[CorporateGranola]

Tank: 65gal
Filter: AquaClear 110
pH: 7.9
Ammonia: ~0
NitrIte: 0
NitrAte: 5ppm
Stock: 5 otos, 1 male betta, 1 red platy, community of MTS
Lighting: T5HO 12on/12off

I've been doing PWC every 3 days because I have a ton of driftwood in this tank and it's leeching tannins into the water badly. My tank water has maintained the light brown color you'd expect in this scenario. However, in the last week or so the water has been getting progressively cloudier. My wife and I were concerned for the health of the fish so we did a 30-35% PWC, & added a cap of dechlor and bacteria.

Here we are 3 days later, and the water is cloudy again. I'm really confused because my water parameters are perfect yet the water looks terrible. Am I missing something? Bacterial bloom? How long can I expect this to continue? I want to add my cichlids asap, but I don't want them in water that looks like this. (Note: betta and platy will go back to their community tank before we add the cichlids.)

 

[dotbomb]

Could be algae. Turn off the lights and cover it for a few days. It could also be bacteria and in that case all you can do is wait.

 

[adam0444]

Well I think you already said it, it looks like it from the drift wood. Looks more brown than cloudy to me. If you want to know for sure if it is the drift wood take it out and do some water changes I bet it clears up.

I'm not sure how you prepare drift wood so it doesn't do this *** never had drift wood. I would jut do a google search on it

 

[deisel10]

I'm with adam0444. I've had to soak drift would for months before it stoped leching nastyness. Pull it out and do a few WCs and see if it clears up.

 

[londonloco]

Could be a little of both. I'd probably try a UV on it, if it's green water that should take care of it in a few days. I'm betting you'll see an improvement, but will still have some yellow water from the driftwood.

 

[Kris1991]

Take out the driftwood and boil it a few times (i've heard this helps leach out the tannins really fast) and just sit tight it could just need to cycle some more.

Nice setup

 

[CorporateGranola]

Thanks for the feedback so far. I would prefer not to turn the lights off for several days because the tank has quite a few live plants in it already. However, I might be able to adjust the light temporarily to 8on/16off to try and get the algae growth under control (if that's what it is causing the cloudiness). I really don't mind the tannins, they hadn't been causing any cloudiness, just the typical tea colored water. It's worth noting that we used Purigen in the filter to try to get the tannins in check, but it doesn't seem like it's had much of an impact.

Alternately, might it just be something that my PWC will overcome given enough time? If the water parameters are correct, it's not exactly harming the fish. Maybe we just play the waiting game, continue our current schedule (3-4 day PWC), and wait for it to clear up?

 

[Jeditwin]

I had the same problem, and it was the wood in the tank.... I took it out and soaked it for about 1 week 3times a day in hot water.....

It finally cleared up my water but if I hadn't my water continued to be cloudy and tea colored....

 

[CorporateGranola]

My beloved wife picked out some of the largest pieces of driftwood I've ever seen in a store. I don't currently have any pot even CLOSE to big enough to boil the two biggest pieces. However, I've been meaning to get one of those outdoor propane cookers and a deep pot for doing oyster roasts. This might be a good excuse to snag one.

 

[CorporateGranola]

Typically I don't like to add unnecessary chemicals to my tanks (e.g. besides dechlor and live bacteria). However, a few moments ago I was goofing around on the PetCo website and found this product:



Anyone have experience with it? I've read some positive reviews, but I'd like to hear what you guys have to say.