cycling new tank with many fish

[h&hmarine]

I just started a 150 gallon freshwater tank. I'm running a fluval fx5 pump and also a water circulating pump and a small bubbler. I do not have a heater because I am using fish from the local lakes here. I have about 10 bluegill and sunfish. A couple black crappies a couple yellow perch and a couple catfish. I am using pool filter sand substrate and have a large piece of natural driftwood. I just planted a small start of dwarf hairgrass and a sword plant of some kind. When first starting the tank I took a piece of the biofilter from my established 75 gallon aquarium and stuck it in my fx5 and also about 10 gallons of water. It was pretty clear for about 2 weeks then all of a sudden it got green and Brown algae all over everything then a few days later the water turned real milky looking. Is this just a sign that the tank is cycling? I have been changing probably about 25-40 gallons every other day and then that's when I bought the live plants and bought a half dozen Marino moss balls to throw in thinking maybe that will keep the algae under control. Should I just be patient? I haven't loss a fish other than my catfish ate my small largemouth bass that I bought from the petstore. I'm kinda regretting upgrading to the 150 gallon because my 75 gallon tank was never this bad looking and the water in it is crystal clear even after putting a dozen big goldfish in it. Could it be something to do with the food I feed them...I give them frozen bloodworms and some nightcrawlers once in awhile..I feed them every other day and I'm sure I don't over feed them...they eat it all in less than a minute. The tank is probably about a month old now by the way.

[Brhino]

what are your water parameters (ammonia / nitrite / nitrate)? That's the first thing you should be checking when attempting to determine if your tank is cycling.

[h&hmarine]

What is a good test kit to buy to do this..I never did anything like that a few months ago with my other aquarium...I just used the test strips but could never really tell much.

[h&hmarine]

I just tested with the test strip...the nitrate and nitrite colors turned tan..the scale shows white to pink so I don't know what that means..the hardness tested about 300 which is hard.. the alkaline is somewhere around 200 and the ph is around 8

[Dennis Bissett]

Test strips indicative only and do not give an accurate reading. I would suggest the API master test kit, tells you everything you need to know, but ensure you follow the instructions to the letter

[steeler1]

+ 1 DB you should always have a teat kit.

[imma24]

Liquid test kits are not only more accurate but they are much cheaper in the long run because they provide MANY more tests than a vial of strips. For any tank size, it's important to know exactly where you stand with parameters, especially when cycling with fish.

[Lady Hobbs]

Had you read the cycling threads? They are also in my signature?

[h&hmarine]

I read that forum but it didn't say anything about what kind of levels I should be reading. I read forums all over about how to cycle an aquarium and it seems everybody has a different theory but they are all pretty similar...I just never had this hard of a time with my other aquarium and these are the same fish I used in my 75 gallon...so I wasn't sure what is happening.. I had Brown algae last time but never cloudy water

[Lady Hobbs]

You are probably having an bacterial bloom for so many fish in the tank. Overstocking an uncycled tank will be a real problem, I think. You will have to be doing large water changes daily and like the others have stated, a test kit is as useful as tires on your car. Can't hardly do anything without one.

Taking fish from local waters poses it's own problems like transfer of disease and parasites to your tank.