Cloudy water - how to tell good from bad

[Derek Lyons]

Within the last 24 hours our (new < 1wk) tank has gone from clear to
extremely cloudy. Looking at the various books/FAQ's etc, this could
be 'good' bacteria getting going, or an algae bloom. How does one
tell the difference?

10 gal tank w/ 3 guppies, power filter and undergravel filter.
Ammonia < .025 PPM, no detectable nitrates or nitrites. The
cloudiness is a darkish and 'cloudy' gray-green. (I.E. you can see
different densities within the tank as the water circulates.)

Thanks.

D.
--
Touch-twice life. Eat. Drink. Laugh.

-Resolved: To be more temperate in my postings.
Oct 5th, 2004 JDL

[NetMax]

"Derek Lyons" > wrote in message
...
> Within the last 24 hours our (new < 1wk) tank has gone from clear to
> extremely cloudy. Looking at the various books/FAQ's etc, this could
> be 'good' bacteria getting going, or an algae bloom. How does one
> tell the difference?
>
> 10 gal tank w/ 3 guppies, power filter and undergravel filter.
> Ammonia < .025 PPM, no detectable nitrates or nitrites. The
> cloudiness is a darkish and 'cloudy' gray-green. (I.E. you can see
> different densities within the tank as the water circulates.)
>
> Thanks.
>
> D.


At this stage of the game, it doesn't really matter. I tell people to
ignore cloudy water anytime in the first 6-8 weeks. Of course, if the tank
is getting direct sunlight, that's different, and the light should be
blocked off, imo. For the bacterial bloom, you can reduce the lighting and
reduce the feedings, but it might not make any difference anyways ;~).
--
www.NetMax.tk

[Marco Schwarz]

Hi..

> Within the last 24 hours our (new < 1wk) tank has gone
> from clear to
> extremely cloudy. Looking at the various books/FAQ's etc,
> this could
> be 'good' bacteria getting going, or an algae bloom. How
> does one tell the difference?

Those "good" bacteria settle on substrate, and a bio filter
(in a cycled tank) should be able to remove algaalga
algae..

> 10 gal tank w/ 3 guppies, power filter and undergravel
> filter.

Please change water. Fish gills are not made for extracting
algae..

--
cu
Marco

[Derek Lyons]

"NetMax" > wrote:
>At this stage of the game, it doesn't really matter. I tell people to
>ignore cloudy water anytime in the first 6-8 weeks.

It's working out - whatever the cloudiness was, either the filters are
catching it, or it's dying out. The fish never seemed perturbed, so
leaving it alone seemed like the best idea.

D.
--
Touch-twice life. Eat. Drink. Laugh.

-Resolved: To be more temperate in my postings.
Oct 5th, 2004 JDL