Cloudy water help

Fishguy88

New member
I have a 29 gallon tank with a pair of clownfish and two softies. I just set up a skimmer and media reactor (with phosguard). My water has instantly turned cloudy. Does anybody know what is going on?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
I could in fact be a bacteria bloom, in which case watch your fish for signs of distress like gasping and swimming near the surface, as a bacterial bloom can remove vast amounts of oxygen from the water.

It could also be dust from the phosgard, or a calcium precipitation event - but that would likely entail some other event like an overdose of Kalk or two-part. Increase flow in the aquarium and run a filter sock if you have one, if it doesn't start to ebb - likely bacterial. Increase skimming (wet skim) and do a water change...
 
I could in fact be a bacteria bloom, in which case watch your fish for signs of distress like gasping and swimming near the surface, as a bacterial bloom can remove vast amounts of oxygen from the water.

It could also be dust from the phosgard, or a calcium precipitation event - but that would likely entail some other event like an overdose of Kalk or two-part. Increase flow in the aquarium and run a filter sock if you have one, if it doesn't start to ebb - likely bacterial. Increase skimming (wet skim) and do a water change...



Ok I have a filter sock over the reactor outtake. And I put one of the power heads at the surface to increase oxygen. Put the skimmer down more to increase skimming. Fish seem to be acting normal. How long should I wait to do a water change?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
It is a good question - not sure how adding the skimmer or phosgard in isolation would cause a bloom, hence the alternatives. If it is dust or a precipitate in the water, the filter sock (assuming it is a 100 or 200 micron felt sock, not a mesh sock) should clear the water relatively quickly ( several hours) - whereas a bacterial bloom may persist.

I would move your filter sock to the main return from the tank into your sump, for faster processing of the water - that is assuming all the dust that could be expelled from the reactor already has been.

What other filtration do you have on your tank? Biopellets by any chance? Are you adding any bacterial boosters, etc?
 
No sump unfortunately just a in tank skimmer and a reactor that I hung on the back. And no bio pellets or bacterial boosters or anything


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
you have a good amount of surface agitation? make sure you have decent gas exchange going on
 
Okay - then I'd see how the filter sock on your reactor processes the water - if it has not started to clear by now, something else might be amiss. Do a water change if you haven't already, and test your calcium and alk and see what the readings are...

There is no chance that the "cloudiness" is actually tiny micro bubbles from your skimmer, is there?
 
Back
Top