# Cloudy water, need help please



## sarahmay87 (Feb 18, 2012)

Hey everyone, 

Im having a problem with my 55 gallon tank, it is pretty heavily stocked, altho i havent had a problem until 1 month ago. The water clouds instantly! its kind of a lime green murky color, and even when i do a 50% water change, it makes no difference in the clearity of the water. I have no Algae growing anywhere in the tank. and the tank is at the back of the room, away from most sunlight. 
I just got a new Fluval canister filter that goes up to 100 gallons, so i dont think this is a filtration problem.. I am currently in search for a 90 - 125 gallon, but while im searching i would like to resolve the problem. If anyone has any suggestions i would really appreciate it. 
Thanks!


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## 2wheelsx2 (Apr 21, 2010)

Are those live plants? It's green water, which is waterborne algae. The reason you're starting to see is probably because the fish are growing and producing more waste and you're feeding more. Have you measured for ammonia or nitrite? What is your nitrate levels at? How often do you do water changes and how much?

First thing I would do is as big a water change as you can manage, like 75% plus. Turns the lights off if you can and stop feeding the fish for a few days, like 2 or 3, while doing a water change every and keeping the lights off. Or if you can afford one or get your hands on one, get a UV sterilizer. However, you will still need to get rid of the source of the problem which is excessive nutrients in the water column combined with long lighting periods.


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## jobber (May 14, 2010)

I'm no algae expert but cloudy green water within the water column is a GREEN ALGAE WATER. Similar to the below picture.









What GREEN WATER you ask?
Green water algae blooms is a common occurrence in the home aquaria. It clouds the water column with a distinct green transparent cloud. Unpleasing aesthetically. It is caused by a population explosion of a algae "Volvox"

What causes it?
The cause of the green water can be attributed to numerous variables which include but not limited to:
-excess light from sunlight or lighting system (more commonly by direct sunlight)
-too many fish
-excess nutrients such as nitrate, phosphate, silicate,
-excess fish water and decaying matters in the tank

How can I do to get rid of it?
You can get ride of green algae through natural methods or dosing chemicals. I would always adhere to using natural methods and changing the way you maintain the tank. You need to find the source of the problem and remediate the cause.
You can do the follow, but not limited to these methods as other people have different means to eliminate this problem:
-block excess light from the sun
-decrease the photoperiod of the tank
-black out the tank for a day or more
-use filtration floss (mechanical filtration)
-introduce organisms that eat the green water such as daphnia
-more frequent water changes a long with the above
-use a UV sterilizer
-don't overfeed or overstock fish

Like any other algae breakouts, it's not that bad of a problem and can be easily resolved. Once your isolate the cause of the outbreak, the likelihood of reoccurence in the future is minimized. Just keep up with water changes, ensure you don't overfeed and have left over food (which causes an increase in phosphates), and you're all set. Water changes, water changes, and no overfeedings.

Good luck.

Sources:
Green Water - Causes and Cures for Green Water
Green Water in Aquariums
How to Remove Green Water from an Aquarium or Fish Tank | eHow.com
Algae In Aquariums
Green Aquarium Water - Algone.com
Aquarium algae cures and algae descriptions
Aquarium Algae ID (updated May6th '10 Surface Skum)
Started low tech but now hi-tech 55 gallon

Other related material and threads: 
http://www.bcaquaria.com/forum/freshwater-chat-9/green-water-help-please-25805/
http://www.bcaquaria.com/forum/plan...llon-fluval-edge-27031/?highlight=green+water


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## dsouthworth (Nov 21, 2011)

A UV will clean this in 2-3 days. I had the same problem and i posted the progress here. 
Like i said, 2-3 days. they are a little bit pricey but they are SO worth it. my tank looks like drinking water 

http://www.bcaquaria.com/forum/freshwater-chat-9/last-chance-before-i-go-27638/

Get the UV and you will never ever regret it. I have one that just goes directly inside of my tank. it has a built in pump and stuff so i did not need to buy a powerhead to pump water thru the unit.


