Couple Of Questions From A Newb

[AnotherRandomHero]

Hey guys,

I'm new to the fish game and currently have a 60 gallon bow front tank with mainly Chiclids in it. (Also includes about 7 small angelfish, some tiger barbs, an African Butterfly, and 1 surviving spotted puffer who hides after his 2 other friends died).

Anyways, I'm here for some advice. I have 2 situations.

First, my tank is sooo murky. It hasn't always been this way, the tank has been set up for 2-3 weeks and tonight I will be doing the first %30 water swap/clean. Any idea why this is happening? I'm thinking I might be over-feeding them but all the food I put in is gone pretty quick and they always seem to want more, plus there is a good amount of them in there. The chiclids are 3-4" long each (5) with 4 1" babys. Any help on this situation would be much appreciated. Just an FYI, there are no live plants, and it's just a white murkiness. No green or brown or anything hideous but I have noticed a smell. It smells like a turtle I had when I was 10. lol

My second thing is I want to get rid of the gravel and go with sand if possible. I've read little bit since joining and noticed most people prefer this anyways.

Here's my questions on the topic:

1) What are the sand options, and which is the best option?
2) How do I make this switch? (i.e.; take out the gravel and add it in without removing the fish) And is it dangerous for the fish?

Thanks guys, I wanna go to the pet store here at like 7:00 so quick replies would be awesome. Let me know if I need to purchase anything for the water situation. I have the basic stuff (De-chlorinator. Aqua-clear)

-Matt

 

[Liam]

The white murkiness is common in new tanks, its a bacterial bloom it will disappear as your tank matures i.e. builds up a full colony of nitrifying bacteria which will process the fish waste. Your tank at 60 gallons has a lot of fish in it. If you know the names and number of chiclids you have give a list of all the fish you have and people here will be able to help you out with the the potential problems with the stocking. If you go to the pet store get a test kit for ammonia and nitrite tests and post the results here. I wouldnt change to sand yet as the tank is not yet stable so it would be better to wait for some time.

 

[jourdy288]

A change to sand is dificult. I may be wrong, but you may just add the sand. Just be sure to add the right grade.

 

[AnotherRandomHero]

The white murkiness is common in new tanks, its a bacterial bloom it will disappear as your tank matures i.e. builds up a full colony of nitrifying bacteria which will process the fish waste. Your tank at 60 gallons has a lot of fish in it. If you know the names and number of chiclids you have give a list of all the fish you have and people here will be able to help you out with the the potential problems with the stocking. If you go to the pet store get a test kit for ammonia and nitrite tests and post the results here. I wouldnt change to sand yet as the tank is not yet stable so it would be better to wait for some time.

Yeah, I just realized I do have alot in there. The problem is, they are mostly babies so they don't look crammed...but at full grown sizes, I have way too many in there.

Here's the Chiclid list (Going by color, not names on most) lol:

(2) JD's
(2) Bright Blue Africans
(2) Black/Blue Africans
(1) Electric Yellow African
(1) Albino African
(1) Orange

and I had a 6-7" yellow one that lasted less than 6 hours. Gotta return him.

Anyways, I purchased a Gravel cleaner hose and took about 25% of the water last night. It's even worse now. It's got a green tint to it and just looks horrible. I'm getting so frustrated with this and work has held me back from getting a test to figure it out. I think I'll try tonight but my LPS is 30-40 minutes away which sucks.

I think I'll wait for it to clear, then switch to sand. Any advice on how to do this once I'm ready?

 

[fatfishman]

Going to sand may not be a good idea when your tank is unstable but when you do decide to make the change take a look at this

http/www.fishforums.net/lofiversion/index.php/t71597.html

copy and paste

look at the first article posted by the wolf it should tell you every thing you need to know.

good luck in changing over to sand, i now have sand in my tank i used silica sand and it looks great and your bottom dwelling fish should prefer it.