Cloudy water in 125 gallon

I’m looking for some possible help with my 125 gallon. I have 4 fish tanks and they all are in very good shape except for my 125. Clear water. Nitrogen cycle complete. Routine maintenance. Fish are healthy. Some spawning. (Firemouth cichlids, convict cichlids). I have a Fluval FX6 running on my 125 gallon. It’s only been running for about a month. I have 3 Tiger Oscars and some blood parrots in there. They seem to be healthy. The problem is the water. The Oscars are getting large and are very dirty with their waste production. Before the tank was fully cycled I started doing water changes every other day because there was so much waste on the substrate. I was vacuuming the gravel a lot. From what I understand the FX6 should be more than enough filtration for a 125 gallon. I can’t seem to get the water clear. It’s has a cloudy haze when the lights are on and when you look through the tank from the side it has a brownish haze to it when the lights are off. I was told by a couple people that I’m cleaning the gravel too much and not allowing the beneficial bacteria enough time to grow. I was told to feed the fish everyday and let it go for a month. No water changes or gravel vacuum. Could this be the cause of the brown haze? I’m attaching a picture of my 75 gallon side view compared to the 125. Any help would be appreciated. Thank you!

 

Add a second filter. Most filters are actually underrated and with cichlids- they are just dirty. I have a 55 with them and have to hang on backs that on paper should each be able to handle the load. The other benefit of a 2nd filter is that if there is an issue with one the second is there as a back up until you can get it figured out. You only need to vacuum the gravel once a week - if the tank hasn't been up and running for at least 6 months I would recommend doing half the tank one week and half the next. That will give your BB enough time to mature. Most of it grows in the filter but some is in the gravel so it is good not to bother it too much in a young tank. Don't ignore water changes or you are asking for trouble. 50% each week is ideal and since BB is not in the water column you aren't removing anything by changing water. I will also add that if you have driftwood or peat moss in the tank you could have tannins that will darken the water but will not harm the fish.

 

Add a second filter. Most filters are actually underrated and with cichlids- they are just dirty. I have a 55 with them and have to hang on backs that on paper should each be able to handle the load. The other benefit of a 2nd filter is that if there is an issue with one the second is there as a back up until you can get it figured out. You only need to vacuum the gravel once a week - if the tank hasn't been up and running for at least 6 months I would recommend doing half the tank one week and half the next. That will give your BB enough time to mature. Most of it grows in the filter but some is in the gravel so it is good not to bother it too much in a young tank. Don't ignore water changes or you are asking for trouble. 50% each week is ideal and since BB is not in the water column you aren't removing anything by changing water. I will also add that if you have driftwood or peat moss in the tank you could have tannins that will darken the water but will not harm the fish.

Ok thank you so much for the help. So you would suggest doing 50 percent water changes once a week without vacuuming the gravel correct? And just use water conditioner to remove the chlorine after water changes? And I don’t have any driftwood. Everything is artificial in there. That’s why I’m not sure what this brownish coloring is.

 

Cichlids are just dirty fish. They dig in substrate, they chew up food and spit it out and they poop a lot. I would vacuum half the tank each week and do 50% water changes every week. I only add water conditioner with the new water. I have a few live plants so I also add fertilizer but that is it. The fewer chemicals the better. I also only clean the filter in old tank water when the outflow slows down quite a bit. That is where most of the BB lives so I don't touch it unless needed. It is possible you also have some algae or diatoms starting in the water column. It isn't unusual in a newer tank. A second filter should help. You could also look into a UV sterilizer but I would do the extra filter first. It is just money better spent IMO.

 

Cichlids are just dirty fish. They dig in substrate, they chew up food and spit it out and they poop a lot. I would vacuum half the tank each week and do 50% water changes every week. I only add water conditioner with the new water. I have a few live plants so I also add fertilizer but that is it. The fewer chemicals the better. I also only clean the filter in old tank water when the outflow slows down quite a bit. That is where most of the BB lives so I don't touch it unless needed. It is possible you also have some algae or diatoms starting in the water column. It isn't unusual in a newer tank. A second filter should help. You could also look into a UV sterilizer but I would do the extra filter first. It is just money better spent IMO.

Thank you very much!

 

Well I’d say change 50% water weekly. They are big fish,big eaters so large mess. I have a pair of 125s each with discus. Fx6 on one and a wet/dry on5he other. Both are backed up by an odyssea 350 internal filter. This filter moves 350 gph through 2 sponges. It’s a great second filter. The cages for the sponges can be removed and filled with floss to clean out whatever is clouding the water. They cost around $20 delivered on eBay.
I had removed this about 2 months ago and have also been dealing with cloudy water in the fx6 tank. I think the cloudy nesshas something to do with the bio-film on the inside of the hoses. I just removed my outlet hose and cleaned it. Lots of muck in it..
Pic of filter

 

Well I’d say change 50% water weekly. They are big fish,big eaters so large mess. I have a pair of 125s each with discus. Fx6 on one and a wet/dry on5he other. Both are backed up by an odyssea 350 internal filter. This filter moves 350 gph through 2 sponges. It’s a great second filter. The cages for the sponges can be removed and filled with floss to clean out whatever is clouding the water. They cost around $20 delivered on eBay.
I had removed this about 2 months ago and have also been dealing with cloudy water in the fx6 tank. I think the cloudy nesshas something to do with the bio-film on the inside of the hoses. I just removed my outlet hose and cleaned it. Lots of muck in it..
Pic of filterView attachment 797230

Ok thank you so much. That’s the second suggestion for 50 percent water change weekly. I haven’t been doing that. Just vacuuming a lot. I’m probably doing more hard then good. I’ll roll with the water changes and look into some other filtration like you said. Interesting note on the fx6 hoses. Thanks for the help!