Water not clear in community tank

[SUSS8]

Well I have a Aquatopia Poseidon 30L tank which also came with a aquatopia internal 100 filter (sponge filter).

I currently have:

2 x tetras

4 x Guppys

3 x albino corys

I cannot seem to get the water clear at all. It just always seems a foggy/cloudy. I put some cotton floss under the filter sponge which has cleared up little particles that were swimming around in the water but the water still seems foggy. I clean the and do 10-15% water change every week and it just doesn't seem to clear.

I only put just enough food for them that they can set in 2-3mins so I don't believe it is that. I have cleaned the filter also and still no change. I don't understand what I'm doing wrong?

Is there any products that people use when doing water changes other than water conditioner ? I'm just asking because I must be doing something wrong or I must have a crappy filter ?

If anyone has any suggestions I would greatly appreciate it as the water quality is annoying me because I feel bad for the fish.

Muss

Edited September 8, 2012 by Suss

[SiameseFightingFist]

I remember reading somewhere that one of the things that may cause cloudy water is bacterial growth.

I remember one time I brought some fish home from the LFS and I managed to get some of the LFS water into my crystal clear water. For the next week or so the water developed some cloudiness. I did some water changes and it would clear it up a bit but the cloudiness would come back. It eventually cleared up on its own, presumably after the good bacteria took control of the tank again, or something.

I was a bit worried for a while because amongst other things, bad bacterial growth saps oxygen from the water leaving less for the fish.

[6ftaquaman]

How old is this tank and has it been cycled?

[briztoon]

How old is this tank and has it been cycled?

I was thinking the same. It could be an ammonia cloud.

How to clean up cloudy water in an aquarium

[forever_and_a_day]

how do you clean your filter? - it should be cleaned in old aquarium water and not in tap water because the chlorine kills most of your filter bacteria and you have to start the cycle again in most cases.

good luck in finding whatever it is that is causing it a cloudy tank's no fun to look at

[SUSS8]

The tank is about 2 months old. I have cycled it. I also cleaned the filter in the bucket I syphoned the water from the tank.

Hopefully I work this out

[6ftaquaman]

Get yourself an API master test kit and test the levels of ammonia and nitrite, if they are at 0 you can rule out the ammonia causing it. A product I have used in the past to make the water crystal clear is "API-ACCU CLEAR" but if there is ammonia in the tank you need to get that sorted first.

[SUSS8]

I just lent a friends test kit and I'm getting ammonia reading of 1.0ppm (if I'm reading it correctly) and 0ppm of nitrate.

What can I do to bring the ammonia levels down ?

[6ftaquaman]

You need to test it once, wait 24hrs and test again. If the ammonia is back to 0 after 24hrs your tank is cycling the ammonia and that is not the cause of the cloudiness. If its not at zero after 24hrs my advice is keep doing partial water changes often, that should bring it down eventually or you could try a big 90% water change first then smaller partial ones to bring it under control.

Has your tank water been cloudy since you set it up?

[SUSS8]

I did a 90% a few weeks because it started to become cloudy but before that it seemed to be fairly clear. I just did another ammonia test and Im still getting a reading of 1.0PPM.

Should I do another 90% water change? I will siphon the tank and just add fresh water with conditioner and should I do/add anything else?

[6ftaquaman]

The thing is im not sure your tank has cycled properly to start with and if it hasnt cycled then what you might be seeing is a bacterial bloom as it goes through the cycle process, my tank is in that process at the moment and no point in trying to get the water to look clear while it goes through the process.

Did you use test kits to cycle in the beginning? Have you lost any fish since setting it up? I would be testing the ammonia every day and maybe putting ammo-lock in the water if you cannot reduce the ammonia level with water changes. (stops the ammonia being toxic while tank tries to process it)

If your tank has been cycled it should get any ammonia in the tank down to 0ppm within a 24hr period. Other things that could be causing it are over feeding and over stocking the tank which it does not seem to be. Have you got a picture of your tank you can post?

[SUSS8]

I did a 90% water change last night and at the same time, cleaned the sponge filter, as well as taking the filter apart and cleaning it up as well. The water is finally actually clean now!! It is a little bit cloudy but you can see the water is clear, there is nothing floating around, no particles etc.

I may try some Accu-Clear to get rid of the rest of the little bit of cloudyness. I will check what my readings of Ammonia are again tonight.

