About to give up on saltwater...

vetteguy53081 · Sep 3, 2018

New tank sand generally contains a lot of dust and suspended matter and will do this. Not time to stress yet but determine root/cause and fight the fight.
Too soon it is for carbon to polish BUT here is a $20 helper for you..................... Go to Walmart and get yourself a Hang on back Power filter and place it and tank and run it overnite. You will notice that the carbon filled pad has trapped all that matter and polished the water to clarity. Run it for about a week and then remove and put away in case needed in the future. Rinse the pad well and dry that also for next use if needed.

Ktran350 · Sep 3, 2018

1) Look up Dr. Tim’s fishless cycle and follow that. I also supplemented with microbater7

2) Go to Walmart and buy some poly fil. Cut to size and place it in your sump/media basket. That will filter out the dust and such. It’s like $12 bucks and will last for a very long time. Replace it as you see fit.

3) if you have a protein skimmer you can turn it on to help with cycling since it will oxygenate your water = help with cycle process

4) leave your lights off while you cycle.

5) continue to test for Ammonia, nitrite and nitrate to track your cycle,

I’m not sure what the rules are on the forum but there is an app I use to plug in my parameters after testing and I keep track of it that way + it shows me a graph

Dom · Sep 3, 2018

Mike1995 said:
I see people on YouTube with these new tanks that are crystal clear and look awesome... I just would like to do that but i dont know how.

The people you see on youtube with awesome tanks are not new tanks. They are tanks that have been established for a long time... years in some cases.

I find that as my tanks mature, they require less intervention as the tank ecology evolves and they become increasingly self-sustaning.

Another thing to remember: As you gain experience, things will improve. I'm in the hobby 10 years (a rookie) and while my tanks are nice to look at now, they weren't for the first few years. But as I gained experience, that changed.

N2theUnknown · Sep 3, 2018

Ktran350 said:
1) Look up Dr. Tim’s fishless cycle and follow that. I also supplemented with microbater7

2) Go to Walmart and buy some poly fil. Cut to size and place it in your sump/media basket. That will filter out the dust and such. It’s like $12 bucks and will last for a very long time. Replace it as you see fit.

3) if you have a protein skimmer you can turn it on to help with cycling since it will oxygenate your water = help with cycle process

4) leave your lights off while you cycle.

5) continue to test for Ammonia, nitrite and nitrate to track your cycle,

I’m not sure what the rules are on the forum but there is an app I use to plug in my parameters after testing and I keep track of it that way + it shows me a graph

Whats your app?

KJAG · Sep 3, 2018

Ever hear the term “Quitters never Win?” It applies here. And pretty much every single aspect of life.

Katrina71 · Sep 3, 2018

You can't give up now. You haven't even learned the good swear words programming lights!

Tautog · Sep 3, 2018

Don’t give in so quickly, and never give up.
There’s lots of help here, and even more info.
My tank never cycled, but there’s a relationship between feeding the fish, you need fish, and the bacteria that will develop naturally in your tank over time. Time is what most tanks need. In time, with other experiences, your tank is aging, and developing. You don’t need to dose, just water changes for the first year. Without corals, or only a few, there’s no consumption for growth, and no need to dose.
Remember this is a long-term hobby!

cgdcinc · Sep 3, 2018

IMHO it takes about a year for a new tank to come around and stabilize. Just talking from experience with my two reefs. No two tanks are the same.
When I think back about it, so many things happen to the tank in that first year. As we learn, everything finally starts to settle down and you start to get in a groove and recognize subtle changes when they happen. Don’t get discouraged. Just remember that excitement you had when you decided you wanted an awesome tank. It takes tons of patience and research to get there. The reward is worth it. [emoji106]

Mele__Reef · Sep 3, 2018

@Retro Reefer is right on the money. Bacterial blooms will happen especially in the beginning stages of a young tank. Or purchase a 7w for $14 on Amazon and it will clear your water in 24-48 hrs.

Mele__Reef · Sep 3, 2018

Don't give up! We all encounter problems and challenges in he hobby which is what keeps us on our toes . That's why we have an awesome community to help keep this hobby alive! Don't get discouraged!!

Ktran350 · Sep 4, 2018

N2theUnknown said:
Whats your app?

