Murky water question

[palabared]

I got a new tank, a 55 gal 48x20x13'' . I have had it for a week and know about cycling etc. About half the water is the original water used by the person who sold it, which was run through an ro filter, the rest i added from tap with antichlorite solution. I added new rocks, but kept the filter in water during transport so the bacteria doesnt die.

I have used my test kit, and it currently reads 0 for ammonia, nitrite and nitrate which is odd. I thought there would be ammonia after a week of a new tank? Anyway the tank has a murky color too it as well as a soemwhat bad smell. Is there anything i can do/did i do anything wrong to cause this? The filter is the 3 stage kind with the foam, carbon, and bioballs on top. Yesterday i took out the carbon pack, because i read that it could cause cloudiness, as well as it takes out minerals that are good for my already dieing plants. Any help would be great thanks...

btw in the tank i have 2 oscars, a beta and 2 angelfish i am selling to the lfs tomorrowl.

[Chrona]

What kind of test kit is it? With decaying plants and fish in there, you should be getting SOME kind of reading.

[f1oored]

It sounds like your tank is cycled. Since you kept the bacteria alive they are taking out the ammonia and nitrite. You should be getting some reading for nitrates because there is no bacteria to remove these, only water changes (though the plants might be helping).

As far as the cloudyness goes, it should go away with time but looking at the picture, I think you are going to need much more filtration. That small HOB isn't going to do it for a 55 gallon tank. Also if you can use some of the white floss (comes in bags) in your filter, it should help with the murky water.

The smell might be from algae or the dieing plant material. Clean everything except the filter media and do a water change and see if that helps. I've read about quite a few oscar owners having problems with smell. Hopefully one of them will be along to assist soon.

Hope this has helped.

[Chrona]

Yeah, try testing it again. If it still reads 0 for everything, then perhaps you just got a bad test kit. Those 3 plants wouldn't be able to suck up all of the nitrates in the water caused by those fish, especially if they are dying as you said.

[palabared]

I just tested it again and it read 50ppm for nitrates. I will do a water change tomorrow and vaccume the stuff off the bottom. Will less nitrates cause the cloudyness to go away? My filter is an aquaclear 300, 300 gals/hour and is rated for a 100gal aquarium, why would i need a stronger filter? and what about the carbon, since i took it out should it help clear the water and allow the plants to grow better? thanks again

[Chrona]

I just tested it again and it read 50ppm for nitrates. I will do a water change tomorrow and vaccume the shit off the bottom. Will less nitrates cause the cloudyness to go away? My filter is an aquaclear 300, 300 gals/hour and is rated for a 100gal aquarium, why would i need a stronger filter? and what about the carbon, since i took it out should it help clear the water and allow the plants to grow better? thanks again

WOW, thats a ton of nitrates lol. Vacuum the gravel, do a 75% (50 if fish are still in the tank) water change tomorrow, and another 75 (or 50)% in 2 days.

The carbon strips out trace elements the plants need to survive, so I don't use it in my planted tank. However, in it's place, I use this stuff called Purigen, which helps reduce alot of the dissolved waste without affecting trace elements.

For your plants, how many watts per gallon do you have? For starters, I'd get some Seachem Flourish tabs and a bottle of Seachem Flourish Excel. If you are going to get more, get Java Fern, Java Moss, or Anubias Nana or Barteri. Those are all very low maintenance plants that aren't fussy about anything.

The cloudiness in the water could be due to a bunch of things actually. Bacteria bloom, phosphates, algae, etc. Does your test kit test for phosphates? And do you have any algae in/on the tank?

If it's rated for 300gph, then the filter is fine for now, but you may want to consider a second (maybe canister) filter or at least a powerhead to get some more water flow to all parts of the tank.

[palabared]

Right now all i have is two 18 inch basic florescent lights, but i heard about this DIY kit http://www.ahsupply.com/images/1x55wmrretro2.jpg . I dont know if anyone has any experience with these but im a college kid and cant afford high priced multihundred dollar lighting fixtures. I am planning on getting more plants eventually, when i get better lighting fixtures, im just afraid that my oscars mite uproot them, but so far they havent really done anything besides nip the tips of the leaves.

