should lower it down to 2 or 2 and a 1/2. This tank is a community tank and for beginner plants in the future.

 

[PassengerTN]

No it doesn't get kicked up. How long have you had the tank filled?

Jesse

 

[RobDeanH]

Left it over night and didn't really clear so I did a full water change so its only been a couple hours. I think I'm going to take out sand because I have too much. Fill it up with a hose in a pot and let it sit for a while. Should I leave a hang filter on?

 

[ImACoolguy]

Left it over night and didn't really clear so I did a full water change so its only been a couple hours. I think I'm going to take out sand because I have too much. Fill it up with a hose in a pot and let it sit for a while. Should I leave a hang filter on?

This could be the sand clouding the water

OR

it could just be a bloom. They are most common in new tanks...

Bacterial or diatom bloom. Both harmless just a very big eyesore till it goes away.


Caleb

 

[RobDeanH]

Ok well I took out a lot of sand. I'm at 2 inches now. During the process I was stirring the sand up while adding water with hose as well as syphoning. Im feeling the tank up with a hose in a pot. I guess it's just the waiting game. So what will happen when I turn on my airstone? This seems all bad lol

 

[RobDeanH]

It all cleared up now. I made a DIY air pump filter made from a water bottle and I put some floss from a new comforter my dog ripped. It cleared up all the little particles and now if I grab the sand it falls to the bottom. Thanks for the help guys.

 

[Gillie]

I have play sand in my 40 breeder and like hensley said it will be cloudy for a bit, but it will settle. As for clouding up because of fish, I have a pair of geo steindachneri in that tank and the water stays clear even with their activity.

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