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## sarahmay87 (Feb 18, 2012)

Yes, they are live plants. I do a water change once a week... occasionally its been twice a week to try to get this situation under control. and every time its been 50% change, so i feel like im doing quite a bit of water changing.. and the problem instantly comes right back. I did a water test this morning, and everything is perfect accross the board. i have never had a spike in anything but PH.
Im going to look into this UV sterilizer... where did you end up getting yours??
Big water change tonight, and no light...
Thanks everyone for your help! Ill keep you posted..


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## dsouthworth (Nov 21, 2011)

sarahmay87 said:


> where did you end up getting yours??


Rogers aquatics. If you buy one, don't cheap out. Spend a good $150


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## 2wheelsx2 (Apr 21, 2010)

sarahmay87 said:


> I did a water test this morning, and everything is perfect accross the board. i have never had a spike in anything but PH.


2 concerns here. So you got 0,0, and 10 or something like that for ammonia, nitrite and nitrate? is that everything? What about GH and KH? And why did you have a spike in pH? I don't seen anything but that ornamental rock which should not be pH affecting, in your tank.


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## jbyoung00008 (May 16, 2011)

Patrick aka (mykiss) at canadian aquatics has odyssea UV sterilizers for $55. If you arnt looking to spend a ton. Make sure you match the output flow of your canister filter to the output flow of the UV to make it most effective. If you have the 405 or similiar the flow rate is 340gph max. So you will want to find a UV that matches that flow. Otherwise you can buy Daphnia. I think canadian aquatics sells them too.


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## jbyoung00008 (May 16, 2011)

How long are you keeping the lights on for?


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## Diztrbd1 (Apr 21, 2010)

dsouthworth said:


> A UV will clean this in 2-3 days. I had the same problem and i posted the progress here.
> Like i said, 2-3 days. they are a little bit pricey but they are SO worth it. my tank looks like drinking water
> 
> http://www.bcaquaria.com/forum/freshwater-chat-9/last-chance-before-i-go-27638/
> ...


you sound pretty confident about this particular unit Derek. I think we need more evidence of why it's worth spending the money on it. I suggest a vid of you drinking a fresh glass of water form the tank  lol

that actually does seem like a good deal for the money, especially being that it has it's own pump. Haven't looked much into them, but might be a good idea as they seem to solve alot of problems


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## 2wheelsx2 (Apr 21, 2010)

Diztrbd1 said:


> that actually does seem like a good deal for the money, especially being that it has it's own pump. Haven't looked much into them, but might be a good idea as they seem to solve alot of problems


For green water, almost any UV unit will do. It's for parasite killing that dwell time, flow rates and all that come into play. It doesn't take much to deal with green water. I've never used a UV for it, but it is the simplest solution in terms of making it work, but it doesn't fix the cause..which is what Ming outlined. Excessive light and nutrients have to be fixed. That's why I asked about the parameters. No offense to the OP. But "perfect" parameters wouldn't be causing green water problems.


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## Diztrbd1 (Apr 21, 2010)

yea I understand all that. I don't think my water in any of my tanks has ever had cloudy or green water. Im thinking parasite prevention myself if why I would want. Having the pump incorporated seems ideal as it probably has the best flow rate to do the job effectively. I do agree that it doesn't fix the cause in this situation from what it appears. And great post Ming!


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## 2wheelsx2 (Apr 21, 2010)

Diztrbd1 said:


> yea I understand all that. I don't think my water in any of my tanks has ever had cloudy or green water. Im thinking parasite prevention myself if why I would want. Having the pump incorporated seems ideal as it probably has the best flow rate to do the job effectively. I do agree that it doesn't fix the cause in this situation from what it appears. And great post Ming!


Yes, the incorporated pump ones do the math for you. I got one of those (JBJ unit from April) when I got my first. There are 2 problems with those. To get up to the higher wattages, the unit is massive in your tank. The second problem is that when your pump goes your unit is done. That's what happened to mine after 1 year. I've had 2 Coralife Turbotwists (3X and 6X) for over a year now and just replaced the bulb in the 6X and they've performed like champs for me. Never worry about ich again....that's my main reason.


