Cloudy Water

[talk2mejjv]

My aquarium has been established for a while now. My water is extremely cloudy. I had a lot of snails and I think that is part of the problem. It appears that most of them have died. I did a very large water change and I have used Clear Water Chemicals. What else can I do? How do I get this cloudiness to go away? I miss those clear days. Please help me. Thanks!

 

[Dipschnit]

I would start by testing the water to see what it reads.
I would prolly then clean the gravel with a gravel syphon, chang the filter and do a water change again.
And get rid of the snails(if there are alot) and definetly git rid of the dead ones
I would try to use as little chemicals as possible if any at all.

Good luck,
Charlie

 

[FroggyFox]

Is it a whitish cloudy or a greenish cloudy? If its white, do a search on the boards for "bacterial bloom" (click on 'search' in the top menu bar). If its green, do a search on the boards for "green water" or "algae bloom" and see what you can find. If all else fails try searching for "cloudy water".

Usually if a 50% water change several days in a row doesn't work then its not because your tank was dirty (ie from overfeeding and dead snails). If its a bacterial bloom then it'll go away on its own, you just need to be patient. If its an algae bloom you need to figure out whats causing it (dead snails, overfeeding, sunlight, high levels of various things in the water) and deal with it or it will come back.

 

[homebunnyj]

Please don't change the filter media, you'll be throwing away the bacteria you need and that won't help a bit.
If the filter media is clogged with gunk, swish it in a bucket of dechlorinated water and put it back in the filter. Don't run the faucet over it either, the chlorine will kill the bacteria.

Froggy really knows her stuff, you can trust what she says.

Vacuuming the gravel is important, as is testing the water if you can to see what your ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate read. This can tell you alot about the health of your tank.

 

[bala_aquarium]

i was thinking that if he does a gravel vac and filter pad replacement he/she will kill a heck of a lot of bacteria

 

[Illyria]

My aquarium has been established for a while now. My water is extremely cloudy. I had a lot of snails and I think that is part of the problem. It appears that most of them have died. I did a very large water change and I have used Clear Water Chemicals. What else can I do? How do I get this cloudiness to go away? I miss those clear days. Please help me. Thanks!

My water became cloudy also, sometimes. It was a gray/white colour. I just let my filter do it's job and it was gone within a day. Also what Dipschnit said, do be more friendly to your fish and environment, it's best to not use any chemicals. Your live plants, with the beneficial bacteria, also with regular 25% water changes should be fine with the cycling of your tank. The snails shouldn't be a problem, unless you aren't keeping up with water changes. I have around 11-13 Apple Snails, which grow up to 2 Inches and I can't count how many of those snails the pet stores find unsightly I have in my tank. If you have algae eaters in your tank they help very much with algae and also with consuming organic plant and animal waiste.