Cloudy water- changes every day

[Trackerman]

Hi folks, I'm new here so go easy on me...*thumbsups

I have a 12 Gal freshwater tank with 6 neon terta, 6 zebra Danios and 2 small angle goldfish.
Heated to 22 degrees Cent.
Filtered by Elite Stingray 10
Gravel bottom.

All was running well until I introduced the tertras and cleaned the tank & filter & gravel at the same time...big mistake, it went cloudy the very next day.
Now I realise why this happened, I have killed all the good bacteria while adding additional fish... what a beginners mistake I hear you say.

So I'm here to look for some advice.

The steps I have taken to date are as follows:
1. Replacing 20% of the water daily helps keep the green cloud at bay.
2. Adding good bacteria starter liquid with each water change.
3. Using tepid water so as not to shock fish, mixing hot and cold tap water.
4. Adding water conditioner to remove chemicals, our water is hard.

Reduced feeding to once a day, in the morning.

Now I have noticed a strange cycle, the water is relatively clear in the morning, but in the evening it's cloudy again.

This has been going on for 2 weeks now, with no real improvement.
I only started adding the good bacteria this week.

Should I return the Terts's or persist for a while longer to see if the cycle returns???

Thanks in advance.

 

[homebunnyj]

Green cloudy is algae. Run your tank lights fewer hours. If natural daylight hits the tank, try to reduce it -- close the curtain or something. You may just be seeing it more in the evening light.

White cloudy is a bacterial population explosion -- a good thing. It will pass in time.

You need a bigger filter, that one is only good up to ten gallons, and not overstocked. I think your tank is somewhat overstocked. You should get a filter that will work for at least a twenty gallon tank. And never clean your filter like that again. All you need to do is to swish the clogged filter media at water change time in your used tank water that you just took out to get the gunk off it. The bacteria live mainly in the filter and that's how you destroyed your tank's cycle.

And what exactly are the 'angle goldfish' -- angelfish with goldfish-like color patterns, or some variety of goldfish?

 

[Trackerman]

Thanks for the reply Judy,

The Goldfish are actually Telescope Red, I just call them Angel because of their long wavey fins....

And yes the tank is getting more light these days due to the lower sun,
I'll cover it during the day to reduce the light.

And thanks for the tip on the filter, it was fairly clogged with algae when I cleaned it last, so I gave it a really good wash-out in the old tank water!!!

I have only been changing 20% of the water to date, would it be better if I changed 40% until the algae clears up?

 

[homebunnyj]

One thing you really, really need to do is to get an API Master Test Kit, or at least the tests for ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate. If you buy them separately, get the drops, not the strips. Testing your water regularly for a while will help you figure out how much water to change, how often, to keep fish waste from building up. I bet you have high nitrate right now with all that algae.

YOu can take a sample to the fish store and have it tested, but be sure to write down the results in numbers.

Since your tank is overstocked, the daily water changes are a good idea. You can try doing bigger ones if you think it may help. If you know someone with an established tank, see if you can bring some gravel or filter media from their tank to yours. I have more confidence in that than in the bacterial additives for re-establishing the cycle.

The goldfish do better in hard water and cool temps; the tetras, in soft water and warmer temps. Your goldfish will grow quickly, too. Before you know it they'll need 20-30 gallons of space for themselves just to keep the nitrates in a manageable range; they are heavy waste producers. Now would be the time to think ahead to acquiring a separate tank for your goldies. A goldfish tank can be quite beautiful. If you prefer the tetras and want to run just the one tank, you might rehome the goldies and consider a single dwarf gourami as a centerpiece fish.

 

[MissFishy]

Everything that homebunny said, plus a few more thoughts:

Your tank is massively overstocked for a 12 gallon, a 12 gallon is too small for ONE goldfish, let alone two.

When you are doing these water changes, are you adding water conditioner BEFORE you are adding the new water to the tank, or just adding the conditioner after you've dumped it into the tank? If you're dumping untreated water into your tank, it could be killing off the good bacteria. Any "bacteria starter liquid" you're adding may be adding to your problems (usually it's a waste of money anyways), so I would stop adding those ASAP. Buy a test kit and figure out what's going on with your cycle. If the cloud is green, it is algae, if it is a milky white, it's a bacteria bloom.

 

[Trackerman]

Thanks both, very usefull comments.

The bloom is definitely green & I'm picking up the test kits today.
I'll continue with the water changes for now and monitor the nitrate/nitrite levels.

