HOB to Canister - Cloudy Water?

Hi all. I recently got a new 37 gal a little over two weeks ago, and was doing a fish-in cycle using seachem prime and stability daily. After about 10 days, I decided to switch from the current HOB filter to a Fluval 307. I did not transfer anything over from the HOB to the canister (which was probably a mistake), and it seems the water has gotten pretty cloudy since installing the canister, around 3 days ago. I tested using both API master test kit and Tetra easy strips, both read no ammonia and nitrites, and ~20ppm nitrates. Did I restart the cycle by switching filters? At this point, what should I do? Should I keep dosing prime/stability daily? Or just dose nothing at all and leave it and monitor the water parameters daily? I read that I shouldn't do any water changes, but not sure anymore.

Fish are a dwarf gourami, angelfish, and bristlenose pleco.

Thanks in advance!

 

Hi all.

Hi.

Did I restart the cycle by switching filters?

Perhaps not restarted necessarily, but at least taken a few steps back most likely.

At this point, what should I do? Should I keep dosing prime/stability daily? Or just dose nothing at all and leave it and monitor the water parameters daily? I read that I shouldn't do any water changes, but not sure anymore.

You absolutely should be doing water changes, specifically because this is a fish-in cycle. If the source you were reading truly said that, well they are wrong and best not to follow that guide anymore (or site, in fact, because this is quite an obvious thing with fish-in cycles).

Prime only needs to be dosed every two days.

With that said, right now you don't need to dose anything (to get rid of ammonia/nitrite), because it is zero. If you can add nitrifiers that'd be great, but Stability contains both nitrifiers and non-nitrifiers, so may not exactly be preferable.

The bacterial bloom is likely because non-nitrifiers are reproducing quickly as they consume nutrients in the water (including ammonia), hence pushing it down to zero.

The main concern is not so much ammonia/nitrite at this point, but if these bacteria can be in such high numbers that it depletes the water of oxygen and suffocate your fish.

I'd do water changes to help keep the water less cloudy, and just keep an eye on things. If parameters continue to remain low and that the cloudiness does not come back as often/quickly, you should be fine.

 

Thank you for the quick reply! I think what I read was that water changes would clarify the water temporarily but the bloom would return, again not sure anymore.

With that said, right now you don't need to dose anything

Just to clarify, no need to dose Prime/Stability right now then? Just test water daily and go on? Also, how much/often would you suggest for water changes?

Also, here's a before/after

 

the prime wont do much unless the water has chlorine in it, it may bind up ammonia and nitrite temporarily but it wont fix the root cause. if you see ammonia, nitrite getting higher you should do a water change and use prime with the new water. ammonia and nitrite can be damaging to fish in lower concentrations than nitrate is but for a cycle to happen as fast as possible nitrite and ammonia will spike

 

Thank you for the quick reply! I think what I read was that water changes would clarify the water temporarily but the bloom would return, again not sure anymore.

Gotcha. That is certainly true in a sense.

So microorganisms can consume ammonia in two ways (well there is more, but two are relevant here). Either as a nitrogen source for growth and reproduction, or as an energy source. Every microorganism does the former, including nitrifying microorganisms. However only nitrifiers can do the latter.

When bacteria blooms happen, it is because the main microorganisms consuming ammonia are using are non-nitrifying they use it as a nitrogen source for growth and reproduction. Hence they keep on increasing in numbers as ammonia is consumed.

So yes, even if you do do water changes, chances are that there are still plenty left and next time there are nutrients (i.e. everyday), they'll rapidly multiple in numbers again. But it's still important to do water changes to keep them in check. Otherwise yeah, the cloudiness will get worse and worse (until ammonia starts to be significantly consumed by nitrifiers, limiting the growth of non-nitrifiers). That's why the best method is ammonia-dosing fishless cycling. While slower, it makes bacteria blooms less likely or severe in the future.

Just to clarify, no need to dose Prime/Stability right now then? Just test water daily and go on? Also, how much/often would you suggest for water changes?

[EDIT]

Oooh, it's green. Slightly different story. But same solution, water changes.

 

Did I restart the cycle by switching filters?

Yes. You're back to square 1 I'm afraid. Well almost, a small amount of nitrifying bacteria may have begun to colonise your substrate and other hard surfaces.

The bloom is common to all new tank start ups. My understanding is that it happens because when tap water is initially dechlorinated it allows heterotrophic bacteria to rapidly reproduce and feed on the small amounts of nutrients and minerals in the tap water. It normally only lasts a few days before it begins to clear.

You'll need to follow the requirements for fish-in cycling:

Fish In Nitrogen Cycle Simplified | Aquarium Nitrogen Cycle Forum | 414083

 

Thank you all for the replies. Looks like I'll be doing 25-30% water changes every other day until this clears up, and use Seachem Prime when adding new water in. Any concerns if I stop adding Stability? I've been using it for almost two weeks now (1 week with HOB, around 5 days with canister). There should be enough bacteria in there now right?

 

It's up to you whether you continue to use Stability or not. I'm not convinced that it does anything. But you're unlikely to ever need it again so you may as well use what you have left.

 

Oooh, it's green. Slightly different story. But same solution, water changes.

Does that change anything? I take it the green is from algae as well?

I just did a 25% water change. Water looks a little clearer, nothing drastic. I guess just continue to do water changes every couple of days, and leave it alone as long as ammonia/nitrite/nitrate look good, with ammonia/nitrite being 0, and nitrate under 40ppm? Thanks again everyone, really appreciate it.

 

Oooh, it's green. Slightly different story. But same solution, water changes.

Since I did the water change, it definitely looked a bit clearer, but it definitely looks more green now. So that would be an algae bloom correct? Anything I should do differently, or just keep doing water changes every couple of days? I stopped using stability, I just use prime now on water changes. Testing the water this morning showed 0 ammonia, 0 nitrites, and ~20 ppm nitrates.

Also, thoughts on UV sterilizers? Thanks in advance!

 

Since I did the water change, it definitely looked a bit clearer, but it definitely looks more green now. So that would be an algae bloom correct? Anything I should do differently, or just keep doing water changes every couple of days? I stopped using stability, I just use prime now on water changes. Testing the water this morning showed 0 ammonia, 0 nitrites, and ~20 ppm nitrates.

Also, thoughts on UV sterilizers? Thanks in advance!

if the stability is the bottled bacteria id say just dump the whole thing in. uv sterilizers will clear up cloudy water but you'll end up buying a new uv bulb for it every couple months. the algae bloom is normal for a new cycle just do a water change to get rid of it but it shouldn't harm the fish. there could also be an excess of phosphates in the water that the algae is feeding off of

 

if the stability is the bottled bacteria id say just dump the whole thing in. uv sterilizers will clear up cloudy water but you'll end up buying a new uv bulb for it every couple months. the algae bloom is normal for a new cycle just do a water change to get rid of it but it shouldn't harm the fish. there could also be an excess of phosphates in the water that the algae is feeding off of

Ahh so it's just part of the cycle then? The bloom started off milky, then the past few days has been green. Since it's part of the cycle, will it go away on its own? Or does it have to be treated? Thanks again!

 

it will go away on its own but it will need the help of water changes. but dont get too carried away with how the tank looks right now i would just keep the water quality high and ensure the fish are ok. once the tank is fully cycled you can do larger water changes to get rid of the cloudiness but just make sure you match the ph and temp with large water changes