Unidentified Tank Problems?

Question

I have been keeping fish for many years(more then 10), and have been verry successful. I currently have 8 aquariums in fresh and salt. My neighbor decided to start her own aquariums after seeing mine. I offered my help, but of course she tried it on her own first. She started with a 6 gallon, a 58 (odd size?) and an around 28 gallon. She told me how she cycled and all sounded fine. She is having problems with the 58 only. The others succesfully have fish. She reported the water becoming cloudy, clearing up, then coming on again and killing her fish. I figured it was something she was doing wrong. She was new to this and had been told she needed a lot of chemicals. She didn't add as much as they said, but more then i do. I banned the chemicals. We restarted the tank using methods. At this point, i am just completely baffled.

I used to the same procedures as with my own tanks. After a really good cleaning (never with soap) we started it over. We filled it purified warer

The tank was filled with purified water, and i cycled it at first with fish food to stimulate the bacteria growth. We then added 1 fish. Things were great, the water was slightly cloudy, but i associated it with being a new tank, and the filter establishing itself. All throughout the tanks life, all readings came up acceptable. The pH was lower then my tanks and the hardness was higher then in mine but it was causing no problems in the other tanks where the results were alike. The water cleared up, another fish was added and a snail. Just today, following the same cycle as before, the tank clouded up, you couldn't see the back. The fish were acting stressed, we moved them to another tank. The snail had died as well. All readings were normal, and i even took my test kit to double check. Everything was fine. This has happened 4 times, and not even I could figure it out. Is there something I am overlooking? All help appreciated, thank you!

It was completely cycled. My neighbor has tried 3 times, its 4th that im workin on.

Yes, Yes i know, water changes are essential.

Answer 1

Despite both sets of water tests, this still sounds like a cycling problem - the cloudiness after adding another fish (more bacterial reproduction to compensate for the added ammonia from the new fish). Are you testing ammonia nitrite and nitrate?

Can you post the pH and hardness results? Usually if the pH is lower, the water is softer. If the pH is actually higher than your readings, this increases ammonia toxicity.

Also, the problem could be based in the species of fish, or the types of chemicals she's using (as in trying to raise pH and hardness if the fish require soft or acidic water, or creating too wide of water chemistry fluctuations). Any info you can provide could help.

Answer 2

I agree with Copperhead on this. The snail dying is akin to the canary birds coal miners used to take down in the mines as toxic gas detectors. (Invertabrates are very sensitive to fluctuations in the overall water chemistry. ) Adding even a single fish to a newly cycled tank is going to overload the biological filter you've just established which will cause a bacterial bloom and, voila you have a cloudy tank.

I would suggest testing your purified water for pH and nitrates. You might be surprised at the results. I've tested purified water to find the water with 7.8 pH and 10ppm nitrates. Alkaline water (more than 7.0) can increase the toxicity of ammonia as Copperhead stated.

Everything you've stated indicates the tank is still cycling. Ensure that your water chemistry is appropriate for the fish being kept. Ensure a proper diet for the fish so that the fish is not excreting an excessive amount of waste.

Answer 3

You didn't mention doing water changes. Regular partial water changes are essential, especially during cycling. Otherwise, the cycling process is very, very hard on your fish. Since your friend is having trouble with cloudy water (probably a bacterial bloom), I would recommend that she change water at least every other day. Start with 10% so as not to shock the fish, but work your way up to 50%. This should clear up the bloom, and once the tanks are doing well and not cloudy, she should continue to do a 50% water change each week. You are right about the chemicals, the only one she needs to add is a water conditioner to take out the chlorine. Good luck!

Answer 4

When you start this tank up - squeeze the filter sponge from a mature tank with no problems over the new filter sponges. The bacteria from the mature sponge will then be added to the new tank. Or run the new filter along side another in a mature tank for about a month then the day you add this to the new tank add the fish. It will be full of beneficial bacteria and you wont need to cycle the tank.

Do not put this newly seeded filter into an empty tank as the bacteria will not have the food to survive and will die then when you add fish you will go through a mini-cycle.

Answer 5

Did you let the tank completely cycle before adding fish?What kind of chemicals,and why?Cloudy water is usually just a bacterial bloom in a new tank,but sounds like you know this already, and if it happens again after adding one fish it sounds like it never fully completed the cycle in the first place.Ive heard this called a mini cycle but its never happened to me.You said you've done this 4 times now ,so this whole process of cycling then cleaning has taken at least like 20 to 24 weeks now?I'm at a loss.Sorry.