Water problems

[ranchoo]

Guys please help. I just did a water change recently but every time I wake up in the morning after turning off my lights the tank water is so cloudy and yellow. I added 3 corals a few days ago if that helps. I've also had this tank for about 9 months now and still no coralline algae. Anything would help!

 

[SlugSnorter]

params? Do you use RODI water? what do you feed?

 

[Bucs20fan]

Bacterial Bloom. What temp do you keep your water at?

A fluctuation in temp can easily cause this.

 

[ranchoo]

params? Do you use RODI water? what do you feed?

I'm planning on getting a testing kit so I'll let you know about my parameters, but yeah I use RODI water and I feed sera marine granules, lately my hermit crabs have been dying and i hadn't noticed them until recently. Could that be it?

 

[ranchoo]

Bacterial Bloom. What temp do you keep your water at?

A fluctuation in temp can easily cause this.

Water temperature is at 78, i'll check tomorrow but my heater usually keeps it in check.

 

[Bucs20fan]

A bacterial bloom this bad in that small of a tank will sap the oxygen out of the water. Waterchanges will be necessary. Test kits are a must have. You probably also high sky high nitrates which will only fuel this problem. Also would be why your crabs keep dying.

 

[SlugSnorter]

I'm planning on getting a testing kit so I'll let you know about my parameters, but yeah I use RODI water and I feed sera marine granules, lately my hermit crabs have been dying and i hadn't noticed them until recently. Could that be it?

There will be a cause as to why that is. It seems you may have some param issues (likely high nutrients as Bucs said, looks like there's a lot of detritus on the rocks and sand too). What is the TDS of your water and the salinity of the tank?

 

[ranchoo]

There will be a cause as to why that is. It seems you may have some param issues (likely high nutrients as Bucs said, looks like there's a lot of detritus on the rocks and sand too). What is the TDS of your water and the salinity of the tank?

In a reply I said i'm going to get a testing kit today but my salinity is reading around 1.025/1.026

 

[Bucs20fan]

I agree completely with @SlugSnorter . You will need more Rock in that tank if you want to help prevent this in the future. Almost all filtration in our reef tanks comes from our rock. In that fluval 13.5 you should have no less than 10 lbs of rock.

 

[SlugSnorter]

In a reply I said i'm going to get a testing kit today but my salinity is reading around 1.025/1.026

TDS is total dissolved solids, it is a test of your RODI water to ensure it is pure. (fresh RODI should be 0 TDS)

 

[Bucs20fan]

My recommendation right this moment, do a 50% water change asap. This will introduce lots more oxygen into the tank and give you some time. The only reason that the clown is still alive is because of its size. Go get your test kit, and test Nitrates and ammonia as soon as you can.

 

[SlugSnorter]

My recommendation right this moment, do a 50% water change asap. This will introduce lots more oxygen into the tank and give you some time. The only reason that the clown is still alive is because of its size. Go get your test kit, and test Nitrates and ammonia as soon as you can.

in addition, when doing a WC vacuum your sandbed to remove all that detritus and gunk in there

 

[Bucs20fan]

Im willing to bet as they are readily available. You will get the API test kit, which is just fine for this beginner stage. It will probably max out the nitrate test.

 

[Rp8]

+1 bacterial bloom. You can run a uv to clear it up or carbon

 

[SlugSnorter]

+1 bacterial bloom. You can run a uv to clear it up or carbon

its hard to get a good UV setup in this size of tank

 

[ranchoo]

I agree completely with @SlugSnorter . You will need more Rock in that tank if you want to help prevent this in the future. Almost all filtration in our reef tanks comes from our rock. In that fluval 13.5 you should have no less than 10 lbs of rock.

Could I use granite rock as a temporary until I can afford more rockwork?

 

[Nicerreefs]

Yes test your water parameters. Bacterial blooms are typical in new tanks. Ensure you have a good UV/Filtration.

 

[Bucs20fan]

Could I use granite rock as a temporary until I can afford more rockwork?

absolutely not. To many metals in granite. Granite will rust over time. Just wait until you can get more. But you will need more in the future. Just get your test kits and do water changes until nitrates and phosphates are under control.

 

[Bucs20fan]

A cheap option you can use is a clay pot from a hardware store, clean it very well of debris, use blue dawn dish soap. This is a very porous material and people use them commonly in reef tanks for breeding purposes.

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

consider putting more rock in your tank. Rock is the surface area where the nitrifying bacteria will grow. More rock = more nitrifying bacteria = able to take more bioload. More rock also offers more place for things like pods and worms and micro organisms to grow and hide, which will become part of the tanks ecosystem.