Filtration and haze

[Stanica]

Hello. I have ten discus in a 90 gallon aquarium, the smallest discus being about 4 1/2 inches. I have some spider wood and a thin layer of sand. I feed them three times a day. I do 50% water changes five days a week if not more. I currently have an Aquaclear 110 hob and a Fluval fx4 for filtration. I think my water looks a bit hazy. I’m wondering if it’s from the recently added white sand (a month)? Maybe between the white sand and white background, it’s creating a hazy look? I’m tempted to remove the sand. I like the look, but miss the ease of bare bottom. Also, I don’t really care for the canister and am thinking about removing it. Would two Aquaclear 110s be enough filtration for the tank? Any thoughts are appreciated. Thank you!

[Stanica]

[ATTACH]123575[/ATTACH
Hopefully this works - here’s a picture of my tank.

[danotaylor]

You didn't mention how mature your filter media is. Ammonia will make the water milky. Have you checked your parameters lately?
BTW, great looking set up!!

[Stanica]

Thanks for the compliment! To be honest, I haven’t tested my water in over a year. I just do frequent water changes and clean the bottom and glass with every water change. Everyone’s been healthy and growing. The media is established. I can dig out my test kit and check my parameters. Thanks for the advice.

[Stanica]

In thinking about it, we’ve had a lot of rain lately. I wonder if the cloudiness is coming from my tap? I don’t age my water. My discus don’t seem bothered at all. I had one pair lay eggs today, which they wouldn’t do if they weren’t happy - right?

[danotaylor]

I believe many of municipal water treatment plants change their chemical treatment regime during seasonal changes. If there extra chlorine or chloramines perhaps you have taken a small hit to your BB colony leading to the cloudiness. The only way to know for sure is to check your parameters. Alternatively you could run your refill water through a carbon filter to remove any dissolved nasties prior to it going into your tank...or run some carbon in a HOB filter or something until the cloudiness resolves.
During the Toledo Water Crisis a few years ago the water treatment change so radically that I nearly lost all of my fish on several occasions throughout the summer. Carbon, in addition to 3 to 5 times the prime dosing saved my fish. it would be nice if the municipalities let people know what they were doing with the water so that they could appropriately plan and prepare for those types of changes...

[Filip]

Im a firm believer that more is better when it comes to bio filtration but with your current WC regime I think that you can easily put your canister aside . If you don't use prefilters on it's intake and you do not clean it regulary , at least monthly , then i believe it can do more harm then good .

About the straight tap WCs , do you use Dechlorinator ?
Have you tested the pH swing during the WCs or noticed a lot of bubles around the tank and fish after you are done ?

Milky water usually comes from a crushed filter and Mini cycle issues , but I don't know what could have caused it in your case because your tank is very well filtered and maintained .

[FishFanMan]

Whenever I hear of cloudy water my first thought is a bacterial bloom. Filters should take care of cloudiness from new sand pretty quickly.

[Stanica]

Im a firm believer that more is better when it comes to bio filtration but with your current WC regime I think that you can easily put your canister aside . If you don't use prefilters on it's intake and you do not clean it regulary , at least monthly , then i believe it can do more harm then good .

About the straight tap WCs , do you use Dechlorinator ?
Have you tested the pH swing during the WCs or noticed a lot of bubles around the tank and fish after you are done ?

Milky water usually comes from a crushed filter and Mini cycle issues , but I don't know what could have caused it in your case because your tank is very well filtered and maintained .

I do have a prefilter and clean the canister every two weeks. I think i’m going to remove it and put another AC 110 on the tank. I just don’t care for it.

I use Prime with every water change. I have no idea what my pH is, I never check it. I know it may sound a bit irresponsible, but if I check it and everything is not perfect, I tend to obsess, so instead I just take care of the discus the best I can. I don’t notice a lot of bubbles, nor do the discus seem stressed after a water change.

I gave the tank a good cleaning and did an 80% water change today and the water looks clear. I’ll see if it stays that way. Thanks for your help!

[Willie]

Loss of cycle is very unlikely as long as you're doing a lot of water changes. In effect, your reservoir becomes your regional water table. It's quite possible to get cloudiness from tap water. I used to get that in my 110 show tank, which gets a minimum of 50% daily. It only bugged me because it's a show tank. Finally, I added a HOT Magnum with a micron sponge and the problem disappeared. But then I have to clean the micron sponge every couple of weeks. I still do that, but it's a royal PITA.

Willie

[Dam777]

I have a 90 with eight 5-6" fish. I run two AC110 w/pre filter and do minimum 50% every other day and no issues with cloudy water. I went the white sand route and just recently got rid of it, will not be going back. There are tons of bare bottom options now a days from tile to starboard and many others. The sand in my opinion looks great but after time it still gets a dirty look to it and needs to changed out. Just ordered a 125 w/sump and after a lot of research and emails with Swiss Tropicals i will be using nothing but 3" Poret foam sheets and Poret cubes. I m either going with a colored starboard or some type of tile bottom, no more sand for me.

[Stanica]

My water is clear again! I really think the cloudiness was coming from the tap water being treated due to the heavy rain my area had. I also noticed the water had a sulfurish smell to it - also gone. The fish were never bothered - but I sure was! Thanks for all the input everyone.

[Stanica]

I have a 90 with eight 5-6" fish. I run two AC110 w/pre filter and do minimum 50% every other day and no issues with cloudy water. I went the white sand route and just recently got rid of it, will not be going back. There are tons of bare bottom options now a days from tile to starboard and many others. The sand in my opinion looks great but after time it still gets a dirty look to it and needs to changed out. Just ordered a 125 w/sump and after a lot of research and emails with Swiss Tropicals i will be using nothing but 3" Poret foam sheets and Poret cubes. I m either going with a colored starboard or some type of tile bottom, no more sand for me.

I’m still thinking of dumping my canister and adding another Aquaclear 110. I think they do a good job and the maintenance is much easier for me. I’m glad to hear they work for you. I will have to look up what starboard is. Thank you!