Fish tank question!?

Question

I just recieved a brand new fish tank. I have a filtration system on it but the water is cloudy now. Why is that? And could that potentially harm my fish?



I have 1 koi fish 4 angel goldfish and 2 algea eaters.

Answer 1

Wlecome to the hobby!

If you only set up the tank today it';s normal and nothing at all to worry about. If the tank has been running for a few days it's an indication of a problem and needs to be handled for the health of your fish. A new tank needs time to establish the beneficial bacteria that break down fish waste and keep the tank safe for the fish. An indication that this is starting to happen is cloudy water. Before this can happen however the ammonia levels in the tank can easily become too high for the fish and kill them. The only way you can prevent this is to replace water in the tank on a near daily basis for a few weeks. Here's a link to a website that will explain all the details of what will go on in your tank and how to handle them.

http://www.firsttankguide.net/cycle.php

Hope this helps

MM

Answer 2

Could be a couple things one being the cycle.

Another possibility ... did you rinse off the gravel well before putting it in the tank? Unrinsed gravel has a lot of gravel powder from shipping and handling and will float up and cloud your tank until it settles back to the bottom or in your filter.

I would say your tank is too new for you to have an algea bloom. But if you start to notice that in the future, reduce lighting. 6 hours is a good amount for the fish, if you are not observing them. The lights are more for us than the fish, and the algae loves 8+ hours of light.

If it is the cycle. The way the filtration system works is as follows:

The carbon element is a chemical filter, it must be changed every two to four weeks, if not, it will cause problems and you can run your filter without it.

There is a mechanical filter, usually foam or you can use the carbon container, just slit and remove the carbon. It traps particulate debris.

Then you have your biological filter. Two kinds of good bacteria will form and grow on either a ceramic media or filter floss. The process cannot start without either adding fish, or doing a fishless cycle use PURE ammonia (or fresh urine) ... pure ammonia is hard to find, no color and no suds if you shake it. What happens is you have ammonia, then the first bacteria starts to 'eat' the ammonia and convert it into nitrite. This takes a week or two. Then as the nitrite level builds, a second bacteria forms that 'eats' the nitrites and converts it into nitrate. This also takes about a week or two. Higher temperatures will speed up the process. 2 weeks is a fast cycle without using Bio-Spira, usually 30-40 days to get a fully cycled tank.

When it goes through the cycle, this bacteria can sometimes bloom in your water as it searches for homes in the filter media, decor, and gravel. Some of it may be a free-floating bacteria that does a similar process, but will die out when the proper bacteria is establised.

Water changes are used to remove the nitrate that is the end result of the nitrogen 'cycle'. You will want to do a water change when you get about 20 ppm nitrates. Something that helps lessen nitrates and water change frequency would be putting A LOT of plants in the tank. The plants use the nitrate as a food source and help oxygenate the water.

I would also research you fish and make sure that they won't get too big for your tank and stress you out before you get really attached to them. Some algae eaters can grow up to 18", Kois are quite big fish as well. Not sure about angel goldfish. Kois live over 200 years, most goldfish 10-20+, algea eaters not sure ...

check the links below to learn more!

Answer 3

Did you remember to rinse out your filter media?
-if it is not rinsed it will fill your entire tank with "carbon dust" and fogg up the water

Did you rinse out your gravel well?
-If you did not rinse out your gavel it will also contain dust or sand

Does your water contain high amounts of oxygen?
-The water i recieve is oxygen PACKED. Usually when i prepair the new water it is foggy, it's just oxygen!

Have you had your fish tank for about a month?
-If you've had yoru tank for about a month then you should be experiencing a bacterial bloom. This is normal in new tanks. Don't be concerned just continue to clean your tank once a week and it should go away.

Have you recently added any kind of plant fertilizer?
-sometimes plant fertilizer will create an algae bloom, wich begins off foggy and ends up green

Have you been leaving the light on longer or is the tank receiving more natural sunlight?
-ALGAE! Reduce the light.

If it turns out that you are having Algae problems do your best to combat the problem naturally. No matter what the boxes say that algae killer really does affect your fish! Also you may see "anti cloud" medicine, use that only as a Last Last resort, in my experience they don't work.
Make sure to get your water tested at a LPS they may uncover a few mysteries

Answer 4

rinse your filter out, and the water should settle soon.... you can buy a product "clear out" that defogs cloudy water. Water has to cycle for 30 days to be the healthiest for the fish. Won't harm your fish.....good luck.
talk to your local fish tank guy or pet store....they are knowledgable.

Answer 5

your tank is just going through the water cycle. the cloud is the bacteria forming. yes it is harmful to fish. your nitrites and your ammonia are going to get pretty high. here is a site that explains the cycle

http://www.bluecrayfish.com/cycle.htm

basically you should have waited about a week or 2 before adding the fish.

Answer 6

It could just be the condition of the water. There are several types of water conditioners available, I use "Tetra Algae Control". This should clear the water up, and take care of any extra algae your algae eaters can't consume. Good luck!