Nutrafin Clear Fast - Is It Safe For Pleco?

[kwfish]

My 55 gallon tank has been extremely cloudy for about the past month. I have had it set up for about 7 months so the cloudiness is not due to cycling of a new tank. All of my water parameters have been tested and are normal. I did notice that some brown algae started growing in the tank around the same time that it became cloudy. Maybe this is the reason?

I bought Nutrafin Clear Fast because it is supposed to help clear the water. I wanted to know if anyone has used this product and is it safe for use with my pleco in the tank? My last pleco died because of an anti-fungal med that I had to add to the water (the pleco was the one with the fungus), so I am very hesitant to add another chemical to my tank.

Thanks for the help!

 

[coldcazzie]

hmm.. cloudy water and diatoms both suggest that something has upset the balance in the tank, and that you've trace ammonia...

How big is the tank and what is your stock? How often and how much are your water changes? Do you dechlorinate? What about filter cleaning? Any missing fish/inverts? Rotting plants? Does anyone else have access to your tank?

Sorry for the long list of questions!

 

[CezzaXV]

On top of the questions from Caz, I'd also ask you exactly what your water perameters are. Not saying they aren't fine, but we get a lot of people around here who say they tested and they're fine, but when they post the actual results they're far from it.

 

[kwfish]

The tank is a 55 with 2 rainbow sharks, 1 pleco, and 4 tiger barbs. I do water changes about 20% every week and change the filter pad about every month and a half. When I do water changes I add stress coat and nutrafin cycle to it. No missing fish or invertebrates or anything. I am the only person with access. My tank has always been fine until about a month ago when it started getting algae and became cloudy. I figured that maybe some water changes would help to clear it but it hasn't.

As far as the water parameters, I get my water tested at petsmart every time I go there (I have other animals that I need to purchase for fairly often). I cannot find the paper that has the exact parameters written on it however. I know that my pH has always been low for a tropical tank. But it is not low enough to try to correct it and my fish are all adjusted to it. Every once in awhile my ammonia or nitrate levels may be slightly elevated but usually when I do a water change they go back to normal. I will try to get over to petsmart again sometime this week to re-test.

 

[kwfish]

Does the activated carbon that goes into the filter ever go bad (get old)? I just realized that the carbon I have been using is about 1 year old. Not sure if this makes a difference or not.

 

[ZoddyZod]

what filter are you running and what media does it contain? There's obviously a sponge and some carbon, but anything else?

Why are you changing the filter pads every 6 weeks?

and as above....please post the results of your water tests.

 

[coldcazzie]

Ok let me give my comments to each bit of what you've said

The tank is a 55 with 2 rainbow sharks, 1 pleco, and 4 tiger barbs.

Do you know what pleco it is? There are lots of different types. However, they are all are poo machines and need a LOT of cleaning up after them so you have to keep this in mind when judging your maintenance.

I do water changes about 20% every week

I would be inclined to perhaps raise this to 30-35% each week and see what happens.

and change the filter pad about every month and a half.

Why are you changing the filter? Are you doing so because that's what the manual/fish shop says you should do? As ZZ asked above, what filter is it and what media is present? If there are no ammonia locking products in the filter then there is no reason to replace the filter pad AT ALL, EVER, unless it physically disintegrates in your hands. It'll get dirty, yes, but that's a good thing.

When I do water changes I add stress coat and nutrafin cycle to it.

Stress coat is good
Cycle... it is debatable whether or not it is has any benefit. Many members on here (myself included) have seen no benefit to such things at all, and so see them as a waste of money. However, there are those who suggest that they are useful for the actual cycling process. Regardless of which camp you are in, I am unconvinced of the need to continually add them once your tank is cycled.

No missing fish or invertebrates or anything. I am the only person with access.

Good to know. Sometimes dead fish or rotting plants can cause ammonia, as can other people being "helpful" by (over)feeding your fish for you.

I know that my pH has always been low for a tropical tank.

Has this "low" label been given to you by the shop, or did you work it out by yourself? What is the pH of your tap water? Is you tap water soft or hard? The reason I ask is that sometimes the staff don't know much about pH, and think that a nice round 7 is the only good number for pH to register at. Usually if your water sits lower than 7 it is because you have soft water, and if it sits higher than 7 it's because you have hard tap water. If you have soft tap water, and a naturally lower pH then it is good to get into the routine of doing larger water changes each week (rather than smaller ones) as this replenishes the minerals in your tank water. This is why I suggested larger water changes above.

But it is not low enough to try to correct it and my fish are all adjusted to it.

Good, you should continue to not mess with it. It is rarely necessary to try to change your pH.

Every once in awhile my ammonia or nitrate levels may be slightly elevated but usually when I do a water change they go back to normal.

That is worrying - it suggests that your filter is not fully handling the bioload that you have.

 

[kwfish]

The filter is tetra whisper power filter 60. It uses the biobags which is what I have been replacing. I know to never change the black spongy part. I just don't know all the correct terms for the filter parts. The only thing I change is the biobags which are white and I dump the carbon into those. My filter has 2 biobags running at a time so I have been staggering when I change them so Im not changing both simultaneously. There is nothing else in the filter...just the biobag with carbon and the two black sponges.

what filter are you running and what media does it contain? There's obviously a sponge and some carbon, but anything else?

Why are you changing the filter pads every 6 weeks?

and as above....please post the results of your water tests.

 

[kwfish]

In response to coldcazzie:
I assume its just a standard pleco. The store didn't have it labeled as anything specific. I know its not a rubberlip. It's supposed to grow to 24 inches maximum size. The pleco is the only new fish I have gotten in awhile. The tank was in the beginning of its getting cloudy when I purchased the pleco. I was debating whether or not to actually buy it since I figured something may be going on with the tank. But I had also started to get algae around that time so I figured the pleco could eat the algae and then maybe the tank would go back to normal.

The pH has been tested by the store and is around 6. The hardness if I recall correctly was around 300.

I can start doing 30 - 35% water changes and see if that helps at all. Would you recommend that I try the clear fast as well? Or just wait it out a little longer and see if the more water changes help?

 

[coldcazzie]

Ok. Two things spring out at me.

The plec sounds like a common plec - you're right that it's a tank buster and at some point he's going to need a tank bigger than the one you have. They're also not very good for algae duty. They make a LOT more mess than they clean. There is no fish in existence that will substitute for you cleaning the algae off with a sponge

Secondly, I've had a look on Google at the filter you have, and I'm surprised - it's tiny! I would be buying a larger or second filter as a matter of urgency. With a poop machine like a plec I'd personally be looking at an external, but I understand that some people don't like them. I suspect that as your fish are growing your filter is starting to struggle with the bioload, and with addition of a plec it's going to get worse not better.

For the time being I would hang fire on the additive. Your shopping list should include your own test kit, and a new/bigger filter. In the meantime, I'd definitely increase the volume of your water changes, and possibly even do two a week.