# How can you make the water in a 10 gallon freshwater aquarium crystal clear!?



## tep05 (Apr 2, 2005)

I think I have tried almost everything to make the water clear in my 10 gallon aquarium, but im not sure. I need your suggestions! Thanks alot.


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## Fishfirst (Jan 24, 2005)

what kind of cloudy is it? hazy? browny? greeny? Also how long has this tank been set up?


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## tep05 (Apr 2, 2005)

only a few days the tank has been set up, the water is clean,but hazy, almost like fog on land.


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## Osiris (Jan 18, 2005)

it's very normal.

I have actually noticed for some reason, my saltwater tank is 10x cyrstal clear then any of my FW tanks, it's weird .lol


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## Fishfirst (Jan 24, 2005)

have you introduced an ammonia source... sometime ammonia can look cloudy in a tank. Also mixing different water does that too but I forget why at the moment.


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## tep05 (Apr 2, 2005)

I dont believe i have done anything but put StressCoat, a water conditioner in the FW tank, i only have 3 fish in it....2 are algae eaters.


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## fishfreaks (Jan 19, 2005)

tep05 @ Fri Apr 01 said:


> only a few days the tank has been set up, the water is clean,but hazy, almost like fog on land.


how long have you had the pump running? our tap water looks like that description when we pour it into a glass


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## tep05 (Apr 2, 2005)

do you have city water? because it was tap and you may have a point, but will it go away???


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## fishfreaks (Jan 19, 2005)

i would give it a few more days and see if it clears up at all.


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## tep05 (Apr 2, 2005)

the pump was running for quitet a while, but i dont like that i dont see air bubbles comeing into the tank, its a fulter-pump thing


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## tep05 (Apr 2, 2005)

thanks for all the help


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## DavidDoyle (Jan 18, 2005)

It is a bacterial bloom and not harmful, just unsightly. You can help eliminate by doing 3 things: water changes, feed less and lose the stress coat.


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## Fishfirst (Jan 24, 2005)

1st off what kind of algae eaters do you have, secondly because its a new tank, you most likely are experiencing some ammonia problems, or are going to experience some. The cloudy water can be a biproduct of this. I'd do a 25% water change and get ready for a bumpy road ahead as you will be experiencing the nitrogen cycle in full force. Also I would get Bio-spira for the tank, it may help your upcoming problems. 
See new tanks go through what is called "New Tank Syndrome" This is when the nitrogen cycle takes place in an unequalibriated mess. Ammonia spikes first... (fish waste) anything over a trace reading of ammonia is considered deadly. Nitrites spike second... (ammonia converted to nitrites by bacteria) anything over a trace reading of nitrite is considered deadly. Nitrates spike third... (Nitrite converted to nitrates by bacteria) this is not a very poisonous substance. Readings from 10-30 are optimal while 40 gets harmful to fish.
I would do threethings if I were in your situation, buy a high quality test kit, do a water change, and get bio-spira to add to your tank. Also I would start researching the current fish you have in your tank(s)... to prevent you from wasteing money on doomed fish.


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## tep05 (Apr 2, 2005)

thanks for the advice,we have a store called animal jungle, and it just said "Algae Eaters"


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## fishfreaks (Jan 19, 2005)

what do the fish look like?


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## tep05 (Apr 2, 2005)

the algae eaters are skinny and long, with a black stripe down their body, and the angel fish is about 4 square inches and they are healthy, i think it is a pH problem


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## Lexus (Jan 19, 2005)

IMO Ph will not effect the cloudiness of the tank.


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## tep05 (Apr 2, 2005)

it is helping me. i have Proper pH and it is clearing.


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## fishboy (Feb 26, 2005)

i just finished up my new 10 gallon and went through t he same problem. Then i went to petsmart shelled out 3 bucks for a gravel vacum for my tank and vacummed my gravel which had been untouched for 4 or 5 weeks and removed about 2.5 gallons of green rot filled water. after doing this once a week for a few weeks my tank is crystal clear


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## fishboy (Feb 26, 2005)

it sounds like SAEs those with an angel are way to much for a 10 gallon you may have to get a bigger tank


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## fish_doc (Jan 31, 2005)

You said your tank has only been set up a few days. It is most likely cycling.

The Nitrogen cycle is also known as "new tank syndrome"
This is the process by which nitrifying bacteria colonize in your filter and gravel,
the single most important step in establishing your aquarium ecosystem. As soon as you
add fish to a brand new, clean, clear-watered aquarium,they start to make waste. Excess
food and fish waste contains bacteria that will utilize oxygen to break the waste down
into ammonia. Ammonia is very toxic to fish, irritatingtheir gill tissues and causing 
severe damage to other body tissues. We call this Ammonia burn, because it basically
burns your fish's sensitive tissues. The benefical bacteria multiply in your tank, and 
further break ammonia down into nitrite, Nitrite is still very toxic to fish. It destroys
the hemoglobin in their blood, which carries their oxygen. In simple terms, nitrite is 
suffocating your fish. This causes stress, and any kind of stress will affect your fish's
immune system, leading to disease and usually death. Lastly, Nitrite breaks down into
Nitrate. Far less toxic than ammonia and nitrite. Nitrate is the end product of the
Nitrogen cycle. This chemical is only toxic at high levels, above 50 parts per million 
or so. To keep nitrate at a healthy level, most aquarists do water changes every 14 
to 18 days, removing only about 20 percent of their aquarium's water and replacing it
with new water. It is important to only change this small amount, or you will lose too 
much bacteria and the cycle will begin again! Live plants also help keep nitrate under
control, they use it as fertilizer. The whole cycle usually takes around 4 Weeks, 
depending on how quickly your bacteria grow. It can take longer, especially for saltwater
aquariums. There are products avaliable now that contain actual bacteria, to give your 
aquarium a little boost through the cycle. There is also a process known as fishless 
cycling that many have tried.

During this time some cloudiness is normal time should most likely clear it up.


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## Mr Aquarium (Jan 18, 2005)

If you wanna get something that will clear your water up like you wish it to be, 
find an AquaClear power filter, My Mom has one on a 20g tank and her water a so clear the tank looks like it has no water in it.
You still have to do all your work though, w/c's, gravel vac and them things.
IMO them are the best filters for smaller tanks.
You can get my Moms 20 stirred up and it clears back up in about 30 mins.


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