It’s called Aquarimate. It’s a few bucks. Once you purchase it turn off the subscription and you’re good to go

Jordan Prather · Sep 4, 2018

Most likely a bacterial bloom I've had a couple now and water changes typically make mine worse I think the fresh salt feeds it first one was with a cycle second was when I got distracted and over dosed nopox the first took about 2 weeks to go away the second about days

ThunderGoose · Sep 4, 2018

I'm just here to reinforce what everyone else has said. Take a deep breath and relax. This is normal. As @cydcinc said it take one year (sometimes 2) for a new tank to "settle in." Let things clear up and then go get some hardy fish. ONE OR TWO at most. Most people start with clowns. Ocellaris clowns are less aggressive than other species.

One thing I can recommend is PLAN your tank BEFORE you buy anything. Want a FOWLR? Want aggressive fish? Want a peaceful tank? Want SPS box of sticks (I'd hold off on those for a few years, until you get a system down pat).

Find ONE method you want to try. My biggest mistake was reading everything and deciding to try this, then I heard about that and switched up, then I heard about something else, and so on. So my tank took a long time to stabilize (over 1.5 years) due to my own lack of patience.

Welcome to Reefing. If you can survive the first year you'll like it here.

PS - @BRS has a lot of great videos (Bulk Reef Supply). Check them out for good advice and ideas.

BedrockIOMC · Sep 4, 2018

what kind of flow do you have? your return pump should be pumping at least 7X your tank size a hour. If its not moving fast enough and setting to long it will cause it to be cloudy. If you have a DC pump and can turn it up try doing that for a day and see if that helps. If you have a flow meter that will help as well.

Dom · Sep 4, 2018

Mike1995 said:
I started it with dry live rock and a bunch of reel reef rock stuff that was live.

What you are describing is called "seeding". Seeding is when you move rock or sand or filter media from an old tank to a new one. When you move these items from an established tank, you are also transplanting the nitrifying bacteria that these items play home to. This will help to shorten cycling.

When it comes to cycling a tank, there are many effective ways to get this done. As a traditionalist, I just drop a raw cocktail shrimp into the tank and let it rot. Watch your ammonia; it will rise. In response to the rise in ammonia, your nitrifying bacterial colony will grow to accommodate the load. As this happens, you will see that your ammonia level will begin to drop. When your ammonia is ZERO, you know that your nitrifying bacteria colony is in balance with the bio load.

Remember; every time you add livestock to your tank, you are increasing the bio load. So when you test after adding livestock, you will see a rise in ammonia until your nitrifying bacteria grows to accommodate the additional load.

And because of this, it is VERY important not to add too much at the same time. Fish in the tank will tolerate small ammonia spikes when you add a new fish. But if you add 4 fish over the course of a month, the elevated ammonia levels are damaging to fish gills and can kill them.

I have a hard and fast rule of 4 months quarantine before going in to any of my display tanks. That amounts to three fish per year. Sometimes, people add 3 or more fish per month, which is too many too fast.

Captain Quint · Sep 4, 2018

Lots of good advice so I cannot add much.

Dom · Sep 4, 2018

If you want a quick fix to clear up your water, go to a local arts and crafts store and buy 12" x 12" WHITE felt sheets. It is important that they be WHITE as there are no dyes in it.

Place one in your sump at the point where water is flowing into the sump so that your water from the overflow flows through it. The felt is extremely fine and will catch the tiniest of particles.

Have several on hand as they will clog quickly with so much matter in the water column. You will see a difference in a few days.

Dom · Sep 4, 2018

Also: I don't know where you are located, but use this forum to locate a local reef club and attend a few meetings. You may find someone who is willing to roll up their sleeves and give you some help.

Frop · Sep 4, 2018

Could it be light algae on the glass? Clean glass makes the water more clear. What color lights do you have and how strong?

Mike1995 · Sep 4, 2018

Frop said:
Could it be light algae on the glass? Clean glass makes the water more clear. What color lights do you have and how strong?

I usually clean algea off glass daily if needed. From what iIcan see it's in the water column. I have one of those finnex marine lights.. i know it's not adequate for anything but fowlr but i couldnt afford anything more at the time .could the light be causing issues?