Cloudy Aquarium Water

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Onedermel

New Fish
#1
May 4, 2010
3
0
0
North Augusta, SC
#1
5 gallon tank - contains two female bettas. Did everything right (or so I thought) according to Animal Planet Aquarium Care of Bettas; heater, filter, clean tank once a week, use pellet food, etc. Came home to cloudy water yesterday. Tested the water with strips, and everything was right on the money with the exception of the alkaline - read "moderate" instead of ideal.

So, I syphoned out 20% of tank water, cleaning the gravel as I went along with the tube/hose according to the products instructions. It was still cloudy when I went to bed last night, but I thought for sure when I got up this a.m. the tank would be clear again; wrong. Okay...it'll be clear when I get home from work this evening; wrong again.

What's the problem?

Should I invest in a scum sucker? Are they even compatible with female bettas?

Also, we will be going on vacation in several weeks so I'm trying to think ahead....is there an automatic feeder for bettas? I've seen them in PetSmart for tropical fish, and even though I've read that bettas are considered tropical, is it safe to assume I can use one of these? I don't want to purchase on an assumption.

Thanks....
Mel
 

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hayer

hayer

Large Fish
#2
Sep 2, 2009
268
0
0
#2
is your tank cycled? if not, is the glass cloudy or the water? if it's the water, then it could just be a bacteria bloom. if it is on the glass, it just needs to be cleaned.

how long will you be in vacation? i have heard that fish can live without food for a couple of days(might want to get clarification on that. sorry:(). it is more dangerous for someone to feed your fish than it is for them to fast for a while.
 

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Onedermel

New Fish
#3
May 4, 2010
3
0
0
North Augusta, SC
#3
No, I don't cycle my tank. I read about it in the Animal Planet book for Bettas but since I'm a "newbie" I thought it would probably be best to keep things simple. The glass is crystal clear - it's only the water.

If its a bacteria bloom, would getting a skum sucker or something of the sort remedy the problem?

hayer said:
is your tank cycled? if not, is the glass cloudy or the water? if it's the water, then it could just be a bacteria bloom. if it is on the glass, it just needs to be cleaned.

We'll be at our timeshare for a week. I just saw on Amazon.com that I can get a "Vacation Feeder - Betta Shape - 7-Day - 6 pk". - a Penn Plax product. Is this a good idea?

how long will you be in vacation? i have heard that fish can live without food for a couple of days(might want to get clarification on that. sorry:(). it is more dangerous for someone to feed your fish than it is for them to fast for a while.
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OrangeCones

Elite Fish
#5
Feb 27, 2009
4,395
0
36
#5
Welcome to the tank, Mel !!

Onedermel said:
Tested the water with strips, and everything was right on the money with the exception of the alkaline - read "moderate" instead of ideal.
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Not sure what readings you obtained from the test strips. Honestly, I've never seen one that said 'right on the money' LOL!

The strips are not known for being very accurate. If you can't invest in a good liquid test kit like API Master Freshwater Test kit, see if your fish store can test your water for you. Most do it for free. Find out what the actual readings are for ammonia, nitrite and nitrate (write down the numbers, don't let them just say 'its fine'). Then post the numbers here and more advice on how to proceed can be given by all here.

Onedermel said:
So, I syphoned out 20% of tank water, cleaning the gravel as I went along with the tube/hose according to the products instructions.
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Excellent decision! Water changes are the key to doing a fish-in cycle, which is what you are doing. A larger water change and often is the only way to keep the fish alive through this process. You will do much better if you can test your own water with the liquid test kit.

Onedermel said:
What's the problem?
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You are likely seeing a bloom in the beneficial bacteria your tank needs to consume the waste produced by your fish.

Onedermel said:
Should I invest in a scum sucker?
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Not sure what a 'scum sucker' is, but you don't want to add ANYTHING more to the tank until its cycled. It will take at least 6-8 weeks.

Onedermel said:
Also, we will be going on vacation in several weeks so I'm trying to think ahead....is there an automatic feeder for bettas?
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I've never used an an automatic or vacation feeder for any fish, so I can't help you there. How long will you be gone?
 

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littletankbigworld

Superstar Fish
#6
Aug 16, 2009
1,318
0
0
SW Pennsylvania
#6
Onedermel said:
No, I don't cycle my tank. I read about it in the Animal Planet book for Bettas but since I'm a "newbie" I thought it would probably be best to keep things simple. The glass is crystal clear - it's only the water.

If its a bacteria bloom, would getting a skum sucker or something of the sort remedy the problem?
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Not cycling your tank makes things difficult, not simpler. Eventually, every tank has to cycle. Since you have decided to do a cycle with fish, you can not necessarily expect both fish to survive the cycle. Daily water changes are necessary and will help your fish to make it through the cycle. Also, you need a liquid test kit. Test strips are terribly inaccurate. Test your water every day and do water changes every day until your readings show 0 ammonia, 0 nitrites, and between 0 and 20 nitrates.

Now, the cloudy water is not your only problem. Two bettas cannot live together in the same tank. It is possible to keep 4 or more females in the same tank together, but for this you would need at least a 10-15 gallon tank. Please do not add any more fish to your current tank. Two betta females can only be kept together if you have kept the fish for a long time and know the personalities of both fish. If not, the fish will fight and rip each other apart. They are called Siamese Fighting Fish for a reason. I would purchase another 5 gallon tank or return one of the bettas to the store.

I think by "skum sucker" you mean an algae eater. There are not any algae eaters small enough for a 5 gallon tank. Algae eaters cannot fix cloudy water and they would make the problem a thousand times worse. The only way to fix the cloudy water is to cycle the tank. Cycles with fish, like you are doing, take longer than cycling without fish. You can expect this to take anywhere from 1 month to 1.5 months.

Automatic feeders can run from around $20 to $80. I've personally never used one before. However, you will still need someone to do daily water changes while you are away or you can almost guarantee dead fishies when you return, especially since your tank isn't cycled. Also, having an automatic feeder will not fix your cloudy water.
 

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Mturner615

Large Fish
#7
Dec 8, 2005
190
0
0
35
Harrison Twp. Michigan
#7
I would like to correct the previous post about the two bettas not being able to live together. TWO FEMALE bettas can possibly live together, but it depends on the temperament of the females.

Under no circumstances should TWO MALE bettas ever live together, but sometimes colonies of females can manage to live together. As long as they're not picking on each other, then they should be fine.
 

lauraf

lauraf

Superstar Fish
#8
Jan 1, 2010
2,181
0
0
Vancouver, British Columbia
#8
Mturner615 said:
I would like to correct the previous post about the two bettas not being able to live together. TWO FEMALE bettas can possibly live together, but it depends on the temperament of the females.

Under no circumstances should TWO MALE bettas ever live together, but sometimes colonies of females can manage to live together. As long as they're not picking on each other, then they should be fine.
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Mturner, this is exactly what littletank meant. She wasn't referring to male bettas at all! Littletank knows her bettas ;)
 

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littletankbigworld

Superstar Fish
#10
Aug 16, 2009
1,318
0
0
SW Pennsylvania
#10
Yes, I did say that Mturner615. "Two betta females can only be kept together if you have kept the fish for a long time and know the personalities of both fish. If not, the fish will fight and rip each other apart. " You must have overlooked it.

Aww, thanks, Lauraf. You're so sweet. :)

You could theoretically keep females in that tank with a divider, but their swimming space would be extremely limited. It's better just to give one back to the store.

Adding plants will help a tad, but only if you can keep the plants alive. If not, rotting plant matter will foul the water.
 

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