Bacteria bloom

[Josh193]

I've been dealing with a bacteria bloom for the last week or so and I'm not sure how to get rid of it any help would be greatly appreciated

 

[James404]

Are you experiencing cloudy or green water? Pictures always help.

Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk

 

[Josh193]

Cloudy for sure almost milky looking. I'll try to upload a pic tomorrow

 

[McPuff]

Get some microbacter7. I had a similar issue on my own tank a few weeks back. It was clear in two days.

But first, do you know for sure it's microbial?

 

[Dmorty217]

Cloudy for sure almost milky looking. I'll try to upload a pic tomorrow

Is the tank newly setup?

 

[Josh193]

It's been up for about a year

 

[Josh193]

Get some microbacter7. I had a similar issue on my own tank a few weeks back. It was clear in two days.

But first, do you know for sure it's microbial?

Yeah I'm very certain it's a bacteria bloom

 

[pinnatus]

I have recently had the same issue.

I once had a green bloom in my 10-gallon, tried everything, but finally used a UV which took care of that.

However, just recently my 240 had a milky bloom. The only thing that has helped with that has been using a diatom filter. I tried many things over many months to clear it up, including a UV which did not help.

Before:

After:

 

[Josh193]

What's a diatom filter?

 

[pinnatus]

A filter that uses diatomaceous earth as a filter media. Diatomaceous earth is made up of the skeletons of millions of single celled creatures called diatoms. Since they are single celled in size, they are able to strain out anything in that size range. So, you are able to filter out the bloom.

Here is a picture of the common type used in home aquariums. Vortex is the brand I got.

You open the jar, put about a cup or so of diatomaceous earth (a powder - don't breathe it) inside, fill the system up with tank water, put the suction and return hoses in the tank and start the motor. The white in the picture is material that the diatomaceous earth will form a layer on. The diatomaceous earth is the actual filter media, the white is just to support it. When it clogs up, clean out the media and repeat. Eventually your water will clear up.

 

[pinnatus]

Also, milky water can be caused by overdosing calcium so that it precipitates out of solution. Have you been adding additives? If so, it is a possibility to consider.

Mine was definitely biological in nature, ie bacterial or algae.

 

[Josh193]

So it connects to the return pump? Are there any other options?

 

[pinnatus]

No it is self contained. A hose to feed it and a hose to return to the tank. The motor on top drives a pump. You do have to fill it with water for it to work.

What do you mean by other options? On the filter or to clear up your water? I tried a lot of things to clear mine up and the diatom filter was what I found to work. I probably had the bloom for over 4 months. Maybe even 6 months. Bought a new UV to combat it, with no results. So, I do not know of something else to do. Microbact7 could help, not sure, but it seems that is just another strain of bacteria. Maybe a chemical like peroxide will help, but it may also wipe out your tank. Not sure what else to do, that is why I opted for the DE filter. Took me a while to get one, (I wanted a used one) then I needed parts, got the wrong parts, ordered again, then I needed more DE. So it may be best in hindsight to have bought a new one rather than a used one, certainly would have been cheaper in the end.

It was nice to see my fishes again after all that time, rather than just the occasional ghost swimming by the front of the glass.

 

[pinnatus]

Check with your LFS, they *may* let you borrow one if they have one.

 

[pinnatus]

Here is when I started the filter. The hose on the right is the inlet to the diatom filter. The return hose went to my sump.