# Cloudy Tank



## beachgurl1988 (Feb 27, 2009)

New to the freshwater aquarium hobby. I have a 10 gallon tank, with a heater, and Top Fin 10 Power filter. The temp right now is at 80. I have one male betta, 3 cherry barbs, 3 Sunburst Wag Platys and one (small) Pleco.

I set this tank up about a week or so ago. I knew nothing about cycling the aquarium or anything. My tank has been cloudy since about Tuesday the 24th. I have changed about 50% of the water twice now, and made sure my filter was clean, rinsed etc. I do not leave the light on all day, and like I said the temp is about 80. I do not have a test kit, although I hope to be getting one soon. Why is my tank water cloudy.

When I started it, i used gravel on the bottom (rinsed well) and tap water. I added the Aqua safe, as well as Stress Coat and Stress Zyme, samples that were included in my 10 gallon kit. I have several hidey holes and decorations, and several live plants. My fish only get feed about 2 a day. Once in the early morning and again in the late evening, so there will be some food for the pleco, as there is not much algae or anything. 

Please Help! The tank is just cloudy. I thought it was the filter, but have rinsed and cleaned what was in supplied with the kit, the filter is just a Top Fin 10 Power Filter, and a Top fin heater. I am not sure what i should do or why my tank is cloudy!


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## JohnnyD44 (Dec 5, 2008)

did you let your tank cycle before adding anyfish? if you didnt you are in for several water changes until the tank is established

how much do you feed your fish? cloudy water can sometime come from overfeeding your fish...you shouldn't feed your fish more than they can handle for one serving. 

You probbaly want to do a 10% to 20% water change daily to get your nitrates under control(caused from over feeding or lack of water changes, as mentioned above) 

can you get a reading of your water? you'd be wise to pick up an API Master Liquid test kit, about $24.99 online.


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## aunt kymmie (Jun 2, 2008)

I recall reading that the aloe in the Stress Coat can cause water to be cloudy. Just what I read, don't know if it's true or not. :-?


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## JohnnyD44 (Dec 5, 2008)

i use stress coat all the time and i've never had cloudy water....but maybe I'm just lucky!!!


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## iamntbatman (Jan 3, 2008)

Is the water milky looking or green? I'm guess milky looking. That's a bacterial bloom, and is usually caused by elevated ammonia levels in the water. If the tank is only a week old with that many fish in it, I'm guessing your ammonia levels are probably through the roof. I would keep doing aggressive water changes. You don't really need the stress coat and the stress zyme is a hit-or-miss affair. I would just use regular water conditioner for your water changes like Prime or AquaSafe. You need to get yourself a liquid test kit to test your water parameters as soon as you can. API's Freshwater Master Test Kit is a good choice as it's a good balance between accuracy and user-friendliness. It runs $30-35 in stores but is half as much at online aquarium supply stores like Drs. Foster and Smith and Aquariumguys. This will help you keep on top of your water quality so you can know exactly what's wrong and thus deal with the problem.

Just keep doing those water changes until you can get that kit and test your water. You should also cut back on your feeding schedule to just once a day until the problem is under control.

Your stocking list looks pretty good except for your pleco. I'm assuming it's a common pleco, which can grow to 18" (or more) in length and produces a massive amount of waste. A better choice for a cleanup crew in a small tank like yours would be a mystery snail or two or possibly a smaller species of pleco like a bristlenose pleco.


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## JohnnyD44 (Dec 5, 2008)

it sounds like you are still going through a cycle, only with fish instead of fishless, does that sound right batman? 

by the way....love the signature!!! LOST is addicting, I'm playing catch up right now


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## iamntbatman (Jan 3, 2008)

Yep, sounds like the tank is cycling to me.

I tend to miss the show just about every other week. I missed last week's and I'm not sure if I'm gonna be able to see it before tonight's episode, so I'll probably be playing catch-up as well. Oh well, I always seem to enjoy it more watching it in big chunks than if I see it regularly every week anyway.


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