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## Diztrbd1 (Apr 21, 2010)

wow, you would think you could just change the pump for what they charge for those units....thats crazy. I was wondering how bulky they are in the tank, one of the reasons I would probably go with the inline unit.


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## 2wheelsx2 (Apr 21, 2010)

The JBJ unit looked just like a Fluval internal filter. My 13 watt was the size of the 3+. The pump is sealed, so no way to take it off and replace. I run my 3x with an Fluval 3+ as a matter of fact, for extra filtration....since that tank is a growout/breeding tank I don't care about aesthetics and put that in there for extra bio/filtration. The 6X I run with my Eheim 2028.


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## sarahmay87 (Feb 18, 2012)

Its Texas Holey rock, so its raising my Ph to about a 7.5.. im trying to keep it at about a 6.5 - 7... 
GH 30, KH 40, PH 7, No2 0, No3 0
The only thing that i can think of that has changed in a month, when the problem started occuring, was that i added 4 jewel cichlids to the tank. I do leave the tank light on for quite a long time... probably... 12 hrs a day, so ill change that for sure. but other than that... i jus dont know what could be suddenly causing this problem... overpopulation? My filter is the Fluval 406..


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## jbyoung00008 (May 16, 2011)

sarahmay87 said:


> Its Texas Holey rock, so its raising my Ph to about a 7.5.. im trying to keep it at about a 6.5 - 7...
> GH 30, KH 40, PH 7, No2 0, No3 0
> The only thing that i can think of that has changed in a month, when the problem started occuring, was that i added 4 jewel cichlids to the tank. I do leave the tank light on for quite a long time... probably... 12 hrs a day, so ill change that for sure. but other than that... i jus dont know what could be suddenly causing this problem... overpopulation? My filter is the Fluval 406..


I suggest removing the holey rock. Its causing your ph to raise and you are adding stuff to lower it all the time you are wasting money and effort just to have that rock.

As for light. That is way too long. Keeps lights on a timer. When you are at work. Lights are off. Keep it to 8hrs. Some people say 10hrs so find your happy medium.

This may be a stupid question but what do you do when you clean your filter. Inpaticular the rocks( bioballs) that came with the fluval?
How many fish are in the tank? If you have lots of fish try to fit more bioballs into the filter. I use 2 trays just for biomedia in my fluval as my 25g tank is heavily stocked


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## 2wheelsx2 (Apr 21, 2010)

12 hours is long, but not way too long, but certainly is if you're fighting an algae problem. My concern is your nitrate is zero. It can't be, especially with your wc regimen. Which kit are you using and how old is it? There's zero chance that your nitrates are 0 with that bioload. I bet it's at least 30 ppm to 50 ppm just before a water change. If you were injecting CO2 and using high light, it's possible, but not in your scenario.

The holey rock isn't ideal, but 7.5 with those KH and GH readings are bad at all. What's your reasoning for trying to lower the pH? Why not use almond leaves?

Get the nitrates checked properly, turn the lights off for a few days, and do a water change every day of 50% or more during those days. I can bet that your situation will improve even without a UV.


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## jobber (May 14, 2010)

As the spring season and summer, remember that there's going to be more sunlight, and with more sunlight, you'll be seeing more algae growth in tanks that are more exposed to direct or indirect sunlight. So keep in mind that and in addition to the number of hours your lighting system is on. Find the root of the green water outbreak, so there's less likelihood of it reoccurring. Great suggestions from all the above members adding to wealth of resources.


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## sarahmay87 (Feb 18, 2012)

The filter is brand new, i had a AquaClear 70 on it, and replaced it only 4 days ago to the canister filter, so i havent cleaned it yet, being so new. but i have done 2 water changes since then, both 40 - 50%. I will definitely get a timer for my lights, and look into extra biomedia. Thanks for the suggestions!


