Tropical Fish Forum
Tropical Fish Keeping Help and Advice => General Fishkeeping advice => Topic started by: Fiona on October 26, 2015, 01:24:21 PM
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The lights just went on in the tanks and the front room one has an odd milky look to it, tests all seem fine though. Any ideas what it might be? It wasn't like that yesterday.
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Milky water is usually a bacterial bloom. Have you done a water change in the previous 24 hours? That can sometimes trigger one in an established tank. And stirred up the substrate more than usual during a water change causing fine particles to be disturbed?
Used any different food?
Used anything different eg new dechlorinator?
Having said that i did read once that algae blooms aren't always green, they can be white too.
As long as your ammonia and nitrite stay at zero, I wouldn't worry too much. If it gets worse we'll have to decide what the cause actually is.
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I did a weekly water change yesterday and cleaned the filter sponges (in siphoned off tank water), I cant say the fish are looking too happy to be honest :( the majority of the CPDs are hugging the top left corner of the tank and some of the threadfins have got clamped fins. I did notice the cories are hitting the surface more than usual too.
I've done a 50 litre water change. I dont think I could cope with another bout of idiopathic tank deaths
edited to add.
Oooof, just scooped a threafin into a fry cage as I spotted it floating on its back.
edited again to add:
damned thing just jumped out the fry cage and floated off into the jungle at the back before I could catch it. :(
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Whatever the cause of the milkiness it could be affecting the oxygen level of the water. If it is a bacterial bloom, the bacteria use oxygen like the fish do. That's the main way bacterial blooms harm fish, by using some of the oxygen. The fact that your fish are hanging out nearer the surface (where there is more oxygen) or darting to the surface more often does suggest depletion of oxygen. Ways to get more oxygen in include using an airstone if you have one (churns the water up more efficiently allowing greater gas exchange) or by turning the filter flow up/pointing the outlet more towards the surface.
The white could also be 'stuff' loosened in the sponges and the flow carrying them into the tank. How heavily did you clean the sponges? A light squeeze or scrubbing them heavily?
Re the threadfin - that's why I always cover fry cages. I use a piece of plastic craft mesh which allows air in but not fish out.
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Sounds like some emergency Pure Aquarium balls are needed!
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The sponges and the fine wool was really clogged with brown algae so i gave them a good rub,maybe I over did it :( I always use PURE in my filters as well, it's great stuff Cod.
Switched the filter to max aeration and turned up the air pump to max. I should have thought of that!! Thanks Sue. The fish won't like the current but it's better than suffocating I guess.
I found the threadfin and it was dead sadly so I hooked it out. I'll double check for bodies before I go to bed.
Mulling over adding some EshA 2000 in case it is bacterial but I doubt the fish need anymore stressing. Anything else I can do that I've missed?
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Oh dear, that's dreadful news. I have no idea what it could be but I hope it clears up soon.
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I've got a feeling Sue's right as usual and I was a bit too vigorous rinsing the filter sponges, kind of odd though as I have ceramic media in there as well and the tanks been set up since xmas last year.
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I do scrub my sponges quite hard too, to get rid of the brown slime that builds up. I've never had this happen.
Did you clean the substrate as well? I'm wondering if you kicked something up into the water. Either the cloudiness itself or it has been known for uneaten food that was hiding in the substrate to be kicked up into the water where the bloom bacteria, which are always lurking around, suddenly found a new food supply and multiplied in their extremely fast way.
Or even particles of uneaten food in the sponge, loosened by the cleaning, which got into the water will the same result.
If what you have are bloom bacteria, the cloudiness and resulting drop in oxygen will go away by themselves.
If it's not a bloom, we need to work out what it is.
Apart from cleaning the sponges, have you done anything different in the last week?
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The water is crystal clear again but I've been doing 12 hrly tests and they've picked up traces of nitrites so it seems I have a mini cycle on the go, what a pain!
I try and avoid disturbing the substrate too much but maybe I did, although thinking about it I have a nerite that spends its time under the substrate, popping up to the surface occasionally, so maybe that hit a small gas pocket.
Apart from the poor threadfin which was one of my oldest, no more deaths thanks to Sue's prompt advice. So thankee :) again :)
I love this forum!
edited to add, head count when the lights came on has me down 2 CPDs, no bodies though so hopefully they're hiding, it's either that or the other fish and snails clened up for me
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Glad to hear your water is getting back to normal. Hopefully the fish are just hiding.
Anne