No fish keeper will like their tank with cloudy water because it looks ugly and whole purpose and the beauty of the tank depends on it. Every fish owner in their entire span of fish keeping, sometimes experience this at least once and can get confused as what are the reasons for these events.
There are several reasons why freshwater fish tank gets cloudy. But the truth is, the solution to this problem is relatively easy. While looking at this problem of cloudy water we must consider under which circumstances this has happened.
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Freshwater fish tank is cloudy after cleaning
If water in your freshwater fish tank is going cloudy after cleaning then the main reason behind this could be a bacteria bloom happening in there. After cleaning, some of the beneficial bacteria gets replaced with new water and the process of multiplying the beneficial bacterial speeds up drastically to cater to the reduced numbers.
This process is too fast in early stages of the development of the beneficial bacterial until they are settled in numbers. This bloom though not visible a colony of these beneficial bacteria is in millions and this creates cloudy water because of their sheer volume. The solution to this is to just watch it for a few days until the numbers get settled and the water again goes back to clear status.
Cloudy water in a new fish tank
In a new tank there are several reasons that could turn water cloudy. Normally a new tank has all the equipment and decorations newly installed. Out of many, one of the reason why water turns cloudy could be residual particles from the gravel and decorating stones leave their original surface and start floating in the water.
Before you add sand, gravel or decorative stones in a new tank it is necessary to wash them thoroughly. This will ensure that they are free of any floating particles. Normally these smaller particles are not visible to naked eyes. Most of the times gravel and decorations are bought in their own packaging and are introduced in the tank before water is poured in the tank.
All the gravel, sand and decorations are arranged before the tank is filled with water and the moment these get in contact with tank water the smaller residues start floating in the tank water making it cloudy.
Another reason a new tank gets cloudy, is a sudden rise in bacterial colony. A new tank normally starts to cycle when water is introduced and in this phase bacteria start to establish themselves by multiplying their numbers in millions. Though a single bacteria is invisible, their colony can form a cloudy and visible appearance in the water. The solution to this is again to just wait for a few days to settle the numbers of bacteria and follow a natural course.
Cloudy water after one day of fish tank set up
As mentioned above if you see cloudy water in just one day after the tank has been set up then most probably it is because of the smaller residue particles of sand and gravel that leave their parent surface and start floating in the water.
You should give it a day or two to settle down without disturbing the water. In the coming months it is possible that whenever the gravel gets disturbed you’ll see some of these particles again rise up a little causing clusters of cloud, but this is harmless to fish.
Once you get into the habit of cleaning the sand and substrate at the bottom using a siphon tube, these smaller particles will eventually be sucked into the tube and go out of the tank causing less disturbances in future.
Water in fish tank is cloudy green
If water in your fish tank is cloudy green then this could be because of excess growth of algae. The primary reason of excess growth of algae in a fish tank is too much natural sunlight falling on it’s surface.
If you have artificial lighting set up above your tank then check that also. If you are keeping lights turned on for longer hours, then you can control their duration and stop excess algae growth. If algae grows too much in numbers, it will start floating in the water making it cloudy green.
If too much sunlight is falling on the glass walls of the tank, you can consider adding curtains on the room windows or shifting the tank to a position where direct sunlight is not falling on the tank walls.
Water in fish tank is cloudy yellow
If you see water in your fish tank cloudy with a yellowish shade then you must check if you have some type of natural decorating items added to it recently. Such decorating items could be driftwood or other naturally occurring aquatic wood decorations.
Normally when soaked in water these will leave out their color making the water yellowish. To avoid this you can first soak them outside tank for 24 hours and see if they are leaving any color and then add them to your main tank.
Water in fish tank looks cloudy and milky
If water in your fish tank looks both cloudy and milky then this could because of explosion of bacteria bloom. Normally bacteria are invisible but when they grow exponentially they will grow in millions causing the water to look not just cloudy but milky.
The reason why bacteria grow fast and in so much numbers is to break up excess ammonia and other harmful gases that are being formed. This could be because of decaying food at the bottom of the tank. To avoid this never feed your fish excess food.
Keep a watch everyday on their feeding habit and feed only the quantity that fish will consume most of it. Uneaten food at the bottom of the tank if not cleaned will decay and release harmful ammonia. To cater to this excess ammonia and breaking it down further bacteria, bloom takes over the tank in millions making fish tank water cloudy and milky.
The solution to this is to wait for a few days so that filtration and natural course of cycling takes care of the bacteria numbers.
Water has gone cloudy without any fish
If water in the fish tank has gone cloudy without any fish then this is a sign that the tank is being cycled. This is a process of removing or converting excess harmful gases like ammonia and nitrites to less harmful gases like nitrates.
During this process beneficial bacteria take over the process and form colonies by multiplying themselves. Once their number grows in millions they will start becoming visible in the form of cloudy and milky water.
This is a not matter of great concern because you’ll soon see the water being settled down and becoming clear naturally.
Water in an established tank is going cloudy
When water in an established tank goes cloudy this could be because of several reasons.
1) If you by mistake change too much water in large quantities, the number beneficial bacteria gets replaces suddenly in large numbers as well. To cater to this replaced numbers you’ll see a colony of bacterial multiplied in a short number of time causing clusters of millions of bacterial blooming in a short time span. This can turn water cloudy. But this is not to be worried because in an established tank the process of settling down the numbers is usually fast and you’ll soon see clear water in your fish tank.
2) During the cleaning process if you accidentally rinse the filter media this will wash away beneficial bacteria as well. this beneficial bacteria are essential in settling down excess harmful gases when the fish tank water passes through the filter media in a biological filter.
When this media is again introduced in the filter the bacteria colony will suddenly start to build up. During their initial stages this process is so fast that they grow in millions in a shorter period of time. This excess growth of bacteria causes the water to turn cloudy and will settle down in a few days.
Other reasons to make water cloudy.
1) Sometimes it’s not the water but the fish tank glass walls that are carrying residual particles on their inner surface making the water look cloudy. All you have to do is use a magnetic scrubber from outside and clean the fish tank glass from both sides.
2) Extra uneaten food particles sometimes start floating in the water column making it cloudy. To avoid this never feed your fish too much food. Fish never eat all the food and some particles get settled down uneaten. If the substrate gets disturbed by fish or by any other reason these settled food particle will rise up and keep floating in the water column for a longer time.
In some fish tank a wave maker is installed to agitate the water surface for easy exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide at the surface level of water. In such case water currents get circulated in the tank and if you have floating debris already present then this can make water cloudy fast.
Uneaten food starts decaying turning into extremely harmful ammonia and nitrites. A regular maintenance and partial water changes using a siphon tube could do the job of sucking up debris and solid waste from the substrate making water less harmful. Once you eliminate the very cause from the bottom there will be less chance of water getting cloudy for no reasons.
Conclusion
It is necessary that you maintain your fish tank by cleaning it at regular intervals by [partial water changes using scientifically proven techniques. Beneficial bacteria in your fish tank play a major role of keeping the water chemistry intact and keep the habitat healthy for your fish.
Whenever you see cloudy atmosphere in your fish tank don;t panic and take actions that can harm the settled environment. Try to get to the root cause and find the perfect solution