Silly Question ... Why Is My Tank Getting Cloudy?

[osikorn]

I recently had major issues with my 75 gallon tank and after all the fish died from a "husband feeding the fish" induced plague ... I had emptied everything but the gravel media in the filter. so I have new substrait gravel, and new basic plants. I had tested the water prior to putting fish in a two days ago and all levels were good. No amonia, no Nitrate, Nitrite, and Ph was 7.8.

All the fish I bought are young, less than 2 inches long. I have 3 Jack Dempsy Cichlid, 1 Oscar, 2 African Cichlids (look like jaguars with black and grey stripes) and 1 upside down catfish. Oh and one beta that my kids insisted on but I don't think he'll do well when the fish get bigger.

I do weekly 10-15% water changes.

My filter is Marineland 350 Magnum and I have an air pump bubble fall on the opposite side of the filter.

My question is why the tank which has shown stability, looks foggy. Is there something I can do to stop the fog and help it clear up?

 

[Caprichoso]

If your test kit has come up with 0 for nitrates I would imagine that your tank is not cycled. A cycled tank should have some nitrates I would think? The water fog can also be from over feeding or from a bacteria bloom. It can also be from stirring up the substrate too much or from new substrate that hasn't been rinsed prior to adding to the tank. Increase your water change to 50%, that will help clear it a bit. Do another w/c in a couple of days. Continue to monitor the water parameters with your test kit so that you don't find yourself having to deal with the effects of an ammonia spike. Perform 50% weekly water changes and make sure husband does not over feed lol. You are right about the Betta, he will not be okay in a tank with those fish for very much longer so keep a close eye out for anyone chasing him. If you get an ammonia or nitrite spike at any time you will have to do larger water change(75-85%).

Good luck with your tank

 

[osikorn]

Thanks I'll do a big water change tomorrow.

 

[osikorn]

I tested this morning. No amonia, my ph is low 6.2. no nitrite, no nitrate. hmmm ...

would a bacterial bloom go away on its own?
I'm doing a large water change tonight.

The fish are devouring the food within a few minutes ... these cichlids don't let anything reach the bottom. its ridiculously different than my mollies and guppies.

I did notice that some of the plants look ... for lack of better term 'limp'. Some leaves are curled like they are not (ironically) getting enough water. is this normal with aquatic plants? I've not had a successful run with them before so i don't know much on their care. There is also some blackness or browning on on some leaves. they look thinner than they were the first day. why?

Oh and i washed everything thoroughly prior to putting it in the tank and the tank was clear for two weeks.

 

[The chilly dipper]

I tested this morning. No amonia, my ph is low 6.2. no nitrite, no nitrate. hmmm ...

would a bacterial bloom go away on its own?
I'm doing a large water change tonight.

The fish are devouring the food within a few minutes ... these cichlids don't let anything reach the bottom. its ridiculously different than my mollies and guppies.

I did notice that some of the plants look ... for lack of better term 'limp'. Some leaves are curled like they are not (ironically) getting enough water. is this normal with aquatic plants? I've not had a successful run with them before so i don't know much on their care. There is also some blackness or browning on on some leaves. they look thinner than they were the first day. why?

Oh and i washed everything thoroughly prior to putting it in the tank and the tank was clear for two weeks.

guys is 6.2 ph gonna have stalled any progress bacteria wise?
this may be the trouble here??

 

[osikorn]

what should i do?

 

[Caprichoso]

What is the pH of your tap water?

 

[osikorn]

Tap water is 6.8

Just got home and tested the waters ph! It's 6.0!!! What do I do!?!?

 

[osikorn]

Tested water
0 ammonia
0 nitrite
0 nitrate
Ph is 6.0

I'm going to do a water change.
Should I make a large water change being that the only issue is ph. How big should the water change be? I don't want an ammonia problem if I can avoid it.

Fish see to be good. They are swimming on every level of the tank. I still have concern forthe plants though.

Hmm... Just noticed my beta is missing as is one of the jack Dempsey cichlids. Yikes!

 

[osikorn]

Found the beta and saved him from an African cichlids. I though he would hold his own for a while. Guess not. Definitely missing a jack dempsy though. I found a remnant of Dempsey parterned skin on the gravel. I can't seem to find any bones or skull or anything else. Is this common with cichlids? You would think in a 75 gallon 5 small cichlids and an young oscar could make some room. Guess not. Sheesh!

 

[osikorn]

I discovered my missing cichlid. He jumped out of the tank. I just found him by the filter under the tank. so sad. I didn't realize cichlids jumped.

I did a 25% water change. the tank is less cloudy but I am not sure how long it will last.

I'm still looking for an answer on what to do with the Ph Levels. What is the right way to raise the Ph level?
What can I do about the cloudiness?

 

[osikorn]

How does baking soda work to raise Ph. I've done some research and I see that my Ph is likely the culprit killing my plants. I need to raise it slowly. From my understanding the lower the Ph the more acidic the water. If my Ph is reading 6.0 on the test, it may be even lower than that since it is the lowest number avaialbe on the test. This would mean tank is holding 75 gallons of acid. Although the fish seem unaffected, its not good for the plants, and I can only assume that its very bad for the good bacteria in the filter.

Does Coral rocks help with Acidity?
How do I know how much Baking Soda do I use for 75 gallons?

My tap water Ph is 6.4 and the 25% water change I did last night made no difference in the Ph test i did this morning.
My test results from the morning were:
Ph: 6.0
Amonia: 0
Nitrate: 0
Nitrite: 0

I have to fix this before all the other numbers start to really go crazy.

 

[Rynofasho]

Any rock with calcium carbonate will raise tank PH. PH is easy to raise, just harder to lower. Find some limestone.

 

[osikorn]

Limestone ... where do i get that? what does it look like and how much do i need?

 

[Caprichoso]

Tap water is 6.8

Just got home and tested the waters ph! It's 6.0!!! What do I do!?!?

Ok, you have to do daily water changes at this point, about 30%. With pH problems you don't want to shock your fish by increasing the pH too much by doing a huge water change. Keep doing the water changes and test your water daily. I am very concerned about your water readings being 0 -0 -0 across the board. Can you get your water tested with another test kit as the one you have may not be working. Usually when the pH starts dropping rapidly, those numbers should tell a different story. So until you can get a back up reading for ammonia, nitrite and nitrate, just keep doing daily, 30% water changes. Post your results.