# cycling tank, cloudy water help?



## vpec13 (Oct 26, 2011)

So today begins day 3 of my tank. Last night it was very very cloudy. 

There are no fish in it. it's a sand substrate

I put one ornament from my already cycled tank in there to help bacteria growth

I also poured in Sechem Prime (1 cap), and i also had a little bit of special blend left and poured that in there. and included 3 of tetras fizz tabs to get the metals out

I noticed the temp was a little high about 82-93 degrees. So I lowered it and before i went to bed it seemed to be about 79-80 degrees.. Is this the tank just cycling and it will clear up on its own? or is the sand still settling?


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## jrman83 (Jul 9, 2010)

That does not sound like a cycling issue. Sounds more like it is cloudy from the sand substrate possibly leaving residue in the water. 

The cycle will not start until there is source of ammonia in the tank, which you don't have yet. Try to keep around 79-80 degrees F once you get the cycle rolling.


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## vpec13 (Oct 26, 2011)

jrman83 said:


> That does not sound like a cycling issue. Sounds more like it is cloudy from the sand substrate possibly leaving residue in the water.
> 
> The cycle will not start until there is source of ammonia in the tank, which you don't have yet. Try to keep around 79-80 degrees F once you get the cycle rolling.


I did check the ammonia.. its in there LOL, using the API test kit its like a lime greenish color.. so like .5-.25 i believe?


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## jrman83 (Jul 9, 2010)

Okay. You didn't say that. If it just got that way it could be a bacterial bloom causing the cloudiness. The ammonia will dissipate and will not remain at detectable levels for very long. 

What plans do you have to take the tank all the way through the nitrogen cycle? Will you be doing a fishless cycle where you add ammonia to the tank or some other source? Or, are you adding fish? Adding plants?


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## vpec13 (Oct 26, 2011)

jrman83 said:


> Okay. You didn't say that. If it just got that way it could be a bacterial bloom causing the cloudiness. The ammonia will dissipate and will not remain at detectable levels for very long.
> 
> What plans do you have to take the tank all the way through the nitrogen cycle? Will you be doing a fishless cycle where you add ammonia to the tank or some other source? Or, are you adding fish? Adding plants?


my apologies for not mentioning it. I plan on buying 4-5 danios to put in there once the water clears up and the ammonia drops a little.. I also plan on putting some low light/low maintenance plants.. I heard Java Fern was one of them. Will the plants help the cycling of the tank?

Also it could be from the sand, I didnt wash it before putting it in the tank. So i assume thats why its so cloudy.


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## jrman83 (Jul 9, 2010)

I've never used sand before so I am not familiar with how much it needs to be rinsed, but if you didn't rinse at all you could have an awful lot of stuff in the water. Personally, I'd want to get that out of there, as most I could, before I put fish in there. A couple of larger water changes and place something in the tank to shield the incoming water from hitting the sand directly when you fill it back up and it will probably help.

Up to you. Maybe someone who has used sand will speak up. Yes, plants will help with cycling. I would get a few stems like Anacharis in there, a few bunches at least to help out. If you don't like them you can remove once the tank has cycled.


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## vpec13 (Oct 26, 2011)

jrman83 said:


> I've never used sand before so I am not familiar with how much it needs to be rinsed, but if you didn't rinse at all you could have an awful lot of stuff in the water. Personally, I'd want to get that out of there, as most I could, before I put fish in there. A couple of larger water changes and place something in the tank to shield the incoming water from hitting the sand directly when you fill it back up and it will probably help.
> 
> Up to you. Maybe someone who has used sand will speak up. Yes, plants will help with cycling. I would get a few stems like Anacharis in there, a few bunches at least to help out. If you don't like them you can remove once the tank has cycled.


yes hopefully someone with sand wil chime in.. I read it will stay cloudy for a couple days and then it will clear up.. but who knows.. I'm using a 70 gallon filter for a 55 gallon tank so im sure that will deff help it out too.. I will give it a couple days and see what happens.


Also I bought the sand directly from a fish store.. so maybe its not awefully dirty lol


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## Cadiedid (Oct 26, 2011)

If it was clear and then last night it became cloudy then it's probably a bacterial bloom. I had a substantial bloom with the last tank I set up and then in 24-48 hours the tank was crystal clear.


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## vpec13 (Oct 26, 2011)

Cadiedid said:


> If it was clear and then last night it became cloudy then it's probably a bacterial bloom. I had a substantial bloom with the last tank I set up and then in 24-48 hours the tank was crystal clear.


Yes the tank cleared up very well.. and over my nice 4 day weekend. I added in 5 zebra Danios, and my 3 tetras from my 10 gallon tank. I also added in one java fern plant, an aqua fern plant, and i forgot the third type of plant I added. I also bought some of the API leaf zone food for the plants.. so hopefully that helps it out alot.


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## Cadiedid (Oct 26, 2011)

I'm no expert, and have no experience with seeding a tank with ornaments or special blend but you may be moving a little fast with the fish stocking. The plants will help, but in my experience they were not enough and I still had to proceed as in a fish-in cycle, which takes weeks to complete. If I am amiss, I welcome others to chime in though!


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## NeonShark666 (Dec 13, 2010)

It's not a good idea to use sand in FW. It tends to compact and generate H2S from trapped organic materiial. In a SW environment there are a lot of animals the borrow into it and aeriate it.


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## vpec13 (Oct 26, 2011)

hmm.. well I like the sand, and I will stir it up once in a while to make sure its all good... I like it much better than the gravel. And to the other prior comment.. the Tank has been cycling.. the ammonia already spiked etc... i added in the zebra danios friday..and then sunday added in the tetras


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## Cadiedid (Oct 26, 2011)

Have you gotten your nitrite surge and drop? If not, you're still in the middle of your cycle. My ammonia finally dropped to zero and I thought maybe my cycle was done but then I tested the nitrites and they were sky high! With a tank as large as yours you may be okay, IDK. My current tank is only a 10 gallon so cycling with fish has been very tricky. Just keep checking your ammonia, nitrites and nitrates to be sure... Especially whenever adding a fair sized number of fish. If you catch any of the levels in a spike you can always do a large PWC. Good luck!


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## beaslbob (May 29, 2009)

kill the lights, turn off the filters and circulation. stop adding food if you are now.

It should clear up in a few days.

then resume


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