General Care Discussion :: About Water Quality

[Jet]

Hi Everyone, Hope Santa was good to all and all the little guys too!
I've been having a water issue. Seems my water is clouding up pretty fast. I am not doing total water changes as I finally realized that I don't need to but I'm changing out at least half every two weeks. I fill with cold water and add a couple of gallons every couple of days as it evaporates. But for the last month or two it seems like the water is cloudy. This hasn't happened in awhile so I'm wondering if my media is not working properly in the filter. I was told to not change or rise the ceramic rings, I have a Fluval 250 I think so I just change the carbon once a month. The tank is a 50 gallon and I keep it a bit more than half full.
I "sweep" the tank everyday and stir up the water to get all the small pieces and particles to the intake tube.
It's pretty dark here in Seattle all the time this time of year and I'm wondering if my eyes are playing tricks on me and that is what the water looks like under the UV light or if something is going on.
My guy is as happy as can be, no problems with eating, swimming or just banging around and bashing everything in his tank.
Any thoughts????
Thanks and I hope you all have a great and happy New Year!
Tina

[grey goose]

Is this a new setup? Is the filter media new? When you change out the water, do you use conditioner?

[Jet]

No the tank is not a new set up. It's been up for awhile. The media is not new, except the carbon filter which I change once a month. The ceramic rings are not new and I do not change or wash them I only rise them with some of the tank water when they get really yucky. I usually don't add any water conditioners when I change out the water and I only do about a 30% water change, I syphon out only what is needed to get the sediment off the bottom. I always stay above the bottom of the intake tube then I add cold water back in. I also notice that the algae on his dock seems to be coming back faster. I can't seem to figure out what's going on any suggestions?
Thanks......Tina

[mikee]

Jet -- New tank syndrome or not, it appears that you have something out of whack. I suggest that you use your test kit and check the ammonia, nitrites and nitrates. I don't know how your set-up is with the water level, at half way, with a 50 gallon tank, but I would try a little more volume and do 50% changes. Your Fluval 250 is a bit small for that tank. I would get at least a 300 gph for more filtration. Are you over feeding him? If so that is more waste and more poo.

[grey goose]

You really should use water conditioner even if it's only a few gallons. You should also avoid sweeping the small particles into the intake. Net it out or use a turkey baster to suck it up. Those small bits can get into your media and clog it up or at least overwhelm the good bacteria. It sounds like your filter is having a tough time keeping up. Maybe you should consider something larger.
When it comes to turts, you can never have too much filtration.