# Carbon ??



## ryno81 (Apr 8, 2006)

Hey. New to the site. Just had a quick question. I bought some activated carbon today for my freshwater tank. I rinsed the carbon as directed, but once I put it in it turned my tank cloudy black from the carbon dust. I rinsed it for a long while too. I don't understand why it happened. It is 20 g tank. I wrapped the carbon bag inside a cut to fit filter as someone at the store told me to. I used maybe 1/3 cu total. Anyone have an idea why it happened and will it clear up or will I need to change water to clear it up.


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## TheOldSalt (Jan 28, 2005)

It'll clear up in a couple of days. On the bright side, the water will be even cleaner than it would have been otherwise once it's done.


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## fish_doc (Jan 31, 2005)

It will clear up on its own.. Next time rinse the carbon out a bit longer or you will have the same thing happen again.


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## Cichlid Man (Jan 19, 2005)

Turning the water slightly black is actually a good thing. The free carbon particles will help extract toxic substances from the water, At least you haven't got green water, that's undesirable.


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