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Posts: 5
From:toronto
Registered: May 2003

posted 06-01-2003 10:37 AM         

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I am in the thrid week of cycling my 20 gal tank. I have 4 balck mollys that seem to be doing well. I did a 20% water change on friday afternoon because i found the water becoming cloudy (white), the PH and all of chemical leavles are fine and the fish are acting normally, dispite the fact that my tank water is not quite right. I think that has happened bacuse i have been over feeding (which i have now stoped). is their anything eles i can do? is it safe to do another water change this soon? are their any chemicals i should be adding to help deal with this?

thanks for you help

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posted 06-03-2003 12:40 AM         

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Reprint
posted 05-14-2003 12:59 AM response to Pacuguy

The color of the cloudiness will give you an indication of what is going on in your tank.
Amber to brown - overfeeding, green - algae growth, white - PH burn. Your description leads me to guess the color of the cloudiness to be white. The white cloudiness is actually suspended particals of slime coating from the fish due to PH burn. You can use the treatment Clear Water to break up the suspended particals, and dose the tank with a
PH buffer like Novaqua to resolve the cause of the cloudiness. I suspect in doing your
water changes you have taken the water from highly acid to highly alkaline. When doing
your water changes dose the tank with Novaqua to remove chlorine/chloramine, buffer the PH, and restore your fish's slime coating. Also check your ammonia, nitrate, and nitrite levels. The higher your PH the more toxic ammonia, nitrates, and nitrites become.

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Posts: 5
From:toronto
Registered: May 2003

posted 06-03-2003 05:57 PM         

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thanks for you advice. it turns out that the cloudy apperance was part of the normal cycling process and cleared up on its own. my lfs said it was suspended bacteria that often occurs in new tanks. my water is now nice and clear and my 4 mollys are as happy as can be!

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