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not your regular cloudy water
Hi-I'm a relative newcomer to the planted aquarium world and have been
lurking on the mailing list for a number of months now. I have a
problem I'm hoping those who are active here might be able to help
solve: mysterious cloudy water.
It is different than your average cloudy water problem because: 1) my
diatomic filter does NOT clear it-- even temporarily-- now matter how
long I run the thing. The only temporary solution I've found is to add
the clumping agent Accu-Clear AND the diatomic filter. Even then the
cloudiness returns after a few days; 2) there is no visible signs of
algae elsewhere in the tank-- not on the leaves, glass, rocks, etc.; 3)
basic water chemistry seems fine (ph= 7, kh=2-3dh, gh=1dh, no measurable
NO2 or NH3.
I've tried frequent (weekly) water changes, cutting back on light
intensity and number of hours, eliminating the power filter (with carbon
media), eliminating fertilizer treatments, and most recently a hydrogen
peroxide regimen, all without success.
Some specifics on the tank: It's a 45 gallon tall that was initially set
up one year ago. The substrate is entirely Flourite, I have 151 (1 x 96,
1 x 55) watts of compact fluorescent lighting in the tank hood, and I
use CO(2) injection. The only other equipment in the tank is a basic
heater and Whisper 3 power filter. I put 4-5 spike fertilizers in the
substrate (next to sword plants) in over six months ago, and added the
recommended dosage of MasterGrow fertilizer to the tank weekly from
February until this past June (when I stopped in an attempt to get rid
of the cloudy water). I did by-weekly water changes until March, and
since that time I have done weekly (15-25%) water changes in order to
try and get rid of the green cloudy water. I have added nothing to my
water except the MasterGrow.
Help! What could be the problem, and what is the solution? I'm baffled
that whatever is in the water doesn't come out with a basic diatomic
filter run. I've actually set up a little website with all the details,
including pictures of the water cloudiness, at
http://www.wjh.harvard.edu/~munson/aquarium/index.html. The site has a
few more details about water chemistry and the different things I've
tried to solve the problem.
I'd sure appreciate any help out there! Thanks, Ziad
(munson at wjh_harvard.edu)
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* Ziad Munson phone: 617-495-7961 *
* Department of Sociology fax: 617-496-5794 *
* Harvard University email: munson at wjh_harvard.edu *
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