I had some fish tank problems a few months back (see my previous questions for details) and my levels are back to normal now but my water is still cloudy to where I cant see the back of the tank (25 gallons). Should I do water changes more frequently (I'm changing 25% every 3 weeks or so right now) or should I just wait and the water will clear up eventually? The fish are doing fine, it is just starting to get frustrating dealing with the cloudiness. Also, I tried the water clear drops and it did not work.Thanks in advance for any help.
2007-04-15 17:51:20 · 17 answers · asked by w8n4fyr 2 in Pets ➔ Fish
What kind of fish do you have in your tank? Some fish require more frequent water changes.
25% water change once a week with cloudy water is what you need to be doing. Being sure to vac the gravel. You can have a bacterial bloom or even the start of an algae bloom going on in the tank.
Water clear drops aren't going to help in this situation.
You need to be doing weekly maintenance. Removing algae with scrapers or pads, vac the gravel and AFTER you do this, let the water in the tank sit for about a half hour to allow heavier algae particles to settle. Change 25% of your water using your gravel siphone to remove debris from the bottom. Let the tank run.
You really have to seriously over feed your fish for that to cause a cloudy tank as you have mentioned. Even the rotting food not eaten will build up your biofilter to compensate for this.
2007-04-16 06:21:55 · answer #1 · answered by danielle Z 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Hi if your tank is cloudy and you have done a water change lately it is going to clear up within a day or two. I rarely change my water. The cloudy water could be due to alot of oxygen in the tank from a recent water change. I just went from a 10 gallon tank to a 45 gallon tank and it took 3 days for the water to clear from the change. If your levels are normal, the fish don't mind a little denser water. That is their habitat normally. I normally add water instead of having to change the water. Another problem that happens is too often feeding and too much feeding. I will usually feed every 2 days. The rest of the time I lightly stir up the gravel to allow the food particles that have settled to get eaten.
2007-04-23 12:21:48 · answer #2 · answered by josh h 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You've said all your water test are fine. I'm going to assume here that you're testing includes ammonia (should be =0), nitrite (should be =0), and nitrate (should be less than 40). Have you ever tested your water for phosphates? Public water supplies often add this to prevent pipe corrosion, and this can give water a cloudy appearance. You can buy phosphate pads (a resin pad you can cut to fit in any filter) that will specifically remove phosphate. Where I've sen them they run $3-5, and depending on your filter size, you should be able to get a few pads out of one sheet.
You might also try more frequent water changes, say around 20%-30% each week. Use a gravel vac to clean the top of the substrate and rotate areas of your gravel so you don't disrupt too much of the biological filter at any one time.
One, or both in combination should solve your problem.
2007-04-20 17:13:44 · answer #3 · answered by copperhead 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
NEVER repeat NEVER take all the water out of an established tank...you will kill any good bacteria and algea that you have... what you should do is go to a pet store and buy tester strips the 5 for 1 kind they are about 15 bucks but are well worth it..test your water and for a 25 gallon tank you should do water changes every 2 weeks until all you levels stay good then you can buy things like nitraban to help you only have to do a water change every month or so... also unless everything dies in your tank only do 25% water changes...also I would invest in salt for freshwater tanks it is the best and keeps your fish bright and healthy...trust me I have a 55 gallon tank and 2 10 gallon tanks..if you have more questions I am free to help
good luck,
michelle
2007-04-15 18:19:11 · answer #4 · answered by Michelle L 2 · 0⤊ 2⤋
Well actually it's an algae bloom and it'll get so bad that you'll only be able to see 2 inches into the tank. You could do a blackout, put a trash bag over the tank and keep the lights off for 3 days. The other option is to go and buy a bottle of the algae killer stuff. I have the same problem right now but it's not too bad in my tank right now.
2016-05-21 01:30:19 · answer #5 · answered by susanna 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
As you know cloudiness is usually caused by a bacteria bloom, which in turn is usually caused by over-stocking, stocking too fast, poor filtration, over-cleaning, or under cleaning.
On a tank that small, depending on how many fish I'd recommend at least a weekly 25% water change, more often if you are overstocked. Vacuum half the gravel each week.
What kind of filter are you using? I'd suggest a filter rated for at least a 30-40 gallon tank, you can never over filter. Live plants can also help with filtering.
What exactly are your ammonia, nitrite and nitrate readings? What kind of test kit do you use? For ammonia and nitrite anything over 0ppm is harmful, nitrate should be kept under 20ppm. I find most test "strips" to be inaccurate, a kit using drops is better, like the API Master Kit.
2007-04-15 18:13:09 · answer #6 · answered by evil_lasha 3 · 2⤊ 2⤋
Well I would highly recommend doing more than a 25% water change every 3 weeks whether or not that is the reason for cloudiness or not. A 25% minimum water change every single week or a 50% minimum for every 2 weeks is absolutely neccesary for a truly healthy aquarium. I strongly believe that regular significant water changes are the number one preventor and solver of very many problems in all kinds of aquariums.
That is my only advice, if more frequent water changes do not make a difference then I would consider other possibilities.
2007-04-15 18:21:02 · answer #7 · answered by Ash 4 · 1⤊ 2⤋
Yes - change 5 gallons every week - and use charcoal in the filter and don't change the filter for a month. The cloudiness will clear up eventually.
2007-04-23 12:59:35 · answer #8 · answered by pilot 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It depends on the waste in your tank, the more fish and other creatures you have, the more cloudy the tank will be in short time, when you do a water change, be sure to use a siphon vacuum to clean the gravel, and a scrubbing brush for the inside of the glass to get rid of calcium and algae.
2007-04-15 18:09:05 · answer #9 · answered by Planet Hell 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋
you really should be changing about 20% of your water once a week especially in a smaller tank like yours they are harder to stabilize. I suggest to step up with the water changes to once a week and if you are using tap water make sure you use a water conditioner like aquasafe so that the chlorine and other chemicals that may be in your water are neutralized.
2007-04-15 18:08:40 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