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## sarahmay87 (Feb 18, 2012)

Im using the API 5 in 1 test strips, they are 2 months old. i did a test this morning and the nitrate has never been over 20ppm. Im pretty new to fish tanks, ive only had mine for maybe 5 months, so i appreciate all the information from everyone. The reason i was lowering the PH (which i havent done for a while because of all the water changes, so the new water has been keeping my PH at a lower rate) was because of the Texas rock, i was told that the fish that im keeping prefer a slightly lower PH, 6-7 range, and before all the water changes the PH was getting up to 7.5. (my fish love that piece of rock, it wasnt cheap and i like it, so its gunna b worth the little extra work to keep the PH at bay) I did not know about almond leaves, i was using an API down solution. How do you use the almond leaves?


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## 2wheelsx2 (Apr 21, 2010)

sarahmay87 said:


> Im using the API 5 in 1 test strips, they are 2 months old. i did a test this morning and the nitrate has never been over 20ppm. Im pretty new to fish tanks, ive only had mine for maybe 5 months, so i appreciate all the information from everyone. The reason i was lowering the PH (which i havent done for a while because of all the water changes, so the new water has been keeping my PH at a lower rate) was because of the Texas rock, i was told that the fish that im keeping prefer a slightly lower PH, 6-7 range, and before all the water changes the PH was getting up to 7.5. (my fish love that piece of rock, it wasnt cheap and i like it, so its gunna b worth the little extra work to keep the PH at bay) I did not know about almond leaves, i was using an API down solution. How do you use the almond leaves?


I haven't used those strips, as I always use liquid testers, but I do use API. 20 ppm sounds more like it. Don't use any of the pH down stuff. You just put the almond leaves in. Too bad you're in North Van, or I would give you some to try. It does darken the water with tannins though, which is why it works. Some wood will also help. Manzanita is great for getting the pH down too. Canadian Aquatics and April and I think Rogers sells them. You might want to try that first as a matter of fact, as that's the least amount of work. But 7.5 with those GH and KH readings, I wouldn't worry. Control the lighting, keep up the water changes and I think you'll be ok.


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## jbyoung00008 (May 16, 2011)

You basically toss the 1 or 2 almond leaf in your tank depending on the size. They sink to the bottom. You leave them there for a set period of time. Than remove and replace with a new ones. They make your water a tea color and help keep Ph down just the same as drift wood does.

I have a few Q's for you. Dont take offence if I ask ask a question that seems dumb. Too help I need to know your knowledge of fish tanks so I can help fill in the blanks.

Your tank is newly set up. You said around 5 month ago. Did you allow your tank to cycle properly before you started adding fish? How did you cycle it?

When you switched filters what did you do with the bio balls from the previous filter? Did it have any? 

Do you understand what aquarium nitrogen cycle/ cycling a fish tank is and what bio media is? Are you using the bioballs that came with the filter?

How much are you feeding and how often?

What fish are in the tank now?

Lighting? Lights are on too long. We already figured that out. What type of fixture do you have and what K are the bulbs? ex 6700k, 10,000k

Are you dosing any fertalizers?

Ive helped alot of people with their tanks. These are some areas where I find people have made mistakes or have been misled.


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## sarahmay87 (Feb 18, 2012)

