CLOUDY AGAIN?

[happyadd]

Hey, I'm two and a half weeks into a fishless cycle, my nitrite has spiked but is yet to start to come back down, but my ammonia is reducing. I have had a problem with plants so far, in that they have all died lol. About a week ago the tank got misty. So I decided to do two 20% changes, on consecative days. This seemed to bring the water back to its crystal clear self!

I planted new plants on friday but by sunday the water was misty again, this is less than a week after the change?

Any suggestions will be appreciated!

 

[swim]

I have had better luck with plants after the tank has been established for at least two months. There are two plants I would recommend that are alot hardier than many other plants. One is called anubius, an attractive plant that comes in many shapes and sizes but is very slow growing. The other plant is called a java fern with wonderful moss like roots that spread across the substrate. Both of these plants can be attached to rocks or driftwood with fishing line. I even have some java ferns fixed onto the intake tube of my filter.
About the cloudy water, I don't know what to tell you.

 

[happyadd]

i made the mistake of leaving my light on for 12 hours when I bought the new plants, I've been reading up on "Cloudy water" and it says it might be a bacterial bloom. Not my ammonia is 2.00, my nitrite is 4.00+++ nitrate is 10 ph is 6.50

Would the extra light have caused the bacterial bloom and do my readings suggest this has happened. For the sake of my plants I dont know whether to do a water change or hope it isa bacterial bloom and it will disappear. Also would a chemical like "Cycle" cause this bloom?

I'm fishless cycling btw.

Thanx

 

[MyDogIsJealousOfMyFish]

I am part way through a fishless cycling of my tank (39 gallons). The ammonia readings are now 0 and I am waiting for the nitrate levels to drop. They are presently at 2 ppm and holding. I had added 5 plants to the tank before I had started cycling and lost 1. My local fish shop ( it is very good and has been in the aquarium supply business here for 19 years) warned me that the ammonia may cook the plants. They recommended wide thick leaved plants like annubus. These are what I got and they certainly looked strained during the first half of the cycling (ammonia). They are recovering now so the nitrate level does not seem to bother them like the ammonia levels did.

I would guess that the cloudiness, if it is white, probably is a bacteria bloom and will disipate on its own in time. I would leave it ,as hard as it is to look at, until the tank cycles. If it really bothers you try a clearing agent like Seachem Clarity which is supposed to work on bacterial blooms.

Good luck.

 

[juiceball1]

The white cloudy water is a bacteria bloom. It will clear with time.

 

[happyadd]

Thanks for the info.

I did a 20% change last night but that has made no difference to the cloudiness so I'll let it disapate naturally i think.

I'm thinking of getting some guppies on the weekend if my nitrite drops, is it recommended to get one male to three females?

 

[Aylana]

It is best not to do water changes while you are fishless cycling. The bacterial bloom will disappear naturally if you leave it alone, doing water changes will probably only prolong the problem. I know its annoying to look at but it will go away of its own accord and is a perfectly natural part of fishless cycling, so don't worry too much.

Aylana