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RE: Cloudy water again
Dave T wrote:
>Last I checked the pH was 6.8
>or so (not exact kit) and all the rest of the fish seem fine, but the
>plants
>are SUPER HAPPY!!
I looked through your previous posts, but couldn't find a value for your
KH... With that and the pH you can figure out the CO2.
>Now, I'm wondering, if the plants are happier, will they help keep the
>water
>clearer (if thats a word)? If not, what am I doing wrong?
Yes. Possible problem could be the earth eater stiring things up...
>What about water content, chemicals...things
>like that. My live-in girlfriend read an article lately that points to me
>having really bad tap water, and our pur filter clogs its guts before the
>inicator bar reaches half-way through!!
Call your water utility, or check on the web... They should have a listing
of all relevent water parameters.
>What sort of things can I check for in my water content that could possibly
>cause this cloud? If its not algae does a UV system really work? There
>must be something simple I can look into beyond overfeeding and light cycle
>that would make this go away. I've done regular water changes, chemistry
>seems good, theres never any leftover food. No decaying plants (as said
>above they're all happy!), no dead fish I can't see...someone mentioned
>adding even MORE plants. By no means would I say my tank is full, but how
>much will really be beneficial? If plants are in fact clarifying my water,
>I will run out and get as many as I can afford!
If it is GW, more (HEALTHY) plants will definitely help prevent it. Part of
the problem could be a high fish load, and not enough aerobic bacteria yet.
>Side q, how can I get micro sword to fill out faster?
Lileopsis sp. are relatively slow growers, even in ideal conditions, so
don't expect too much, especially as your Geophagus gets bigger!
>Also, since I'm adding so much CO2, I'm nervous about the pH dropping
>quickly (seems I have softer-side water).
Again, what is the KH of your water? Test kit by AP should cost ~3 bucks.
>I would really love to invest in
>a pressurised CO2 system, but they all seem so expensive...is there an
>entry
>level system I might be able to try out?
Again, this is where you need to decide if you want a "plant tank" or a
"fish tank with plants". I think if you ponder this for a while, you can
make many decisions much easier.
But, that being said, a full CO2 system from M3 (based in Cambridge MA) is ~
200. You can find cheaper on the net.
>I don't need anything too
>complicated, though I've considered building my own, having my friend build
>the circuits for me and what-not.
"Circuits"?? You mean you want a CO2 / pH Controller? Not worth it IMO.
Read through the archives on this one.
>Oh, another thing people asked was, 'what kind of tank are you going for?'
>Well, when I bought the tank I had intentions of a planted tank. My gf
>really loves fish, though, so I didn't really have a choice *whip* (sorry
>ladies). I still consider my tank a planted tank, though it does have its
>share of fish (I enjoy them too!).
From your earlier post, you say you have:
>2 Blue goramis
>1 Earth Eater (love this guy, and hes huge...bout 5-6" in length, beautiful
>color)
>1 upside-down cat
>1 spotted cat (dont know technical name)
>1 leopard puffer (freshwater)
>1 sword tail
>5 glass fish (girlfriend influence)
>3 angels
>3 bala sharks
Also, FYI, check out this article on painted glass fish --
http://www.thekrib.com/Fish/painted-glassfish.html
(The Bala get way too big for a tank this sized. Shouldn't be sold for
aquariums IMO.)
Here is the crux of your problem, though I completely sympathize as I have
been there too.
First bit of advice, convince your GF that you _cannot_ expect to have a ton
of different fish types (yours are from 4 continents...) in one tank and
expect to make them happy!! You need to take some of these fish back to the
LFS IMO.
One of the first real "fights" I got into with my fiance was when she wanted
to pick fish for one of my new tanks... She wanted me to buy african
(Malawi) cichlids and a "freshwater halibut" to put in my planted SA dwarf
cichlid tank... Give her control of your 10G tank, and make the 90 a
planted... That might help. I plan on doing that with my fiance -- she can
put in pink gravel for all I care!
>Oh yea, I'm getting really frustrated! :-( I told my gf last night that I
>was going to let the tank do whatever it wanted for a while now. I almost
>feel I've been overworking it, but not for the past few weeks I've been
>posting here.
This is probably a good idea. Again, you need to make that decision (fish
vs. planted). Keep in mind there are some WONDERFUL and beautiful fish that
work well in planted tanks.
>Perhaps something in my filtration? I have a good q here! My setup
>consists of 2, 5 gallon buckets. 1 of the buckets is almost full of
>bioballs, the other acts as a stand...they make a big barrel that I run
>water through to make a trickle filter. After going through them (and
>heres
>where the question applies) the water drops into a 20g bin under the tank.
>I have pre-filter pads under the sump to keep the noise down, though it is
>pretty quiet. In the 20g bin the surface water starts to look really
>nasty.
>I mean like a film of green on the top that gets on my hand if I put it in
>there.
This would mean you have a GW problem...
You have floss / filter-pad as a pre-filter before the water gets to the
bioballs right?
>There is a definate ring around the buckets and it looks like theres
>a layer of spit on the top (bubbles). I don't get it, I have a feeling
>this
>is a protein layer caused because the top layer nearly doesn't move at
>all...I have an extra aquaclear 300 or something, should I throw that on
>the
>bin to keep the surface moving a bit?
A surface skimmer can help. Check out the Krib for more info. I am now
using the one sold by Hagen for $10 on my tank -- works very well with
little adjustment.
Sorry if I am being a bit negative, I just think you can avoid some major
headaches if you make informed choices now, rather than later.
As for talking to people about your hobby -- I understand... Are there any
fish clubs in your area?
-Tony
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