I ran my tank for 2 weeks before adding fish to it, so pretty much what i did was set the tank up with the filter, (which at the time was the Aqua Clear 70) added water with conditioners, live plants and a heater. The conditioners i use are: Nutrafin Cycle, Nutrafin Aqua plus, Nutafin waste control.
Since the filter i had on the tank before was one that hangs off the back of the tank,(no balls..) the media that was in that filter did not work with the Fluval 406 that i upgraded to. So its new media in the filter now, i know that is not ideal for the biology of the tank, however, the Nutrafin Cycle is a biological aquarium supplement, so i have been using that once a week.
I do understand what the nitrogen cycle is, i do understand that it is important for the fish to have a good build of beneficial bacteria in the aquarium. I am using the bioballs that came with the filter, someone had mensioned that i should add more bioballs to my filter if they will fit, so i will be doing that soon. 
I feed my fish blood worms, they get 2 cubes a day, either in the morning or evening, and spirulina flakes.
The fish i have are: 2 blood parrots, 2 earth eaters, 2 clown loaches, 2 sevrums, 5 angels, 1 high fin pleco, 4 jewel cichlids, and 2 corydora spotted catfish. I know there are a lot of fish in my tank, its a 55 gallon, they are all still very small and i am trying to find a larger tank to move them into before they outgrow this one. 
The light fixture i have is a Coralife, there are 2 bulbs, both 10,000K T5 HO bulbs. 
I am not using any fertalizers no. 
I did a 75% water change last night, and have kept the lights off for 2 days now, and there is a HUGE difference in the water clearity already, i will for sure be getting a timer for the lights so they arent getting left on for so long, i think that was really contributing to my problem. 
Thanks again everyone for your time and help! this is a great hobby that im really still only scratching the surface on. excited to keep learning more


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## 2wheelsx2 (Apr 21, 2010)

Good to hear you're making progress. When you turn the lights on, increase it gradually. 2x T5HO isn't all that much (I assume it's a 3 foot fixture based on the pics so it's 2x39w) but enough to cause you problems. I would start by going with turning the lights on in the evenings when you are home, so about 6 hours and once you get the timer keep it there. I do 6 hours of main lighting (I use bright moonlights or low wattage LED main lights to add extra hours of viewing) in most of my non-CO2 injected tanks and they grow plants just fine, but slowly.


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## jbyoung00008 (May 16, 2011)

sarahmay87 said:


> I ran my tank for 2 weeks before adding fish to it, so pretty much what i did was set the tank up with the filter, (which at the time was the Aqua Clear 70) added water with conditioners, live plants and a heater. The conditioners i use are: Nutrafin Cycle, Nutrafin Aqua plus, Nutafin waste control.
> Since the filter i had on the tank before was one that hangs off the back of the tank,(no balls..) the media that was in that filter did not work with the Fluval 406 that i upgraded to. So its new media in the filter now, i know that is not ideal for the biology of the tank, however, the Nutrafin Cycle is a biological aquarium supplement, so i have been using that once a week.
> I do understand what the nitrogen cycle is, i do understand that it is important for the fish to have a good build of beneficial bacteria in the aquarium. I am using the bioballs that came with the filter, someone had mensioned that i should add more bioballs to my filter if they will fit, so i will be doing that soon.
> I feed my fish blood worms, they get 2 cubes a day, either in the morning or evening, and spirulina flakes.
> ...


I see a few problems already and I see the route cause of the green. First off adding cycle to a tank is a good thing. Its good bacteria in a bottle. The only problem is you had no fish in the tank to feed the bacteria. The bacteria eats fish waste. So you started your tank off with out cycling it properly. It does take 4 to 6 weeks to cycle a tank not 2 weeks. You can fishless cycle a tank but thats a whole other story. You than added fish. Alot of fish. Than all your fish started going to the washroom. Lots of fish waste with not enough bacteria to eat it. That causes high amonia and nitrites. Than you removed what little bacteria you had by changing filters. So really you started your tank all over again except this time you started it off with alot of fish. No good bacteria since you removed it again by changing filters. You have put your tank on a roller coaster ride and its finally saying it wants off. Im the one who said buy more bio media for your fluval. If you want to over stock at tank thats fine but you need to have the bio media to support it. Rule of thumb 1" of fish per gallon at full grown size.

This is a very common problem in the fish tank hobby and is easily correctable. I work at a LFS and hear problems like this all the time. Dont give up on the tank. With all the knowledge on hear we will have your tank clear in no time

Cheers and happy fish tank keeping

Justin


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## jbyoung00008 (May 16, 2011)

If you are interested. I enjoy educating people about the basics of fish keeping. Pm me and I will send you my hours of work so you can pop by and get some good free advice.


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