Is it normal when I clean my tank (water changes etc) the tank looks worst?

[ReefKing101]

I’m always reluctant to do water changes or clean my filters because after it always looks far worst lol. Heaps of particles floating around, cloudy water. I think it normally clears up after a couple days though. Is it normal?

 

[Nemo1]

If you siphon the sand bed the water will be cloudy for a short while not usually a few days tho, when I siphoned mine it would be an hour or so, I only siphon the very top layer now and nothing clouds really
Putting carbon in the sump/filter area should help clear the water quicker

 

[ReefKing101]

If you siphon the sand bed the water will be cloudy for a short while not usually a few days tho, when I siphoned mine it would be an hour or so, I only siphon the very top layer now and nothing clouds really
Putting carbon in the sump/filter area should help clear the water quicker

I removed a lot of filter floss, think that's why the water is so dirty now just lots of debris from it

 

[Nemo1]

You could take the filter floss out first and siphon the debris that comes from it while doing water change

 

[brandon429]

That waste is relocating around the tank, it contributes to invasions

want it gone = https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/the-official-sand-rinse-thread-aka-one-against-many.230281/


your tank needs cleaning, like a filter. There’s filter cleaning, and then there’s tank cleaning to the core for 33 pages. Nobody has anything but crystal clear water there

 

[andrewey]

You likely are stirring up detritus in your tank. You can remove the detritus with each water change by blowing on the rocks right before you change the water to reduce the overall level or take steps to reduce inputs (e.g. overfeeding) that often cause excess build ups of detritus. Lastly, you may look to installing mechanical filtration to help remove detritus from the water column (with the optional addition of wavemakers to try and move the detritus into the water column for export).

Detritus will always be present in every tank to one degree or another- you can plan your maintenance around it's removal to reach a level that works well for your tank and is visually pleasing.