Cloudy water....2 days after setting up aquarium

[Mike5005]

Hi,
I am sure this is a really simple mistake on my part but was hoping someone could give me some advice.
I set up my 180 litre aquarium a couple of days ago and I washed the gravel thoroughly and the driftwood. All was looking great but then I added the tap safe and no ammonia solutions as directed and over night the tank has gone super cloudy.
I tested the water and the ammonia was 0 and the nitrates were high so I added some nitrateminus but still it’s like a fog in there.
I just want to be sure that I get the water perfect for the fish which I am in no rush to get, but also that it is clear and clean for them to.
Sorry if I have made some novice mistakes but I will do whatever I need to get it spot on.
Many thanks

 

[Essjay]

Hi, welcome to the forum

Many tanks go cloudy when they are first set up. It is caused by bacteria, not the ones we want to grow unfortunately. The 'cloud' bacteria feed on organic matter and live free floating in the water. They multiply very quickly which is why water changes don't get rid of them. The good news is that they'll all die off when they've eaten all the available food. As every tank is different, it is impossible to say how long this will take.

Have you measured the nitrate level in your tap water? In the UK, up to 50 ppm is allowed in drinking water, and many places here have nitrate almost at that level. Once we know if the nitrate all comes from your tap water we'll be in a better position to advise oh how to lower it.

 

[seangee]

As @essjay says. You are probably also going to get brown algae shortly. That too will die off fairly quickly so don't worry about it.

There is no need to be adding any chemicals or medication at this stage. I'm not sure what the "no ammonia solution" is but it may be useful reading this primer on the nitrogen cycle http://www.fishforums.net/index.php?/topic/421488-cycling-your-new-fresh-water-tank-read-this-first

Speaking of perfect water it is worth checking the hardness of your water. You can do this by testing it, asking a fish shop to test it or checking your water suppliers website. We need the number and the unit because there are several units in use. Unfortunately there is no such thing as perfect water, but different fish have different needs. If you choose fish that are suited to your water your life gets a whole lot easier - and your fish stay a whole lot healthier.

 

[Mike5005]

Thank you for your help!! I have tested the tap water and it comes out at 40ppm so I’m guessing that’s relatively high.

I will be checking out that link thank you.
I will be looking into fish that are more suited to the water here and hopefully giving them a healthy happy life and me a stress free one

 

[Essjay]

You also need to check on the hardness of your water as seangee said. Look on your water provider's website.


There are basically 2 ways to prepare a tank for fish.

If you intend having live plants in the tank, get the plants, plant them and wait until you know they are actively growing and not about to die. Then add fish a few at a time, testing daily for ammonia and nitrite. This method needs more plants than just the odd one or two slow growing plants.

However, if you intend to have fake plants you will need to cycle it first. This is the best method https://www.fishforums.net/threads/cycling-your-new-fresh-water-tank-read-this-first.421488/ the same link that seangee gave you. As you will see from that method you actually need to add ammonia so you need to stop using the 'no ammonia solution'


With both of these methods the tank won't be ready for fish for a while, so we can help you choose which fish are suitable for both your tank size and the type of water you have.

 

[PheonixKingZ]

I concur, you need to nail your water parameters, before getting any fish.

“The triple 0”, aka...

Ammonia: 0ppm

Nitrate: 0ppm

Nitrite: 0ppm

ph: depending on the fish species, but usually 7.4-7.6 for a tropical tank.

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