Post
by Diana » Mon Jun 08, 2009 10:25 am
That foam suggests a protein source. Bubbles that hold together need more than just water in their film. Protein is very good at making stronger bubbles that become foam.
The cloudiness could be from any of the following:
pH altering materials: Things like pH Up and pH Down can cause extreme cloudiness. I would test each of the items in your tank separately in a bucket of water. See which might be the culprit, then try them in combination if each one singly seems OK. Not usually associated with foam. pH problems are not often associated with foam.
If all this started when the wood was added, then I would remove the wood first, and set it up in a tub of water with just dechlor and an air bubbler. Check pH over several days and see if this really is the reason the pH has dropped in the tank. Clean the tank again, and see if the cloudiness comes back to the tank, or to the tub with the wood.
The next clue might be the rock, minerals can certainly contribute to the cloudiness. If this rock only reacts this way in low pH water you might need to set up something different from plain ol' tap water to test this.
Green water algae gets started as a grey or white looking cloudiness, but not this dense! It shows green within a few days. Might be associated with foam, but indirectly: whatever fertilizer source is encouraging the algae may also result in foam)
Bacteria growth. Hetertrophic bacteria will grow in the water so fast that they can cloud the water like this. They are feeding on something in the water. Dead fish, or something. In a new set up they are feeding on the dust and skin oils from when you set up the tank, and this does not last for more than a few days or a week. Their food source is gone, so the population drops. In an established tank there is a new food supply, such as a sudden increase in food or a dead fish. These are not nitrifying bacteria, but they are beneficial. May be associated with foam, especially because protein causes foam, and protein is a food source for these bacteria.
Stir up substrate when you are cleaning or adding water. This usually settles down withing a couple of hours, or by the next day. Might be associated with foam if you stirred up a lot of organic debris while you were cleaning.
I see your test results, that list does not include NH3/NH4+ (Ammonia and ammonium)
Since you say there is no ammonia (either sort) I will agree that there may be an incompatibility between the rock and the wood.
Good that the nitrate is coming down!
I have that sort of rock in several tanks, including tanks with pH in the 6s, and have not seen clouding like this.
38 tanks, 2 ponds over 4000 liters of water to keep clean and fresh.
Happy fish keeping!