Whats Best For Clearing Cloudy Water?

[andyw823]

Couple of months back i used Interpet filter aid which worked well in a few hours, however there still seems to be some slight clouding which is only noticable when the aquarium lights are on. Weekly water changes seem to make no difference.
Any ideas??

 

[PrettyDiscus]

If you have cloudy water you could try using some purigen or some filter floss.

 

[chibi]

I use this stuff called "Crystal Clear" by Aquarium Products. It clears my water up in about 2 days. It's pretty cheap, too.

http/www.aq-products.com/APpro/crystalclear.htm

 

[PRW1988]

I've used Topfin water clearifier and my tank cleared up over night, another issue may be that the filter is dirty, I know I didn't change my filter on my african cichlids for a month and a half and the water always had a slight cloudiness to it... Try changing the filter it may work

 

[three-fingers]

It depends what type of 'cloudy water' you have.
Is it green cloudy?
Is it a milky white?

Filter floss will only really help remove debris from the water.
If using 'interpet filter aid' helped you, then I think its more likely your problem is a small bacterial bloom, since this product is claiming to be "a collection of bacteria that are used to boost the filter efficiency" (although I am always dubious about these products, and surprised it worked within a few hours)..
If it is a bacterial bloom, none of the methods mentioned will do much use, and even if they did, it would only be curing the symptoms rather than the problem.

Which of your tanks is the problem in? And how long have they been set up?
Can you remember if the problem started to occur after any certain changes to the tank?
Water stats? Water change routine?

 

[andyw823]

It depends what type of 'cloudy water' you have.
Is it green cloudy?
Is it a milky white?

Filter floss will only really help remove debris from the water.
If using 'interpet filter aid' helped you, then I think its more likely your problem is a small bacterial bloom, since this product is claiming to be "a collection of bacteria that are used to boost the filter efficiency" (although I am always dubious about these products, and surprised it worked within a few hours)..
If it is a bacterial bloom, none of the methods mentioned will do much use, and even if they did, it would only be curing the symptoms rather than the problem.

Which of your tanks is the problem in? And how long have they been set up?
Can you remember if the problem started to occur after any certain changes to the tank?
Water stats? Water change routine?

Its in my main community tank which has only been running 2 months, everything was transfered from my old set up including filter media and approx 90% of the water. Its is more of a milky white but can look like its has a blueish look when the lights are on. Some days it looks worst than others. Water stats are fine appart from me treating fow white spot the last 2 weeks so the carbon filter has been removed.

 

[three-fingers]

Sounds like you just need a bigger filter (or even better just add a second one) and give it time to mature.

What filter does your tank currently have?
And were all your current fish in your previous tank, or have you added others?

Your fish having white spot is likely just due to the fish having lowered immune systems, because the tank is relativity new, even if you cloned a previous tank, this does not always work 100% and thus you are experiencing slight problems.

Did your previous tank have cloudy water?
Does your tank get direct sunlight? How long are the aquarium lights on for per day?

The blueish tint is most likely just due to the medication, but it might not be and if it's not it will probably get worse.
If I were you I would ditch the carbon altogether and replace it with more biological filter media, or just filter floss if that's not possible.
Although you should use the carbon to get rid of the white spot medication.

When you say water stats are fine, I'm assuming you mean 0ppm ammonia and nitrite btw .

 

[Albaba]

If its just fine particulate in the water i would replace your filter floss with some really fine grade stuff, draws any silt out of the water really quick

Albaba

 

[rdd1952]

If you are using medication, that is most likely why you have cloudy water.

 

[andyw823]

Sounds like you just need a bigger filter (or even better just add a second one) and give it time to mature.

What filter does your tank currently have?
And were all your current fish in your previous tank, or have you added others?

Your fish having white spot is likely just due to the fish having lowered immune systems, because the tank is relativity new, even if you cloned a previous tank, this does not always work 100% and thus you are experiencing slight problems.

Did your previous tank have cloudy water?
Does your tank get direct sunlight? How long are the aquarium lights on for per day?

The blueish tint is most likely just due to the medication, but it might not be and if it's not it will probably get worse.
If I were you I would ditch the carbon altogether and replace it with more biological filter media, or just filter floss if that's not possible.
Although you should use the carbon to get rid of the white spot medication.

When you say water stats are fine, I'm assuming you mean 0ppm ammonia and nitrite btw .

Current filter is a Rena xp3 rated at 1350 L per hour, the tank is 290L! There are lots of filter media, some from my previous setup, some band new Rena media, some ceramic stuff and lots of filter floss! Most of the fish are from my previous tank appart from the Danio`s and the RTBS. Previous tank was crystal clear. Tank doesn`t really get direct sunlight but does get some sun light. Main tank lights are on for 7 hours per day some times a little more. yes you are right what you said about the water stats!

 

[rdd1952]

Current filter is a Rena xp3 rated at 1350 L per hour, the tank is 290L! There are lots of filter media, some from my previous setup, some band new Rena media, some ceramic stuff and lots of filter floss!

That is at best minimum filtration. The minimum filtration is 5 times the tank volume and preferable 7 or more times. You are currently at about 4.6 times.

 

[three-fingers]

Rena's website says the xp3 is for 250-600 litre tanks and rated at 1350 lph, but a couple of online retailers seem to have lower specs for this filter, maybe they felt that renas specs were incorrect or maybe they just got mixed up with the other rena filters .

Also if you look on the aquahobby page, a few people mention that this filter has a lower flow rating than stated.

In any case, it is a good filter and should be doing its job.
If the fish keep getting ailments or the water doesn't clear after another month, then I would add a second filter anyway.

The blue tint could just be from whatever medication your using.

If I was in your situation, I would be feeding the fish less, adding as much extra biological filter media to the tank as possible, and carrying out 50% changes twice a week.

 

[andyw823]

Rena's website says the xp3 is for 250-600 litre tanks and rated at 1350 lph, but a couple of online retailers seem to have lower specs for this filter, maybe they felt that renas specs were incorrect or maybe they just got mixed up with the other rena filters .

Also if you look on the aquahobby page, a few people mention that this filter has a lower flow rating than stated.

In any case, it is a good filter and should be doing its job.
If the fish keep getting ailments or the water doesn't clear after another month, then I would add a second filter anyway.

The blue tint could just be from whatever medication your using.

If I was in your situation, I would be feeding the fish less, adding as much extra biological filter media to the tank as possible, and carrying out 50% changes twice a week.

Thanks, ones i get this white spot under control i will up the water changes, saying that the white spot is now almost gone fingers crossed! Not sure on a 2nd filter though, as this one i have creates a strong current flow! Just tried something, all the lights in the room are off and the tank light are off, i put a torch light over the feeding trap and it looks as though there is a lot of fine particals floating about!

 

[aquaticadmirer]

While it's usually best to treat the cause of cloudy water and not the symptoms, I use a water clarifier called Acurel F that's a miracle in a bottle when it comes to quick fixes. I've had my tank go from a disgusting green swamp to crystal clear in a matter of hours, but you have to use a bit more than the directions say to use for the best results (about one or two drops per gallon more). I'm not sure where you can get it in the UK, or if you can get it there at all. You can probably find a website that will ship to you if you do a little searching, and the effort would definitely be worth it. I have pics to prove it if you want to see!