Brittany's teeny tiny reef!

Thanks guys. Yea he's in the ten gallon. The only reason we got him was bc he eats frozen and I'm making the aqua clear into a fuge just in case. He stayed pretty much in the same area since I put him in.
 
Okay so I just did a four gallon water change with distilled water from Walmart. It's a little more clear but nothing significant...here's a couple pics. The water in the bucket is the old water. You can see how green and murky it looks. I carefully poured the new water in so I didn't disturb the sand and make it more cloudy.

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Before the water change
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After the water change
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slm32123 said:
Did you ever get your water cleared up? Just a thought, but did you maybe not rinse your rocks off well enough first?
Click to expand...

I rinsed them super good, I even scrubbed them with a brush, so I don't think that's it. I'm starting to think its bc i don't have a protein skimmer on it....that's the only thing I can think of now.
 
Green Water

  • Caused by a Nuisance Type Green Algae bloom.
    • Use a good flocculent product (i.e. Kent Marine Pro-Clear) to bind particles.
    • Remove bound particles with mechanical filtration (i.e. Magnum 350 canister filter).
    • Remove causes of algae (excess nitrates & phosphates).
    • Vacuum substrate to remove detritus & uneaten food.
    • Perform water changes to remove nitrates & phosphates (see Rapid Nitrate Reduction Water Change Method).
    • Check nitrate & phosphate levels in top off/make up water.
Clearing cloudy tank water isn't really all that difficult. In most cases, using mechanical filtration (including protein skimming) cures the symptom of the underlying problem, which usually goes back to poor water quality. Eliminating the causes (excess nitrates, phosphates and DOCs) will result in long term clear water in your tank.
Thats all i got. WIsh you luck!
 
It definitely has nothing to do with running it skimmerless. I ran my 28g for 2 years without a skimmer and always had crystal clear water. I think it's just an algae bloom, do a 2-3 gallon weekly water change and it'll go away on its own.
 
Okay, well this is the second water change its had since being cloudy. So its going on three weeks cloudy. What if I do a water change every other day for the next week? Will that clear it up faster? Or doesnt it work that way?

Washburn, its not nitrates bc I checked them and they are close to zero. But maybe the algae is using the nitrates all up making it test lower.
 
I really really don't think its the tap water. I've had tanks running for three years on the same water with zero problems. What would make it different this time?
 
You could try more frequent water changes, but if you do daily changes, I would suggest only about a gallon or 2 a day.

Try testing your tap water for nitrates, etc. You may have some in there due to the city using new chemicals or something to clean the water. Assuming you have city water.
Just a guess.
 
I use an API test kit. It will test freshwater and saltwater. If it's in the budget, I highly recommend a BRS Dual Reactor with Rox Carbon and High Capacity GFO. Kind of an expensive initial purchase but its really worth it IMO. The GFO should help with phosphates if they're high, and the carbon makes your water crystal clear =D
 
Have you tried doing a blackout, and is it getting any sun?

Definitely looks like a green algae outbreak of some kind. I suppose you don't know anyone you can borrow a UV unit from.
 
I was wondering also if it is getting any sunlight on it..
When I set up my 20 for frags I was having a problem getting it to clear up also, took a HOB I had lying around threw it on for a few days with charcoal and it ate it right up.. took it off after it cleared and havent "had" to use it since.. I run just charcoal in media bags once a week for a day and everything is fine now.... Never could find what caused it in the beginning, levels were always good.. There was some sunlight getting to it so I attributed it to that..
 
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