Will the purigen fit in the little baggy that the carbon does? if so that stuff will probably help, and for 8$ its worth a shot.

my test kit only tests ammonia, nitrate, nitrite and ph, i dont think i have any algea yet, i clean the glass often with the magnet thingy.

[Chrona]

Right now all i have is two 18 inch basic florescent lights, but i heard about this DIY kit http://www.ahsupply.com/images/1x55wmrretro2.jpg . I dont know if anyone has any experience with these but im a college kid and cant afford high priced multihundred dollar lighting fixtures. I am planning on getting more plants eventually, when i get better lighting fixtures, im just afraid that my oscars mite uproot them, but so far they havent really done anything besides nip the tips of the leaves.

Will the purigen fit in the little baggy that the carbon does? if so that stuff will probably help, and for 8$ its worth a shot.

my test kit only tests ammonia, nitrate, nitrite and ph, i dont think i have any algea yet, i clean the glass often with the magnet thingy.

I'd hold off on all the plants until your tank is settled down. The plants I listed should do ok with those lights. I don't have much experience with Oscars, but I think they do uproot stuff alot when they get bigger, but ask some of the Oscar keepers around here.

You can get Purigen in a 100ml baggy. That will slip into a filter floss bag. 100ml is supposed to treat 100 gallons for 6 months, but 1-2 months is more realistic. It's rechargeable though, using bleach.

As for the algae, I'm primarily talking about on the plants, gravel, etc.

Try bringing your water to a local fish store and having them test your phosphates if the haze doesn't go away after a few days.

Remember, mass water changes every other day! Anything over 20ppm for nitrates is considered unhealthy.

[palabared]

ok ill change the water a bunch,until it drops below 20ppm. Does the nitrate cause cloudiness? i think i will throw away the big plant in the back, as it is browning on the tops for some reason, it could also be causing the bad smell/cloudiness also i guess.

[f1oored]

The high nitrates won't cause cloudiness, but they should be addressed. It might be the plants. I also haven't heard much about people keeping oscars and live plants together with great success. If you are planning on keeping the oscars you might want to rethink the plants. This is your choice though and I think your live plants are cool.

About the filter, I didn't realize it was such a large HOB (looks smaller in the picture I gues). Even still, you are only cleaning water from one section on a 4 foot tank. Another filter would still be wise (maybe a smaller one for the other side of the tank). I think you will find that those oscars are going to be messy fish and more filtration is going to be a good thing. You also might want to consider a powerhead to keep the water moving which will make the filters you have more effective.

[cocoa_pleco]

decaying plant matter causes cloudiness

[palabared]

thanks for your help guys, i bought the purigen for a steep 20$ in my lfs. I saw it cheaper online but had store credit from returning 2 angel fish. That stuff seems to work well as my tank is almost fully cleared in 2 days. I also took out the middle decaying plant, that could have helped too. here is a pic from after...its a bit blurry but hopefully can tell a difference

the 2nd pic is after my new moon lighting i got from hobby palace. thought id show it just cause.

[jeffs99dime]

looks very good! good job with the thumbnail pics too

[Lady Hobbs]

Your tank cleared up nicely and I also suspect the plant may have been causing your problem. I have moved my 55 gallon a couple of times and it will get a bit cloudy (not as much as yours did) for maybe 24 hours but I only save about 4 gallons of water when I move it. (Lack of anything to put it in.) I think they cloud like this some after all the gravel being shifted about some, anyway.

Glad it's cleared up for you.

I also think you would do well with another HOB filter. I used an Emporer 400 and a Penquin 350 on my 55 gallon. It's well worth the extra $35 and will take care of both ends of the tank.

[Chrona]

Keep in mind the Purigen is not really a long term solution, since it runs out eventually (though it can be recharged...but it takes 2 days to do so, in which time you may get an ammonia spike). Eventually, with good water parameters, you should be able to have a good bacteria population so your tank isn't so dependent on the Purigen for ammonia/nitrite/nitrate removal.

That is, unless you get 2 baggies and alternate them.

[cocoa_pleco]

ditto. well said chrona