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I’ve got the same tank and same sand. Just put it all in today. So far in a couple hours I can see through the tank. So hoping I have better luck.
I hope you do as well. It was so frustrating.
I bet. My wife wants nothing to do with this tank so it better get pretty quickly.
Btw. Kind of digging the white paint. You may be starting a trend with that.
Well, I installed the probes for the Apex, and I put a heater and a VorTech back on the tank yesterday. I filled it with RO/DI water to let it start getting back up to my desired temperature. I woke up this morning to plans of adding salt, but the water is cloudy. Again. I don’t know what to do.
Does it make sense that it’s bacterial? It’s clearly not the sand because there is no sand in the tank anymore.
How can I get rid of this cloudiness that seems to be persistent? Wait it out? I tried that, but it didn’t go away after three weeks, which is why I tore the sand out (thinking it was the cause). There is nothing in the tank except for the probes, a VorTech, the return pump, a heater, and some new filter floss.
Silly question, but you painted the outside under you glass bottom, right? Not the inside?
I don’t think that’s a silly question, but yes, I painted the outside of the glass on the bottom.
Have you tried Seachem Clarity? Running any filter socks? Maybe look at those.
Hope you get it figured out.
Thanks! It’s baffling me. I have no idea why it’s so cloudy. I filled it with RO/DI yesterday, and I have watched it get progressively cloudier today. It’s clearly something along the lines of being bacterial. I’ll be doing more research over the next couple of days. If the UV sterilizer doesn’t work, then I don’t know what to do other than pack it all up for a while.
You are using the rock you picked up, not the Stax if I recall, right? Did you rinse, soak or treat the rock in any way? If not, the cloudiness could be from the rock. Some of that rocked looked a bit “dirty.”
Have you tried putting new RODI in a different container to see if that clouds ups? Could be something in your RODI filters...maybe not rinsed enough? Just spit balling some ideas
I would also try to snag a few cultured live rock pieces from a LFS to help speed up your cycle and get your rock cultured. I did this for my tank when I started and my cycle ended up being fairly short.
I would also try to rinse your filter out and your carbon out. Could have some stuff built up in there from when you had sand in your tank or some bacteria.
Worst case just start the cycle over. Again I would use live rock that been cured and cultured from a LFS...you can always take it out later if you don’t like it. Toss a cocktail shrimp in and let the magic happen!
This is the most frustrating part, the waiting game! Especially with a significant other lol. Mine wants things to happen immediately!
I think I will be purchasing new RO/DI filters in a few days. So far, it looks like the UV filter might be putting a small dent in it, but it’s difficult to tell at the moment. At this rate, it will take a few days for me to see a significant reduction. The carbon and filter floss are new; they weren’t in the previous setup.
My guess, at this point of narrowing things down, is that it is my RO/DI unit components. I will replace the media this week and see if that changes anything.
At a minimum I would try running a few gallons through your RODI and see if it clears up before buying new filters (unless it’s already old and needs replaced). Might help flush out anything in there causing your water to be cloudy
I’ve ran ~50g through it over the past month between filing the tank and filling buckets for reserve water. However, the unit was used about two years ago for a month or two before I had to tear my tank down and move a few times. I assume that it grew something inside of it during the two years that it sat.