Is This A Bacterial Bloom?

[Spishkey]

ive heard it mentioned many times on here but ive never actually come across it myself. anyhow yesterday i noticed my smallest tank (28L) looked a bit, well unclear, slightly foggy water (all my tanks usually have crystal clear water) i thought 'ah i'll give the glass a clean tomorrow maybe its algae on the inside'

anyhow ive gotten up this morning and you cant see through the tank, the water is so white and cloudy. you can just make out the fish swimming by the front now and then.

so a few questions

a) is this a bacterial bloom?
b)what causes this?
c) whats the best way to treat it? tearing down the tank, good scrub of everything and fill her back up?
d) will it harm the fish??

this week has got to be the worst week of my fish keeping hobby! ive had nothing but trouble!

 

[Truck]

a)sounds like it
b)ammonia/light
c) lots of water changes and isolating the trigger
d)no

 

[Spishkey]

thanks truck
so i dont have to tear down and scrub out the tank, just lots of water changes over the next few days or so?

 

[Truck]

thanks truck
so i dont have to tear down and scrub out the tank, just lots of water changes over the next few days or so?

yeh 50% water changes and is it near a window? and check for ammonia.

 

[backtotropical]

b)what causes this?

b)ammonia/light

Ammonia and light do not cause bacterial blooms. Light has nothing to do with it, and ammonia is created by the bloom, not the other way round.

Have a read at the link below in my sig about bacterial blooms which explains everything you should need to know.

BTT

 

[Spishkey]

well i did a 50% water change. no difference. cleaned out filter gave it some 'fresh' but mature media from another tank. another 50% change. looked worse than ever. filled it back up left it an hour, no change. did a 90% change looked a little better. thorough gravel vac.

now an hour later it looks worse than ever?? ?? ?? ?? ?? ?? ?? ?? ??


im gonna be doing water changes all day at this rate??

*off to read link*

 

[Spishkey]

a-ha i now see my water changes are very much useless right now!!
and i believe after reading that article i know the cause - terribly blocked filter, skipped gravel vac last week and lots and lots of plant matter = bloom!
whilst doing the gravel vac i also found my baby red claw dead (recent death) and a dying shrimp, could this be caused by lack of oxygen then? i dont know where my spare airpump is, if i angle the filter outlet to break the surface of the water, will this increase the oxygen getting into the water??

 

[hollanda88]

a-ha i now see my water changes are very much useless right now!!
and i believe after reading that article i know the cause - terribly blocked filter, skipped gravel vac last week and lots and lots of plant matter = bloom!
whilst doing the gravel vac i also found my baby red claw dead (recent death) and a dying shrimp, could this be caused by lack of oxygen then? i dont know where my spare airpump is, if i angle the filter outlet to break the surface of the water, will this increase the oxygen getting into the water??

Well now you have identified the causal factors you can treat it, which i guess you have by removing the dead things and gravel vacking (unless you just left the dead crab in there lol). You might want to make sure your not over feeding over the next few days too.

andrew

 

[backtotropical]

whilst doing the gravel vac i also found my baby red claw dead (recent death) and a dying shrimp, could this be caused by lack of oxygen then? i dont know where my spare airpump is, if i angle the filter outlet to break the surface of the water, will this increase the oxygen getting into the water??

If you have any surface movement at all, its unlikely it died from oxygen starvation, but if you are worried, just point the filter outlet at the surface as you said. The surface is where oxygen enters the water, so more surface movement = more oxygen.

 

[DiscusKeeper403]

b)ammonia/light

Why would light cause a bacteria bloom?


As BTT said, can cause ammonia to sprout up. Do a big water change if you test for ammonia.


There are a few things that could trigger a bacteria bloom. Have you treated with any medication lately? Cleaned out your filters? Added new fish?

If somehow your bacteria colony got damaged, that can trigger a bacteria bloom.

If it persists after a good cleaning add an air stone.

 

[Spishkey]

very bizarre, the tank is crystal clear again this morning, would a bloom really clear up overnight??

 

[Miss Wiggle]

have you checked your water stats spishkey? often with a bacterial bloom you'll test and realise you have some ammonia or nitrite in which case water changes are required to control that, they won't affect the bloom but as the bloom is really only cosmetic and doesn't harm anything but clearly ammonia does that needs to be your first priority if there is any present.

 

[Spishkey]

i had 0.25 ammonia yesterday when the 'bloom' looked at its worst, hence all the water changes i mentioned above. yet today water is back to crystal clear, A-0 nitrite 0 nitrate 20??? i find it very bizarre it cleared so fast (under 24 hours?)

 

[Miss Wiggle]

Once the bacteria are well established it won't take them long to clear a little blip of ammonia or nitrite

you just have a small mini cycle, keep monitoring the water and the bloom will clear by itself in a few days