Newbie Alert

[Zolar]

Hey people!

I've done some reading around about owning fish but not yet found a simple clear answer for my problems.
I'm a new owner of a 64litre tank. I brought it and set it up as per instructions. I added the tap safe water as instructed but did not add the filter start bacteria that came with the tank as I was advised by the store not to add until I get my fish. Is that right?
My main issue at the moment is that after two days of having crystal clear water it has now gone cloudy...I washed all the gravel and ornaments thoroughly before putting them in. I've done a water test and it's showing that the cl2 is slightly high which I'm assuming is the chlorine. Is this what's causing the cloudiness? Should I add more tap safe??
Shall I wait till the cloudiness has gone before getting my fish?

Hope someone out there can help

Zoe

 

[fluttermoth]

You want to do this one FF2?

Oh, ok, I will then

Hi zoe, to the forum.

The cloudiness in your tank is most likely a bacterial bloom. It will clear up in a few days, or a large water chane might help.

I'm afraid there's a lot more to setting up a tank than just letting it run. It needs to be cycled first, to grow a colony of good bacteria that will eat the fish's wastes and stop the water poisoning them.

If you click on the link in my sig, there are articles on the 'nitrogen cycle' and fishless cycling' that you might like to have a look at.

 

[Fishy friend2]

Sure......... Let me go and find the links

 

[Aqua Tom]

Welcome to the forum Zoe.
Flutter has already given you the advice I would. Let me just add thatit may be a bit daunting & a lot more involved than you where led to believe. But with your patience & some friendly help from our members I am sure you wont be dissapointed with the results.

Tom

 

[Fishy friend2]

Oops! I forgot to welcome you to the forum
Welcome to the forums mate! You've made a great choice in selection, we are a very friendly bunch of people, and I guarantee that you'll love it here


What color is the water, is it a milky white color, or a greenish color. My best guess is that it is a bacterial bloom, as algae blooms only happen in over lighted tanks, with lots of excess nutrients, algae blooms thrive in extra nitrate, ammonia, etc. but with no fish there is no source for the algae to thrive on other than the light source, but typically you won't expect an algae bloom that fast and pronounced. So there fore I'm presuming that this is a bacterial bloom, becuase of how fast it appeared, and the fact that it happened in a newly setup tank. Bacterial blooms typically clear up quite quicky, usually about 3-5 days.

This step is a key ingredient to the nitrogen cycle, in which you grow bacteria in your filter that breaks down toxic substances into less harmful substances. To read more, just take a look at the link that I provided you with. You will primarily need to take a look at this link though as you should initially cycle your tank before you purchase any fish as it will save you lots of time and stress.

And yes. Cl2 is actually chlorine, have you added to correct amount of tapsafe, I've found this product to work quite well and I wouldn't expect it to not eliminate all the chlorine, though some places have high chlorine contents meaning that you'll need to add a bit more than the recommended amount,

also what type of test kit do you use. You want to aim for the liquid test kits as the test strip ones have a reputation for being very inaccurate leading to wrong tests, which could lead to deaths of your fish becuase you are unaware of unacceptable levels of harmful substances like ammonia, and nitrites

Here are some helpful links

Bactial blooms
The nitrogen cycle
Beginner's Resource Center
Nano fish for your tank

I'm so slow at typing

 

[Zolar]

Thanks for the fast responses!!

The water colour is milky white not green.
Thanks for the links I shall do some more reading I want to do it right so not to harm any fish when the times right.

 

[Fishy friend2]

Okay, then it is defiantly a bacterial bloom.
Good luck!

 

[fluttermoth]

Come back with any questions you have, there's always someone around to help

That's quite a nice sized tank, btw, as long as you stock sensibly

 

[Fishy friend2]

So zolar, do you have any particular freshwater fish species that you are considering? I can already think of many interesting choices for that tank
Also,I forgot to mention that if you have any friends or family that are willing to donate mature media, then theoretically you won't have to go through the dreaded cycling proccess

 

[Zolar]

I've read up on the links uve sent. Would u recommend adding the filter start bacteria product that came with the tank yet then to help with the cycle? As I've been told by the pet shop not to add it till I add the fish or would that mean I'm doing a fish in cycle?

Sorry for the really daft questions.

 

[Fishy friend2]

I would advise that you do a Fishless cycle as it will save lots of stress and time, because with a fish in cycle you'll have to do countless water changes.
Also, Those bacteria in a bottle things practically don't work, and won't be much of a use to you at all, there has been a few reported success stories but it's very rare. Youre just better off trying to attain some mature filter media

 

[Aqua Tom]

As I've been told by the pet shop not to add it till I add the fish or would that mean I'm doing a fish in cycle?

<>

Yes

 

[Zolar]

Cool thanks guys. I will stick with the fish less cycle and wait for the cloudiness to clear.
No not thought about the fish yet...what would you recommend?

 

[Fishy friend2]

What I would recommend is
3 sparkling gouramis, 1 male and 2 females, or 1 dwarf gourami
10 Pygmy cories
8 marbled hatchet fish

 

[OldMan47]

Your starter chemical may help a bit until you can find a source of ammonia. Most of them seem to contain something organic that decays and produces traces of ammonia. That trace will get things started while you research a better source of ammonia for cycling.