Murky Water Problem.

[Chrispixx]

The video of the tank looked clearer than the pics in post #13. In the pics it looks like green water which would be algea,(or is that just the way the pics look?) you say your lights are on only four hours but is the tank near a window where it would get sunlight to cause an algea bloom?

If it is an algea problem you could try a blackout, where you make sure there is no light getting to the tank at all. Do this either by keeping the room completely dark for 3-4 days or covering the tank with something to block all light.

Also reduce feeding or dont feed at all, the fish will be alright without food for awhile.


One more thing.. i dont like the way the bubbles in pic #2 are just hanging around. Meaning when the bubbles come up to the surface they should dissapate/break up imediately then pop quickly. When the bubles come up to the surface and linger or hang around or form a foamy froth it is time for a water change. ( just a tip i learned from a long time fish keeper)


Cool video nice tank hope you get it sorted out, everything is a learning experience.

 

[LithiumMyth]

check the flow on you filter make sure its on full and do a 40% water change and turn down your air pumps dont need them on that high.
I checked out the filter, there does not to seem to be any way to adjust the flow of water. I did feel in front of the filter and it feels like the water is going strong.


What rocks and substrate do you have?
It's hard to say really, its a fine stone that I picked out from the store. I had not been told to wash it and dumped a 100 lbs worth into the tank without knowing anything. The filter seems to clean up the water within 48 hours of the new set-up. I had moved the substrate around afterwards to try and put the dust back into the water if it had settled back onto the substrate, everything was a-okay there.

What does the tank smell of?
Earth I guess? I'm not really sure, almost like soil.



I do think that it is an algae bloom because this is exactly what happened before the tank exploded into a green swamp. I had cleared it up with the filter wool within a couple of days. The tank is near a window, but does not get any sunlight at all, I put up an old black bed sheet over the window. I had tried the blackout idea prior to adding the filter wool, I wrapped the entire tank in aluminum foil and it didn't seem to clear up. I have been feeding my fish sparingly, once every couple of days. Any more advice for a newbie? My LFS seems to think it's a problem with my filter, but never want to take the time to come down and have a look.

Sorry Dane, but I've been reading everywhere not to do more than a 15% water change unless there is a major problem with the tank. My pH, Ammonia and Nitrite levels are all reading fine, I think this is more of an aesthetic problem . Can anyone confirm that it's safe for me to do a 40% water change in one shot? Or should I do 10% over a 4 or 5 day period?

I'm also pulling apart the filter now to see if the filter wool I had placed in there is catching anything. I'll keep you posted.

Thanks Again!

Edit - Had a look at the filter and it does seem to be catching some things, but I feel that the sponges in there are catching the majority of the debris and slowing water flow through the filter wool. We'll see what happens .

 

[Chrispixx]

I've been reading everywhere not to do more than a 15% water change unless there is a major problem with the tank.

You could be changing 25 to 30% of your water a week or every two weeks. How much water and how often depends on your stock level and your nitrAte levels. This is where your test kit comes in. If your nitrAte level is 20 on Monday then over 40-60 on Friday then obviously you need to change more water more often.

Everybody has a different system they go with, some change once a week some change every two weeks some change more often than that, it depends on their tank stock and nitrAte level. I change 30% twice a week.

For you 25% of 90 is 22.5 gallons but you could round down or up which ever you like. 30% of 90 is 27 gallons.

Now heres what you can do to make it easy, back when i was using buckets for changing water i had 5 gal buckets.. i have a 55 gal. tank. 30% of 55 is 16 gallons, so i siphoned three 5 gal buckets and one 1 gallon jug out of the tank to get the 16 gallons.

Then i took a sharpie magic marker and made a 1/2" mark (line) on the tank at the water line.
I did this trick for all my tanks, now that i use a Python and no more buckets its easy to tell where i have to drain my tanks every time.

For you current situation right now I would change 10 to 15% water every other day as well as changing the fiber media (floss) in your filter and rinsing the sponge and ceramic media in the trays in tank water only, then carry on with the above weekly water change regimen after your tank clears up. You just need to figure out how much water to change and when by testing your nitrate levels.

I hope you have a gravel vacuum you will need to gravel vac to clean your gravel because you should have washed it before putting it in the tank. Not washing your gravel more than likely is making your water cloudy?

In your first post you mentioned that you were using "Cycle" now that your tank has cycled you shouldnt need to add any chemicals just your water conditioner.
And dont try using a "Tank Clear" chemical they usually dont work.

Sorry for the long post but it was inevitable. Hope you get it sorted out. Anything else you need to know or if you are unclear about anything I suggested just ask. I am usually online after 6pm.

 

[LithiumMyth]

Well it seems like the problem I'm having is Algae. I just can't understand why! I thought I had the problem all cleared up. After placing the filter wool back on the intake, within 10 minutes after browsing the forums I had a look over to see how the wool was doing. GREEN, is it ever! How do I clear this algae problem up once and for all?

Here are some pictures.