The "Guy" in my local Aquarium store lead me to believe my stock levels were acceptable, he was obviously biased and just wanted to sell me stock, with the hope that I might upgrade to a larger tank...
He also thought it was OK to keep Goldie's in warm waters...
Guess I should have checked it out here first.

Just how big can Goldfish get? Mine are about 2" long at the moment.
And they sure are fast eaters, they scurry around gobbling up the food before the Tetras get a chance to gap a few small titbit's, then not surprisingly they produce most of the waste.


Thanks.

 

[homebunnyj]

I've had them as long as ten inches.

 

[MissFishy]

Goldfish can get HUGE, the typical pet store goldies can easily reach 12 inches, some even larger. They also live up to 20 years. Most pet goldfish don't live nearly this long, most owners kill them before they reach their full size or life spans. Typically, goldfish require 20 gallons of water for the first one then another 10 gallons for each one after that. They require cold water and are huge waste producers. They will quickly foul a tank that is small requiring almost daily cleaning.

 

[Trackerman]

Wow

WOW 12”, I need to re-think my stocking plans... or get a much bigger tank.

By way of update of the algae issue...
I took a sample of the water to a very helpful shop and had it tested.
All Nitrites/Nitrate and Bacteria levels were normal, so it looks to be an algae issue only.
He also suggested reducing the daylight and offered me a chemical to remove the Algae.
This seems to be working, after 24Hrs the cloud is very thin, almost yellow. I suspect a few more water changes will be required to clear the remains.
I also cleaned the algae from the ornaments; they were coated in heavy slime.

I have the tank covered during the day, but I can't move it to a shady area unfortunately.

Many thanks for the advice.

 

[homebunnyj]

Next time you have your water checked, write down the numbers for ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate. And there's no test for bacteria levels, so don't trust the people that told you that. If you're going to stay in this hobby you need to acquire your own test kits.

Also, a total blackout would have killed the algae without adding chemicals to your tank. Really, they're just out to make a sale, so the safest thing is to go online and check with us before buying stuff from them.

I'm glad the algae is clearing up, soon you can start working on the conditions that caused it in the first place.

 

[stoddern]

if your adding an algae killing/removal chem. I'd start doing water changes larger then 20% for awhile to clear that stuff out some of those I hear are bad for fish and like other meds can also kill any carbon filter material quickly by filling the pores in the carbon thus making it look like it worked only to have the stuff be filtered out of the tank and then have the filter be clogged on a micro level and the algae will soon be back

 

[bmoraski]

Well i think all the bases were covered ! lol
this is why i love this forum !
Judy and Missfishy are 2 of the most knowledgeable and helpful people on here.They have helped me greatly ! , even from other peoples posts lol
well good luck , i just had to chime in

and stoddern had good input 2

 

[Trackerman]

Many thanks to all who inputted and commented.

As advised I'm performing 40% water changes daily to clear out the alge and chemicals.

Tank is very clear at present and it's a very welcome surprise to come home and see it looking so good. *SUNSMILE*

Thanks again.

 

[sparky0413]

Hi everyone,
I have a question -Ive had the freshwater tank for about 6months- I put in new filter components about 1 month ago. everything was fine, then i started seeing some slight cloudiness. I put in "accu-clear".( in the past, when i used that-it always cleared up within 24hrs) But; this time when I put in accu-clear, the water got milky-white cloudy . I changed the water this morning-it looked alittle better. Then , when I put in "accu-clear" again--it got milky white cloudy again ! HELP !

 

[Newman]

Thats because accu clear clumps free floating tiny dirt particles (w/e they might be) into seable bunches so that your filter element can catch it better. this is why the water is so damn cloudy. before, the dirt was more spread out in the water, and now the chemical you added grouped the unseeable molecules together into very seable ones, which explains the milky water. perhaps your filter is unable to filter out the clups and clear the water, idk. its advised to do a daily water change of about 25%. this will speed up the clearing process. o and stop putting the accu clear in. youve put enough already. the filter can do its job now (or at least try to)

 

[homebunnyj]

Actually, when you cleaned your filter you killed your beneficial bacteria. Ever since then your tank has been cycling all over again. Did you lose any fish?

The milky cloudiness is a population explosion of the good bacteria that convert fish waste into less harmful substances. Leave it alone and it will clear up in about a week... as long as you don't muck around with your filter anymore. Next time it gets clogged, swish the filter pad around in a bucket of used tank water that you just took out (in other words, do this right after your regular weekly water change) and put it back into the filter.

