# Bacterial bloom..



## Jing (Aug 30, 2011)

Did a routine 20% WC last night then tested the water parameters and they needed a bit of work so I dosed it with the appropriate chemicals. Fast forward to today and now I notice that my tank's water is getting cloudy, which from what my research suggests, is due to a bacterial bloom. What I am confused about is why it would happen now as I have had the tank setup for a few weeks now. Any suggestions on what to do? Wait it out and let it clear itself, or should I be doing another WC?


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## mitchb (Apr 27, 2011)

What was wrong with water and what chemicals were used?


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## Jing (Aug 30, 2011)

Had a bit of ammonia and ph was a bit too high so I dosed it accordingly with ammolock and ph decrease


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## deepRED (May 22, 2010)

If you have ammonia your tank isn't fully cycled. You're doing too much with your water, no need to add all sorts of additives, especially something like ph down. Don't worry about chasing a certain ph, stability is key, not a certain ph. I haven't tested my ph in years in my freshwater tanks. 
If your tank is stocked then you need to do water changes frequently until the bacteria levels catch up. Just declorinator and the appropriate buffers, nothing else. 
Also, a few weeks is not long enough to be fully cycled, it will take 4-6 weeks depending on the situation. 

Good luck with it. Patience is key, it will clear up once the tank reaches balance.


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## arakhavan (Nov 15, 2010)

I had a similar problem. Leave the tank alone, don't do any water changed for two weeks or at lease go easy on water changes, and keep adding new tank bacteria. Thats what i did and my tank quickly went back to being crystal clear.


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## hlee72ca (Jun 29, 2010)

Do not add ammolock, you are actually inhibiting your filter from being fully cycled when you lock up the ammonia. You never stated how big your tank was? livestock? plants? what ph is a bit high? more info will help. How long has there been fish in the tank? or were you cycling using the fishless method? a bacterial bloom is normal in a new tank setup. As long as your ph is below 7, and therefore acid, there is less ammonia and more ammonium which is less toxic to livestock. One of the benefits of having an existing cycled tank is that you can place a new sponge filter in that tank, after a week, you can place the sponge filter in the new tank you want to set up.It takes me about two weeks to fully cycle versus 4-6 weeks. There will be sufficient ammonia digesting bacteria but insufficient nitrite digesting bacteria, thus it requires two weeks to fully cycle.


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## Tarobot (Jun 27, 2010)

pump an airstone and leave it there so there's always oxygen being pumped and used by the beneficial bacteria to multiply.


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## Morainy (Apr 21, 2010)

I agree with everyone -- you don't need the ammoblock or the ph decrease. If you've already got fish in the tank and you've got ammonia, then increasing the water changes for awhile will help the fish (although it won't speed up your cycle). I see that you're in Vancouver, so the pH should be low enough for most fish. What kind of fish do you have?

Here are a few thoughts:
-Bacterial blooms are very common in new tanks, and you might find that the bloom disappears a day or two after it appears. Over time, this will stop happening after water changes. It probably won't happen at all if you have cycled filter media. 

-Some additives cause the water to cloud (I am not sure about the ones you added). This particulate will settle out over time.

-If a fish has died, then the water can quickly turn cloudy in a new tank. Do a head count and if there's one missing, look for a corpse (could even be in the filter media).

-Why is your pH going up? Double check that all your ornaments are appropriate for a tank and for freshwater aquariums, and that you don't have anything in there that's slowly dissolving. 

Good luck! With patience (and if you don't add the ammoblock) in a little while you will have a gorgeous tank with crystal clear water.


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