Bacterial Bloom in my New tank~

[Ashlimarie83]

Just starting setting up my tank and I am now experiencing a bacteria bloom.
Just looking for some advice on what to do because some sites said just wait it out (that it would go away in either a few days or a few weeks) and some said to do large water changes daily and use water clearing solution (but I read the bottle on my solution and it says only to use on established tanks!).
I thought that before I do anything I should consult with some "experts" and see what your take is on this.

Some back ground info, I had just added some java moss, java ferns, and a fresh new plant a few days prior and started the filter up and running. Yesterday I added a resin log from one of my old aquarium to help add some bacteria to my new tank. I also bought just 1 little danio at the the goading of the LFS clerk, even though I know he's not going to do much for my 40 gal tank, but a little ammonia waste from him is better then none I suppose.

Also, my readings so far are:
PH: 7.6
Amonia: 0.50 ppm
Nitrates: 0 ppm
Nitrites: (Hard to tell) 5 ~ 10 ppm

Thanks for any advice!

 

[Boomsloth]

I'm a little unsure why a bacterial bloom is bad? do you mean bad bacteria? how do you test for that? do you mean algae ?

 

[Ashlimarie83]

I'm a little unsure why a bacterial bloom is bad? do you mean bad bacteria? how do you test for that? do you mean algae ?

I mean my water is really cloudy right now. It looks like someone poured a little milk in there.

 

[auntiejude]

Bacterial bloom is normal in a new setup - leave it and it will clear.

 

[Boomsloth]

I mean my water is really cloudy right now. It looks like someone poured a little milk in there.

ohh gotcha! yeah this has happened to me before, I just do a water change and let the filter take care of the rest. usually within a day its clear.

 

[ladygodiva35]

My tank is still cloudy. It says clear for a few days after cleaning then clouds up again. So annoying!

 

[Boomsloth]

My tank is still cloudy. It says clear for a few days after cleaning then clouds up again. So annoying!

Post some pictures of the tank, it might help figure this out. Since your setup is still new it might just need some time to adjust

 

[Ashlimarie83]

I put a few more moss balls in there as well as some more fern plants, and I'm not sure if that helped, but it seems much clearer than before! Hopefully this trend will continue. I'm going to take some more readings tomorrow. Also, what is a good sign my tank is fully cycled? And when should I do water changes during this cycling?

 

[Boomsloth]

I put a few more moss balls in there as well as some more fern plants, and I'm not sure if that helped, but it seems much clearer than before! Hopefully this trend will continue. I'm going to take some more readings tomorrow. Also, what is a good sign my tank is fully cycled? And when should I do water changes during this cycling?

I'm looking at solutions for you and it seems that large water changes and lowering the temperature help control the bacterial bloom.

 

[Ashlimarie83]

I'm looking at solutions for you and it seems that large water changes and lowering the temperature help control the bacterial bloom.

Alright, but it seems to be taking care of itself at the moment.

 

[Boomsloth]

Alright, but it seems to be taking care of itself at the moment.

Yeah haha just like we said originally
A helpful tip if you ever decide to feed live blackworms is to make sure they cannot access those moss balls. I learned the hard way that they will infest them and cause them to start dying if not removed.

 

[ladygodiva35]

This is the best photo I could get of my cloudy tank. The water doesn't look clear and pristine like it once did.

 

[Kaini]

I put a few more moss balls in there as well as some more fern plants, and I'm not sure if that helped, but it seems much clearer than before! Hopefully this trend will continue. I'm going to take some more readings tomorrow. Also, what is a good sign my tank is fully cycled? And when should I do water changes during this cycling?

Your tank is cycled when your water readings are:

0 Ammonia
0 nitrites
around 40 ppm nitrates

Then you do a water change to lower the nitrates and you're ready for animals! There are no outward/visible signs of a cycled tank, just the water readings.

 

[ladygodiva35]

Magically my tank cleared up today. I think it knew I was complaining. lol

 

[Ashlimarie83]

Magically my tank cleared up today. I think it knew I was complaining. lol

Me too! So happy, and now my readings are
Amonia: .5 and 1 ppm
Nitrates: 5 ppm
Nitrites: 0 ppm

Hm. Not sure what to make of that...
Now I just need to work on getting my temperature to settles down. It steadily rose during the cycling from 63 to 73. :/
Guess a fan might work. Hopefully.

 

[Boomsloth]

Me too! So happy, and now my readings are
Amonia: .5 and 1 ppm
Nitrates: 5 ppm
Nitrites: 0 ppm

Hm. Not sure what to make of that...
Now I just need to work on getting my temperature to settles down. It steadily rose during the cycling from 63 to 73. :/
Guess a fan might work. Hopefully.

A cycled tank is just a balance between ammonia being produced and the number of bacteria needed to convert it. You have a little ammonia spike which means something caused an increase in ammonnia (check for old food/waste) sometimes its just the axolotl that begins to increase output. Eventually you'll see that ammonia go down then nitrites go up then down and then you're back to being cycled. It shouldn't take more than a few days at best.
I have a fan blowing on my tank constantly because my building refuses to keep a constant temperature inside. If you start to see it go over 70F you're going to want to start freezing water bottles to keep the tank cooler.

 

[Ashlimarie83]

Soo...
Unfortunately I have been incredibly sick for two days and I have not been sleeping in my room (been in the bathroom sleeping on a bean bag) But my boyfriend went in to check on my Axolotl to find last night that I was having a SERIOUS bacterial bloom. This time the water is practically opaque. I cannot see Freya (my lotl) or any of my minnows. I am super worried because I had my boyfriend a chemistry test and the ammoniwas unblievably high!!

Ph: 6.2??
Ammonia: 8 ppm !!
Nitrites: 0 ppm
Nitrates: 10 ppm

The water seems to have gotten softer somehow as well? I have used some amno-lock in the tank until I am well enough to assist him in doing a water change (probably going to do and 80% and again until the ammonia is back down.

The only thing I did differently for the past week in the tank was, normally I have been feeding her 1 or 2 cubes of blood worms, but friday I did offer her a small earthworm from my farm (nicely rinsed off) and she loved it. I was afraid at first she would choke the way she snatched it up so fast!

Other than that, I actually was not able to feed her saturday or sunday night since I was so ill. This is a terrible thing to "wake up" to after being out for two days!

 

[auntiejude]

I don't mean to scare you but get your axie (and the fish) out of that tank NOW. 8ppm ammonia will kill it, ammo-lock will not solve the problem.

Keep it in a tub until you are well enough to deal with the tank.

 

[Ashlimarie83]

I don't mean to scare you but get your axie (and the fish) out of that tank NOW. 8ppm ammonia will kill it, ammo-lock will not solve the problem.

Keep it in a tub until you are well enough to deal with the tank.

Nope, I was well past terrified mode. As soon as I could walk this morning I had him help me get the buckets. I had to bring the water down to onlu a quarter so I could even see any fish to catch! I did at least an 95 water change and then let it sit a while with the dechlorinator. I also tested my tap water and the ammnonia in it was about .25. Before I put them back the tank was the same, .25 ppm, but the water was still a wee bit cloudy. Im no so worried about the nacteria now, but what in the world could have caused this spike??

 

[Elliriyanna]

Can you get your lotl into a temp container that you can change regularly and a bottle of Dr tims ammonia? ( I love this stuf)

This way you can cycle your tank and keep your lotl safe. I know it may be stressful on the lotl but not as bad as high levels of ammonia and nitrites.

As for the initital bacteria bloom ... Just wait it out, as frustrating as it is.