 

[sparky0413]

Thank you both for your responses. I have a 20 gal Hex-tank .Currently I have 3 goldfish. One big white one with gold on his back ,(sparky) One smaller white one with gold on his back,(little sparky) and one multicolored one.(speckle)
Yes, Homebunny, When I changed the filter, I did loose fish, lost 2 catfish and 1 goldfish.( a silver guy). The 3 that I have now survived, thank God.
So, if I understand both of your instructions correctly, Newman , you feel I should change the water 25 % every day.. then just leave it alone, let the filter do its job and dont add any more accu clear.
Homebunny, you feel I should change the water weekly.& leave the filter alone.
the filter is not clogged now, so if aint broke , dont fix it. right ? ,

The water I changed today was like 75%. (accu-clear this morning: big mistake)

So,tomorrow, should I change the water again ? and while Im asking questions, should I feel my fishies every day? or every other day ?

Thanks again.*thumbsups.looking forward to your answers..[/B]

 

[Newman]

OK lol, you post was funny at the end.

so for the most part ignore my advice on the daily water changes. i didnt know you F'd up your bio filter and thought that you just had a clouding issue (like when a pH buffer/ plant substrate/ driftwood/etc.. is added)

You could do a 15% water change every other day (IF AND ONLY IF YOU USE A LIVE BACTERIA ADDITIVE LIKE BIO SPHIRA) Since its you first time establishing the bio filter, ( I'M REALLY SORRY, I DIDNT NOTICE WHEN YOU SAID YOU CLEANED OUT THE FILTER COMPLETELY.) follow bunny's advice about weekly water changes if youre gonna do this by using the Fish-cycling method.

Be sure to test the water wih strips every three days or so for the first week, to make sure you dont get too high Ammonia or Nitrite or your fish will suffocate and die. (if they get too high buy a filter cartrige like Nitra-Zorb to make the water safe for the time being. this will also slow the bio filter progress though...) I say strips because im assuming you dont want to invest in liquid tests (which are much more precise)

after the first week just test it weekly, BEFORE the water change. otherwise you'd be testing inaccurately mixed water that you just added.

the point here is getting an idea of what was wrong with you old water, before you replaced some of it. so then you test it next week(before changing water as always) and see if your problem has been fixed. often it will be an all's good. If it was not fixed (say your ammonia or Nitrite is still very high) you can repeat this process and have patience until water conditions improve with the help of the bio filter. I they do not improve after more than 6 weeks, then definately do something like Nitra Zorb to make the water safe for any surviving fish.

I'm assuming oure very aware of the nitrogen cycle in a tank, and know the tell tale signs of the bio filter being established right? (you did it the first time afterall)

By saying that the filter is clogged, bunny doesnt necessarily mean that it will be broken, she means look out for masses of visible waste in your filter media, and the rotary fan (one that sucks the water in) Only clean that off if its ABSOLUTELY stuffed into the filter. just leave it alone if its not too bad, cuz bacteria might use that.

All in all I DO NOT suggest that you rinse the filter SPONGE very often. maybe once in two months if that. reason being, a good number of beneficial bacteria live there. ALWAYS rinse with old TANK WATER as suggested by bunny. If you dont...say goodbuye to all that bacteria youve been growing.

a 75% water change can be very risky and i dont suggest doing that when your tank finishes cycling.

NO you dont need to FEEL the fish everyday lol, dont feel them ever. Feed the catfish everynight (wait...do you have any left?), and the goldies every other day. provide veggies(peas, romaine lettuce, or cucumber/zucchini) in addition to flakes.

Sorry to say, but dont be surprised if you start loosing fish. most fish cant take it. if you loose all of them get a few guppies to finish the tank cycling. do what you want with them after. give them away, w/e (just dont kill them o_o)

 

[sparky0413]

Did I write "feel" the fish ? I just saw that, ! thats funny !! LOL LOL !Ya never know, they might like it !
Anyway..I guess, at this point, I should just leave the tank alone. Let the filter to its thing, and hope it gets clear again- do you think it should be back to clear, in about 1 week ?
No, I dont have any catfish anymore, they died. what I have left now is 3 goldies.and i should feed them every other day. ok. cool.
Today, we can actually see the coral and plants in the background, so it guess its getting better (its fake coral and plants ). I will keep you updated.
Again, thanks for the advice !

 

[Newman]

It can take more than a week for the milky water to clear up. then again it can take just a few days. it really depends, and you can get a more accurate idea of how far the tank is into cycling by testing it with All-Test strips that can tell you a bunch of things about your water.

If you're at all serious about keeping fish for a long time, you should invest in liquid tests.

if you could post some pics of the tank that'd be cool too.
Good luck and have patience