why is my fish tank so cloudy?

Question

why is my fishtank water cloudy when i have had the tank 1 month i have changed the water properly and have 22 fish in it and feed the fish once aday and the filter is set up properly

Answer 1

Since you've only had the tank a month, it's probably still cycling. This is where you build a population of bacteria to convert the wastes your fish produce into nitrite, then nitrate. The cloud you see is the reproducing bacteria.

Once your population builds to a sufficient number, the cloudiness will go away on its own. Until then, it's important not to try to clean the tank too well, because this will only remove more bacteria and prolong the time the cycling takes (including how long the tank stays cloudy). You should try using a gravel vacuum to clean the very surface, the gravel fight in the front, and no more than 1/3 of the rest as you remove about 25% of the tank's volume each week to remove excess ammonia and nitrite. This gives the bacteria in the other 2/3 time to reproduce and repopulate the previously cleaned area.

Answer 2

My daughter is having the same problems at the moment.Her tank is only 1 month. Size 34ltrs started with 6 fish. We were told the tank would take 15 small fish or 6 big. We hav a good fish book by Dorling Kindersley. it states that the 1st month u will get a cloud and that the nitrites in the water will shoot up to dangerous levels. We in fact hav had 2 "New Tank Syndrome" deaths, as there is no friendly bacteria to start off with, and now we hav alsorts of diseases.Theres not a week goes by that i don't visit the petstore for medicines. The bacteria cloud should start to settle soon ,ours has just started to get abit clearer now. Visit your local pets at home store and they should hav something to help with the nitrites, which should help to clear it up. My advice to you is also buy anti bacterial, fungas medicine, parasite,medicine, filter conditioner, conditioning salts, a good test kit and also get their advice. they will test the water for you if u take a sample in.( Don't know if they charge for this.) It's expensive to start off with, but the medicines and test Kit should last u a long time.I hope this has helped u, as we r learning ourselves and it's not as easy as most people think to look after fish.Good luck. Just remember if u hav a charcoal filter u must remove it when treating diseases otherwise they will not work.Also do not over stock your tank, ask at shop how many for your size of tank.

Answer 3

Most likely you have too many fish for any size fish tank that yu may have. Fish need a lot more room than you think!

Secondly, is your filter working properly? Maybe you need to get one, or change the filter. With that many fish, you might consider stocking up on filter replacement cartridges.

Also, consider checking the pH level. You can find kits at a walmart.

Answer 4

Please update your question with the tank size and the type/size of filter you use -- as well as what type/size of fish. It really does sound like you've probably got too many fish for the tank.

There's a commercial chemical solution you can get from your pet store to help clear up cloudy water, that helps precipitate out whatever is clouding it up. The pet store should also be able to advise you on number of fish per gallon of tank, etc.

Answer 5

Maybe your feeding them too much?
Any food they do not eat sinks to the bottom and rots very fast, as in a matter of a few hours thus making your tank cloudy? I'd try a new filter to prevent this x x

Answer 6

You have too many fish for one month, I assume you should have more than 30 gallons of water in your tank.

Answer 7

I would say that maybe your feeding abit to much and maybe there is too many fish for the size of tank

Answer 8

Did you add water conditioner? You need this to eliminate the bacteria and unwanted dirt in the water. It works like a filter

Answer 9

sounds to me like you may need a better filter, some dont work as well as others do. Go into your local aquatic shop and ask which is best and they can adivise you. Hope this helps!

Answer 10

You have a lot of fish what size is your fish tank.