Habitat - Indoor :: green water

[Stacey]

Ok, I have had absolutely no problems with my set-up, but in the last week the water in the tank is going green VERY fast. I did a 100% water change (weekly routine, but not necessary) on Monday, then the next day water was a bit cloudy. By Thursday I had to go to Big Al's and they recommended some sort of bio support (thinking that because of the complete water change, it messed with the bacteria) so I did another 50% water change, to not "mess" with the bacteria, and nothing. Yesterday I had to do another complete water change, but now it's cloudy again.

I just want to stress that I have never had anything like this happen, and I haven't changed anything in his tank, except adding this bio support stuff.

Anyone have any ideas?

[Oldturtle72]

Hi, Stace,
Go to www.azponds.com and under 'Water treatments' check out the Green Water Clarifier. I haven't had to use it this year in my pond bvut last year I bought the big jug and used it for my 265 gallon pond. I know it'll work in your habitat. Just follow the directions for the gallonage you have. I have used a product called AlgaeFix, this year, just to control what my Japanese Black Trapdoor Snails miss. That product, I believe, Marisa or a lady called Baby Blue used in their habitat and were pleased with the result. These products,by the way, are not harmful to anything in your tank except what's advertised. There is a small bottle of the clarifier if that is all you think you'll need. Hope this helps you. George

[RES Tampa]

Give your filter/tank a few days to cycle and the cloudy water should go away. i had the same problem when I upgraded to my larger tank and new filter. cloudy smelly water for a few days then it cleared up. Just hang in there a little longer

[Oldturtle72]

Do you have rocks or any type of substrate covering your tank bottom? Food, poop, flaked-off skin, dead plant matter, all these items have a nasty habit of adhering to the bottom strata and it doesn't take long for a green and cloudy condition to show up. It's only treatable with chemicals and also the removal, permanently, of the substrate. If your tank bottom is free of substrate and this condition happened, Stace, I haven't a clue as to the cause. In that case, there may be a poster on this forum that does know. George

[Stacey]

The only things in the tank are water, a few rosey red minnows, the ZooMed basking dock and the turtle. It is a 72 gallon bow front, about 3/4 full. I have a Fluval 404 currently running for filtration.

[judo42]

Sounds like a very nice setup Stacey!

[marisa]

Is the water cloudy or green (both)? If it's just cloudy, it sounds like new tank syndrome and as RES Tampa said, it needs to cycle. Doing frequent partial water changes helps. If the water's turning green it sounds like algae. If so, one thing you could do is increase the amount of oxygen in the water through the use of an air stone or bubble stone, for example. Does the tank get a lot of light? If so, cutting down on the amount of light it gets would also help.

[Stacey]

It started out cloudy, then went green in a day or so. I have had this setup going strong for about 8 months. I have a 4' Repti-Glo 8.0 for UVB and a 60W(I think) UVA heat spotlight for the basking area. I leave them on about 12 hours a day. I will try the bubble stone. I just don't get why in a week I am having all these problems.

[marisa]

Let us know if there's any improvement.

[Stacey]

I have been doing 50% changes and still have to put in the bubble stone, haven't had time to make it to a store, working night shifts SUCK!

But yes, I will update in a few days.

[Stacey]

Ok, I have been doing roughly 30% water changes daily, and I also purchased a bubble wall, great fun for the turt I have managed to get the colour to a light green, but VERY cloudy. This a BIG improvement from last week, but I am about to pull my hair out.

Any other suggestions? Should I try new media in the filter?

[pkneeyahx]

stacey,
if you keep doing water changes, you'll be constantly "messing" with the bacteria. when you remove 30% of the water your displacing that beneficial bacteria. Give it a few days.. I know it stinks, but once you stop doing so many frequent water changes, add your supplements and give the tank a chance to re-cycle itself, the smell will go away.

the cycling process shouldn't take too long with a messy turtle. keep up on the removal of uneaten food, and just be patient.

with your setup.. there are two things you should only need to buy from Big Als.. Aquaplus tap water conditioner and Cycle.

Good luck.

[Stacey]

Ok, I'll give it a few days. The water doesn't smell, you just can't see through it. Will that harm my turtle? BTW there is NEVER any left over food

[pkneeyahx]

the cloudiness will dissipate once everything balances out in there..
read this for more info on cycling..
http://freshaquarium.about.com/cs/biolo ... ncycle.htm

keep in mind that the article is intended for fish keeping. Fish aren't as resiliant to water parameters as turtles are.. so when it talks of fish loss.. please read between the lines and pay attention to the talk of bacteria.

[GouzlanTheAmerican]

i get cloudy water when i change the carbon in the filter. No matter how much i rinse the carbon i still get cloudy water for about a day but it gose away. but i really cant think of why your tank would be getting green all of the sudden