Clearing Cloudy Water
When it comes to maintaining a saltwater fish tank, one of the commonest problems that many enthusiasts face is clearing cloudy water. Nothing beats admiring the beautiful, colorful fish swimming in a well decorated marine aquarium but how can you do that if the water is cloudy? What I hope to do in this article is to guide you on what turns your saltwater fish tank cloudy in the first place and tips on clearing cloudy water that you could use instantly.
When clearing cloudy water, it is first best to understand how the water got cloudy in the first place. There are three main causes of cloudy water; bacterial blooms, algae growth and debris from decorations. Knowing which type of cloudy water you are facing will making clearing cloudy water so much easier.
Why Clearing Cloudy Water Is Important
Bacterial blooms make the water a whitish tint. This is usually the result of over feeding your fish or allowing plants or dead fish to rot in the tank.
Algae growth makes the water a greenish tint. This is usually the result of placing the tank in excessive sunlight and too much nitrates in the tank.
Debris from decorations usually make the tank water a brownish or yellowish tint. This is the result of not properly washing new decoration before putting it into the aquarium.
Tips On Clearing Cloudy Water
Check the population of fish in your aquarium. The ideal population in a saltwater aquarium is one medium size fish for every 8 to 10 gallons of water. Maintaining the ideal level of fish in a tank will allow the fish tank filters to properly function in filtering the tank water.
If your filter causes too much water circulation, turn it off for a while each time you feed the fish to allow them to eat the food completely. And always feed a little at a time. Over feeding will cause the food to rot in the aquarium water, promoting excessive bacterial growth.
Ensure that the fish tank filters that you use is suitable for the size of the tank that you have. Too small and it would not be able to filter the water properly. Too large and it will cause too much water movement and affect the fish.
Clean the filter media weekly or bi-weekly. This ensures that the filter media is not clogged and function to the maximum capability.
Do proper water changes each week. This will control the amount of bacteria and algae in your tank.
If you are affect by algae growth, ensure that you do not have the tank placed in a location that experiences too much sunlight. Remember, algae is a plant and it thrives on sunlight.
Finally, before placing any decoration into your aquarium, wash it thoroughly first. This is especially important for driftwood. These usually shed a brownish or yellowish dust when the are dry which can cause cloudy water.