 

[LithiumMyth]

What an improvement! Posting a picture here 15 minutes after applying the filter wool. Now I'm back to my original problem, the white-cloudy water.
My LFS suggested I get a chemical called B-Clear - Apparently it won't hurt my fish or stress them, and clumps biological particles in suspension together so they're removed faster and nothing slips by the sponges. What are your thoughts? Here's a link and some information to the product. Hagen B-Clear
- Nutrafin B-Clear
- Biological water clarifier clears cloudiness caused by bacterial blooms due to:
-- Excess organic matter
-- New tank syndrome
- 118 ml(4oz)
- B-Clear is an enzymatic solution
- It clears the milky clouds associated with bacterial blooms by accelerating the transformation of organic materials into their most basic inorganic components
- This process clears water in 24-48 hours

Video And Picture Included (The Video Didn't Turn Out High-Quality Like I had Expected it to.

Video

 

[LithiumMyth]

Quick Update

The tank is looking great, there are no visible signs of algae anymore, however, the filter wool continues to impress me. It's grabbing things from that water that I couldn't see with the naked eye. I'm posting a few pictures to show you guys the great work it has done. Aside from the great news, now that the water is clear and the algae is gone, there seem to be millions, and I literally mean millions of extremely small 'bubbles', or maybe it's dust. Is there a finer media I can use to filter that out, or am I looking at basically stopping water flow completely at that point?

Thanks again guys!

Pictures

 

[Chrispixx]

Wow!! the tank looks great now.. did you use the b-clear? i'm not a big fan of adding chemicals but if thats what you used it was worth it. Certain chemicals just mask the problem at hand thats why i dont prefer to use them.

I watched the video and you mentioned that b-clear will make the filter trap particles in suspension. So it seems like a good product, all it does is make your filter work more efficently by trapping the fine particles that normally would stay floating in the water.

I like the filter floss (wool) trick.. i guess putting it on your intake tube is easier than taking your cannister filter apart.
the last picture of the full tank shot looks great.... a big difference from the video.

Have you been doing water changes and gravel vac-ing too?

Now you just need to keep that algea under control. Try to keep daylight from getting at it especially if you live in a sunny area. Try to minimize your tank lighting too, the lights should only be on when you are home or viewing it.
If you dont have a timer for your tank light it might be a good idea to get one. you can pick one up at your local home center. I have light timers on all my tanks.

 

[LithiumMyth]

Thanks! I thought the tank looked pretty nifty myself . Yes I did use the B-Clear chemical in the tank after explaining that the algae was gone but the white remained. My LFS recommended I use the product B-Clear (I wonder why). I also mentioned to them to look into fish less-cycling as they sold me $40.00 of fish in a new set-up. Good thing I know the local cichlid breeder and he gives them to me for $1.00 a piece .

No I have not been gravel-vac-ing at all in the last week, I did all my water tests again today and they are as follows: NitrItes are 0 | NitrAtes are 0 | Ammonia is 0 | pH is 7.9. I'm waiting for Monday to roll around so I can do a full maintenance job.

The millions of white bubbles are still present, and were there before even adding our air-stones. It was actually something I had researched and they recommended I install the air stones to 'snatch' the dust or whatever else it may be on the way up. I'll try to take a high-quality picture so you can see exactly what I'm talking about.

*Random Funny*
My wife and I just looked over at the tank and one of our fish had a bubble at the bottom right corner of his mouth, it was almost metallic so he appeared to have a lip ring! HAHA.

 

[LithiumMyth]

Got a few pictures here, click on the thumbnails to view the full size image. I only got one really good shot of all the bubbles, the fish kept jumping in the way of the camera.

This is the really good picture.




This one isn't too bad either.

 

[LithiumMyth]

Update

My god, I don't think this is ever going to end... What the heck is going on here in my tank? Yesterday I really had my hopes up that it would be clearing right up. I came home from work today only to see this!



The tank has exploded into a white, nasty looking place. I have had the lights off all day.

Please help me .

 

[Chrispixx]

Please post some current water stats.

 

[LithiumMyth]

As of 10:17 these are the water stats.

Nitrites : 0.0
Nitrates : 0.0
Ammonia : 0.0
pH : 7.8

 

[Chrispixx]

How long has this tank been running again??

Did you do a fishless cycle to start with or did you just add a few fish??

The reason i ask that second question is if the tank is cycled you should have at least some NitrAte. This is what has got me puzzled.

If it wasnt cycled it would be showing ammonia.

the cloudy water looks like a bacterial bloom which should clear up on its own. ( if thats what it is) i would just let it go and see what happens in the next few days try not to feed too much and keep a close eye on your stats.

hopefully someone else will chime in hear because your situation is weird.

 

[LithiumMyth]

The tank has been up and running for about 8 weeks now. I added about 6 fish to start with (My LFS knows nothing about fishless cycling) and then I added 44 more after a few days. This is about the third 'loop' of white-water, really fuzzy water, and BAM algae bloom. I'll keep the lights off for a few days like you suggested and won't overfeed. Maybe I have the god-send ultimate no-maintenance tank!

 

[Chrispixx]

Did you have test kits right from the start?? Did you test for Ammonia and see a spike in it, then taper off, and did the
same thing happen for NitrIte indicating the cycle was progressing.

Because you should have nitrAte... all tanks have at least some. No matter how much water is changed in a tank some nitrAte will still be present.

Anyway just let the tank do its thing and keep testing. and post back in a few days or next week.