Very cloudy water for a year now

[Wesley engel]

I set up my bb tank that is going to become a frag tank but ever since I started it up a year ago it has been nothing but very cloudy. I've tried doing more than a 50% water change but it came back the very next day. I've tried to re seed it thinking maybe if didn't cycle properly, I've even tried to add 2 small damsels as well. Still very cloudy. My set up is 40 gallon breeder, 20 gallon long sump with 40 pounds of rock in the refugium with cheato, the skimmer is a skimmer rated for at least 50 gallons.

My parameters:

Sg 1.026
Mag 1450
Cal 445
Alk 10 dkh

Po4 0.04 ppm
No3 0.40
Ammonia 1

Ph 8.1

 

[brandon429]

all the clouding is clearly coming from the rock portion of the setup, and manifesting there

can you do daylight/white pics of the rocks and sump area, also lift out a rock and lets see it outside of the water in a clear white light pic

 

[Crabs McJones]

Ammonia 1? so you're showing ammonia? If your cycle is complete you shouldn't be showing any ammonia. What did you to do cycle the tank? And did you put your chaeto in the refugium right away?

 

[Wesley engel]

I guess it didn't put a picture of my sump I tried to put lol. But I've already pulled the rock out and rinsed the. Out in a bucket of clean saltwater a few days ago, the water in the bucket was still clean. The rocks are getting color as live rock would. I know it's still cycling once i seen the ammonia but there's nothing dead or decaying and I thought it might be a algae bloom but it's really foggy not just a small have. I cycled it with half a dead shrimp and biosphera (or however you spell it). I set up a 75 gallon the same time and did the same steps for cycling and that one has corals doing very well and water is crystal clear. The cheato went in a few months after the set up and was growing very fast and nice, NOW it has slowed down.

 

[Wesley engel]

Sump

 

[Wesley engel]

I will take pictures of rocks when I get home but they look just like any live rock in color now that it's been a year

 

[Crabs McJones]

It almost sounds like your cycle never finished..Do you run filter socks or anything? You could try a UV sterilizer to clear up the water.

 

[Wesley engel]

Just weird the cycle hasn't finished in a year, that's why I threw the 2 damsels in a few months back and added some more biosphera. I've been thinking about the uv steralizer just havnt had the money to get one yet. And yes I do run filter socks, i changed them every few days or when clogged. One thing is the haze actually moves like it's a milkyish substance in the water

 

[Donaldf973]

Any of the silicone GE2 or the like. A Custom 30 gallon and sump I did 6-7 Years ago had the same issue because of the anti-microbial in the silicone. I had to scrap the whole project.

 

[Wesley engel]

Really.. the silicone I used is in the 75 gallon sump as well though and that ones doing great. It was the aquarium safe stuff from lowes

 

[Donaldf973]

Any scented plug-ins, febreeze, Lysol cigar/cigs/vape products used around the tank?

Propylene glycol is an anctibacterial and in e-liquid. I run activated carbon specifically cause my wife loves febreeze and I also vape around my tanks and habe caused cloudy water from it. Activated carbon keeps it from doing that...at least in my experience.

 

[Wesley engel]

No, I told my girl no cleaning products anywhere near the tanks, I told her I won't even use glass cleaner to clean the outside of the glass just water and a rag and paper towels. The 2 tanks are literally in the corner of my living room farthest from any sunlight. My 75 gallon is not even a foot from it so if it was something like that I would think it would be affected as well. But I did try to run carbon but I could only throw it in a filter sock and put it in a high flow area because I do not have a reactor. Still no difference.

 

[Donaldf973]

Damm bro then I'm out or ideas other than the source of the rock you have

 

[Wesley engel]

Yea same here, that's why I posted on here lol. I'm using Fiji rock from bulk reef, same as in my 75 as well

 

[Mandelstam]

Just to start ruling things out maybe transfer the rocks to a different tank/tub for 24h and see what that does to the water in both tanks?

 

[Wesley engel]

Well my 75 gallon is fine, everything is perfect and my sps are doing great. But that's a good idea for the cloudy tank, I'll try that

 

[Mandelstam]

Well my 75 gallon is fine, everything is perfect and my sps are doing great. But that's a good idea for the cloudy tank, I'll try that

Yea I meant that if the water in the temporary tub you put the rocks in turns cloudy and the cloudy tank clears up it's definitely something with the rocks. If not, at least you know it's not something in the rocks.

 

[krbnsol]

Following along but I can't figure out why the tank won't finish the cycle. Just throwing things out there. .....Was this dry rock or something else? It's as if there is a continued die off that's ongoing.

Is the cheato still doing well?
What about using some of the water from the 75g tank to help seed the 40 and boost the cycle? Not sure if there are other drawback such as cross contamination, etc but may be worth a try.

I know this has to be frustrating.....hang in there.

 

[Wesley engel]

It was dry rock when I got it, I rinsed and removed all the sponges I could find. But that's a good idea with the seeding. I'm gonna try the rock thing first by pulling it out for 24 hours. If that doesn't work I'll try that idea I'll just drain the usual water change from the 40 and add the water from the 75 and do the water change to the 75. That's a good idea actually

 

[Wesley engel]

The cheato is nice and Green but the growth has slowed down