[6ftaquaman]

Good idea, clear water does not always mean your water paramaters are ok, the only way to know that is to test the water. Although from what you said above it seems it may have been your filter. I do not know if that is a good quality filter or not though.

[SUSS8]

Good idea, clear water does not always mean your water paramaters are ok, the only way to know that is to test the water. Although from what you said above it seems it may have been your filter. I do not know if that is a good quality filter or not though.

Yeah I dont know if its a good quality filter either...I really have not been happy with it since I have had it I wouldnt recommend anyone to purchase it To be honest.

I want to get another filter but my only problem is I am not sure what to purchase as I get told different things from different LFS. :confused:

[6ftaquaman]

2 brands I know are top quality are EHIEM and FLUVAL if you are after really good quality. The downside is they are pricey compared to other filters. I would go as far as to say ehiem is the best you can get when it comes to filters (ofcourse this is my personal opinion)I have been running an ehiem 2080 canister filter and could not be happier with it. The fluvals would be a cheaper alternative to ehiem although my experience is with canister filters so not sure if hang on/internal filters would be the same case or not.

Edited September 12, 2012 by 6ftaquaman

[SUSS8]

I just did another ammonia, nitrite & nitrate test.

Ammonia: 0ppm

Nitrite: 0ppm

Nitrate: 0ppm

Im a Happy Boy!

So water parameters are A-Okay and this is after a 2 days of testing. So now I think I may go out and grab some Accu-Clear and give it a go.

[SUSS8]

I have brought it down to the Eheim Pick Up filter 2006....I have read good reviews and seems to be a decent unit. The best price I could find for this type of unit was for $40 from a LFS. Just wondering if anyone had any experience with the Eheim Pick Up filter 2006 and also if it sounds like a fair price for the unit?

[Mongbean]

Hey,

There could be many reasons why the water is cloudy

For starters water changes, you are doing far too much too often, doing 90% water change means your tank has to cycle all over again.

As the tank is new it could be the substrate, how high is your PH?

If you find that it is high then it very well could be the substrate...that’s as easy as washing it out.

The second reason could be Bacterial bloom, this would come about due to the large water changes for your size tank. In a larger tank you could do 30 percent water change and have a small spike in water balance but because you are doing it in a large body of water then it has minimal effect. But in a smaller tank then the effect is much more severe. And every time you do large water changes you get a bacterial bloom and it takes a while for the tank to establish the needed bacteria to clear the bloom. Since this is easy to test and all you have to do is do smaller water changes and wait.

Lastly and one that has been mentioned already is fish stock, having a 30ltr tank restricts how much stock you can put in your tank.

Easiest way to find out is by using the aqua adviser and put in your tank dimensions and filter as well as your fish and it will tell you what your maximum capacity is. (here is the link for you)

http://www.aqadvisor.com/

I would test your tap water on its own and leave your tank for a week, do a 10ltr water change. and then after a week re test the water again. also keep in mind anything you add to the water to help would be super potent due to the size of the tank.

What substrate are you using? and what type of food are using?

the filter may not be the best but it's easy enough for that tank, bad filters don't filter well and when pushed too hard or are over loaded turn your tank to hell.

But in your case the filter may not be great but it's more than enough for your tank.

I have an Eheim pro external canister filter that is not a super jet but it cleans the water like nothing else and that’s where the quality is.

If you have a choice in filter again I would suggest a canister filter as you only have 30ltr tank and anything in the tank is taking the room away from the fish. I also think canisters a quieter as well. you can pick one up for around $80-$120 bucks that would be more then suitable for your tank.

Hope this helps.

I have brought it down to the Eheim Pick Up filter 2006....I have read good reviews and seems to be a decent unit. The best price I could find for this type of unit was for $40 from a LFS. Just wondering if anyone had any experience with the Eheim Pick Up filter 2006 and also if it sounds like a fair price for the unit?

The price is about right, I have seen them cheaper, it's suited for a 45ltr tank. If you can always go higher. I have a 175ltr tank and my eheim is more suited for a 350ltr tank.

if you can afford it then def go higher. you can never have to much filtration.

here is another tha would be suitable for your tank.

http://thereefshop.com.au/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=10&products_id=1152

I purchased my Ehiem through these guys and they were fast and reliable.