Cloudy water/cycling?

[TampaClint]

I am new to this hobby. I was anxious, went out and bought a tank and fish the same day. I set up the tank, cleaned and layed the gravel and added fish. I was unaware of the cycle. I would have waited to get fish if I had known. Anway, I have been reading everything I can get my hands on the past few days. I am worried about the health of my fish. Here is a run down of what is going on.

Sunday, Nov 9th I set up the aquarium. Its a 14 gallon freshwater tank.
I bought three small Tiger Barbs and added them that night.
Monday, Nov 10th I bought alot more fish. I bought 7 more Tiger barbs, 3 golden barbs, 3 cherry barbs, 3 red tailed sharks and an algea eater. The people at the pet store said this was fine, however, everything I have read since is contrary to that. I think its too many fish.

Okay, so even after setting up the tank the water was cloudy. I figured it would go away after a few days. It has not. I began researching cloudy water and that is how I learned of the nitrogen cycle. The water is not very cloudy, but its not crystal clear. I did a 15% water change on Tues Nov 12 and on Nov 13, fearing an overload of ammonia, I added a disolvable waffer that is supposed to neutralize the ammonia. I also added two cap fulls of a product called, Cycle. This product is supposed to be bacteria which will speed up the cycle.

Okay so the fish all seem fine after almost a week. They seem healthy and everyone is getting along. I put some caves and fake plants in the tank for hiding places. All the fish are very small right now, but I realize I will need a larger tank in the near future.

Questions: A)- will the cloudy water cure itself oncee the cycle is complete
B)- should I take any further actions or just let nature take its course?
C)- How long can I expect this to go on before the water clears up and the cycle is complete?

Thank you!

[Wild Turkey]

A. Yes
B. First buy a master test kit and start testing for Ammonia, Nitrite and Nitrate daily, its the only way to really know whats going on. Dont use anymore ammonia reducing agents, they often dont work and can alter test levels. Also we dont know how much ammonia is in the tank until we test it.
C.Anywhere from a week to a few months, theres no way to say for sure, but somewhere in there.

[bushwhacker]

first yes your way overstocked, second start checking your water get a api master test kit 20 bucks on line plus shipping, third bump your water changes to 50%.. i do mine once a week but in that small tank it may take more often

[AABatteries]

The red tailed sharks need a much much much larger tank. So other than that the stocking is okay, but you have a little to many tiger barbs, the pet store just wanted more money, and I they had no idea what they were talking about.
Also bush, 50% water changes is a little too much, they should be no more than 40%.

[Alfcea]

Well....

I agree with all the other posters. You are definitely overstocked. For your first tank, you could use the "one inch per gallon" rule for stocking. This rule is not to be used as "the one and only truth" and it is usually only used for smaller fish (two or three inches max). I would advise you to look up the adult length of the fish you have and, according to this rule decide what you would like to keep. Since barbs in general like to school (form groups), it would be better for you to keep several of the same type rather than one of each... Try and see if your lfs (local fish store) will take them back. I certainly hope so.

About the cycling, well, now it seems to be late. I would keep adding the "bottled bacteria" every day. As the previous posters said, get a test kit and monitor your ammonia, nitrite and nitrates every day until you are fully cycled. Until then, keep doing large water changes (50%) every few days and add some extra bacteria every time (according to directions). I must admit that I have never used those "bottled bacteria" products and I am skeptical, but they might work, and in your case it seems to be your only option....

Welcome to the hobby, by the way. Everyone is excited at the beginning but it is good to know that you are doing your research now. I bet this will not happen again! Good luck.