Upgrading to a 125 Gallon Tank

[Schamens]

So, I left work early today and when I got home I saw this....

View attachment 313513

Why I am seeing white cloudy water at this this stage. Did my cycle start over? Now what?

Let's see those params man.

 

[1midniterider]

Let's see those params man.

When I checked them this morning they were:

pH 7.6
Ammo 0.25
Nitrites 1
Nitrates 20

I'll run another set shortly...

 

[1midniterider]

A new round of chems... I also ran the tests on my tap water, just for comparison...

Aquarium water:

pH 7.6
Ammo 0.25 ppm
Nitrites 0.25 ppm
Nitrates 40 ppm



Tap water:

pH 7.6
Ammo 0.25 ppm
Nitrites 0 ppm
Nitrates 5 ppm




There is no apparent difference between the two samples for ammo levels nor for pH. Do I wait it out or pwc? There are no fish nor snails to fret about.

 

[1midniterider]

Let's see those params man.

New chems are posted.

 

[Schamens]

New chems are posted.

Interesting, do you think the cycle will stall if you stop dosing ammonia without another source of it, from say a fish? Nitrates aren't very high, i'm unsure if they can be a contributing factor to the cloudiness. You may still be experiencing bacteria blooms in the water column. Have you noticed any difference in the flow of the canister filter?

edit: to be honest though, it looks like you're cycled so it might just go away over time/with water changes.

 

[1midniterider]

Interesting, do you think the cycle will stall if you stop dosing ammonia without another source of it, from say a fish? Nitrates aren't very high, i'm unsure if they can be a contributing factor to the cloudiness. You may still be experiencing bacteria blooms in the water column. Have you noticed any difference in the flow of the canister filter?

edit: to be honest though, it looks like you're cycled so it might just go away over time/with water changes.

I wonder if the two pwc I performed yesterday contributed to this condition. I was trying to get nitrates down to an acceptable level. I dosed ammonia after the second pwc. So I'm thinking it should clear up on its own. I'm only dosing half the amount of ammonia and from what I've read I need to keep dosing until I put fish in.

 

[1midniterider]

I am so confused. A few hours ago my tank looked like a London fog was moving in. Now, about 2 hours after dosing to 1ppm ammo, the fog is lifting. What caused the bacterial snow storm?

I thought I was going to have to start the cycle all over again. I am happy to see it clearing.

 

[Ulrichsd]

That is weird, I have no idea on the cloud but glad it is gone. Kind of a bummer that tap water nitrates are in the 5-10 ppm range only because it reduces the effectiveness of water changes.

 

[1midniterider]

That is weird, I have no idea on the cloud but glad it is gone. Kind of a bummer that tap water nitrates are in the 5-10 ppm range only because it reduces the effectiveness of water changes.

Very strange... I also scooped out the pinkish goo... It looked like clumps of flake food... But I only put crunched up flakes, about the size of pepper, in a couple of times...

 

[1midniterider]

An interesting article on Planaria Worms

Aquarium Planaria; Wiggly Detritus Worms, in Tank Water, on Glass

 

[King Fisher]

That food sitting in there caused some detritus worms more than likely. It also makes a mess as you are finding out. No worries though. Keep dosing ammonia and keep doing water changes periodically to keep the nitrates manageable. Its on its way to being cycled.

The cloudiness can come and go because you aren't cycled and the water hasn't stabilized.

Soon you'll wake up to 0 ammonia and 0 nitrites then you'll be cycled.

 

[1midniterider]

Oh so very, very close. Latest chem results:

Ammo 0.25 ppm
Nitrites almost 0 ppm
Nitrates 40 ppm
pH 7.6

For ammo this is effectively zero. This the lowest I can achieve in my other tank that is fully cycled. Nitrites I'm calling almost zero when compared to tap water results, there is still a bit of purple color in there, which is to see in the photo. I'll dose ammo again later today.

 

[1midniterider]

The white fog that invaded my tank is gone. I am a happy camper. So it looks like in a few days I can migrate the inhabitants of the old tank into their new aquatic world.

 

[King Fisher]

Dose 2-4 ppm ammonia and see if it goes away in 24 hours with 0 nitrites. If it does it's good to go.

 

[1midniterider]

Dose 2-4 ppm ammonia and see if it goes away in 24 hours with 0 nitrites. If it does it's good to go.

Will do... Later today...

 

[1midniterider]

Ah ha! So according to this article, How to Fix Bacterial Bloom in Your Aquarium, it was the water change that attributed to cloudy water condition. So it was an expected result of a water change during a fishless cycle. Now I know the why...

 

[1midniterider]

Now for the first attempt to see if tank is cycled. The chem just prior to dosing ammo appears pretty much the same as earlier today.



Dosed ammo to 2 ppm. Now to wait until tomorrow this time and check the results. Hoping for the best. I will have a clear idea when I rise in a little over 12 hours from now, if this attempt will be a successful or not.

 

[1midniterider]

At the halfway mark and things are looking fantastic.

Ammo 0.50 ppm
Nitrites 0.25 ppm
Nitrates 40 ppm
ph <7.6

I'm nitrates at 40 ppm because to the naked eye the color looks orangey vs deep red. You can also see the color at the very bottom of the tube. So in another 11 hours or so ammo and nitrites should be zero.



The clarity is still looking great! Today is gonna be a good day!

 

[1midniterider]

IT'S CYCLED!!! Ok, ok, ok, I couldn't wait the full 24 hours. Since I'm working from home, decided to check it early. And my ammo and nitrites are zero or, I should say, as close to zero that I've seen with this kit...

Ammo 0.25 ppm
Nitrites 0 ppm

I know the nitrates are high, so I'll do a 50% pwc later today and dose just enough ammo to keep things going til moving day.

Now to plan the move...

 

[Schamens]

IT'S CYCLED!!! Ok, ok, ok, I couldn't wait the full 24 hours. Since I'm working from home, decided to check it early. And my ammo and nitrites are zero or, I should say, as close to zero that I've seen with this kit...

Ammo 0.25 ppm
Nitrites 0 ppm

I know the nitrates are high, so I'll do a 50% pwc later today and dose just enough ammo to keep things going til moving day.

Now to plan the move...
View attachment 313543

Awesome!