My 5ft tank has sand and very fine fine gravel as the substrate and it's always had a slight problem with loose bits of sand/gravel floating around but has never been too bad. Lately, the tank looks extremely cloudy from all the sand and gravel flying around. It is not an ammonia problem. I think it's because my loaches are always darting around that they stir it up and it never has time to rest on the bottom again.
It's very frustrating! I've tried water changes, Magic Clear, any other clearing product you can think of and I tried SeaChem's Clarity (boasting it will get rid of ANY cloudiness) and nothing works. Is there any other solution besides of getting bigger gravel?
EDIT:// Forgot to mention I even have Purigen in the filter.
Very cloudy water
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If the problem is fine sand then none of the clarifiers will work.
Around here sand is available in 2 basic forms. The best is sand that has been graded so it is pretty much a uniform size, and you can get certain sizes and it does not fly around the tank when the fish dig.
The worst sort is sold as Play Sand, and is NOT graded. It has fine sand, and finer particles, and it is these finer particles that fly into the water so easily, and do not settle very fast. Some sorts of sand sold for masonry work is also such a mix.
The better sand is sold for sand blasting, swimming pool filters or simply in bags, with the grain size written on it. Some aquarium stores around here sell the play sand, others sell the graded sand, in different sizes.
Around here sand is available in 2 basic forms. The best is sand that has been graded so it is pretty much a uniform size, and you can get certain sizes and it does not fly around the tank when the fish dig.
The worst sort is sold as Play Sand, and is NOT graded. It has fine sand, and finer particles, and it is these finer particles that fly into the water so easily, and do not settle very fast. Some sorts of sand sold for masonry work is also such a mix.
The better sand is sold for sand blasting, swimming pool filters or simply in bags, with the grain size written on it. Some aquarium stores around here sell the play sand, others sell the graded sand, in different sizes.
38 tanks, 2 ponds over 4000 liters of water to keep clean and fresh.
Happy fish keeping!
Happy fish keeping!
Sometimes the water at a beach will do a surprisingly good job of sorting out the particle sizes, so the sand might be very good. It sounds, however like you did get some sand with mixed sizes, including the finer particles that can cloud the water.
Here is a very easy test:
Put some sand in a glass jar with straight sides. Mark how high it is in the glass (1/4 to 1/3 full is fine, it is not critical)
Add water, cover the jar and shake it for at least a minute. Then look at a watch that will time the seconds. Set the jar down and start timing. Whatever falls to the bottom in 30 seconds is coarse sand. (best for your aquarium). Whatever falls to the bottom in 2 minutes is silt. This can work in an aquarium, but with diggers like Loaches it will produce clouds of dust, but they will settle all over stuff, like on the leaves of the plants. After 2 minutes the particles are too fine to settle out quickly in an aquarium. (Especially with fish that dig)
Now look at how much sand you started with (the mark on the jar). If almost all the sand settled out in the first 30 seconds then you might be able to work with this product, but it will take a lot of rinsing to make it work. If less than 3/4 of the stuff settled in the first 30 seconds I would not use this in your tank.
Here is a very easy test:
Put some sand in a glass jar with straight sides. Mark how high it is in the glass (1/4 to 1/3 full is fine, it is not critical)
Add water, cover the jar and shake it for at least a minute. Then look at a watch that will time the seconds. Set the jar down and start timing. Whatever falls to the bottom in 30 seconds is coarse sand. (best for your aquarium). Whatever falls to the bottom in 2 minutes is silt. This can work in an aquarium, but with diggers like Loaches it will produce clouds of dust, but they will settle all over stuff, like on the leaves of the plants. After 2 minutes the particles are too fine to settle out quickly in an aquarium. (Especially with fish that dig)
Now look at how much sand you started with (the mark on the jar). If almost all the sand settled out in the first 30 seconds then you might be able to work with this product, but it will take a lot of rinsing to make it work. If less than 3/4 of the stuff settled in the first 30 seconds I would not use this in your tank.
38 tanks, 2 ponds over 4000 liters of water to keep clean and fresh.
Happy fish keeping!
Happy fish keeping!
Not a pest at all, keep posting and asking Qs.
There are a couple of ways of getting rid of the fine stuff. One way is to put the sand in a bucket and run a hose into the bucket. Keep stirring the sand. As the water overflows it will take the fine stuff with it, as well as any floating debris.
Another way is to put the sand in a pillowcase or other linen (Cheap/coarse fabric is best for this). Run the hose into this, and keep stirring the sand. Again, the water will wash out the fines, and they will pass through the fabric. The coarser sand will stay inside the pillowcase. If the fabric is too fine the small particles will not pass through. I do not know how fabric is classed in Oz, but if you can get some that has about 40-50 threads per inch this will retain fairly fine material that is still sand, but let most of the dust through.
I use sand that is graded so most of the particles are 30 mesh (grains are 1/30" diameter), so most of the particles in my tank would go through a fabric with only 30 threads per inch.
There are a couple of ways of getting rid of the fine stuff. One way is to put the sand in a bucket and run a hose into the bucket. Keep stirring the sand. As the water overflows it will take the fine stuff with it, as well as any floating debris.
Another way is to put the sand in a pillowcase or other linen (Cheap/coarse fabric is best for this). Run the hose into this, and keep stirring the sand. Again, the water will wash out the fines, and they will pass through the fabric. The coarser sand will stay inside the pillowcase. If the fabric is too fine the small particles will not pass through. I do not know how fabric is classed in Oz, but if you can get some that has about 40-50 threads per inch this will retain fairly fine material that is still sand, but let most of the dust through.
I use sand that is graded so most of the particles are 30 mesh (grains are 1/30" diameter), so most of the particles in my tank would go through a fabric with only 30 threads per inch.
38 tanks, 2 ponds over 4000 liters of water to keep clean and fresh.
Happy fish keeping!
Happy fish keeping!
you may have bacterial buildup. hold off on feeding for two days and do a 30% daily water change. vaccum up your tank. i know it may be excessive. but i lost half my tank when the water quality went down. the bio filter crashed. you can get some stress zyme at the store that will boost your bio filter if this is the case.
All your loaches are belong to me!
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