Why doesn't my goldfish tank water stay clear? I've tried clarifier, a new filter, rinsing the filter.

Question

I cannot figure out why the water gets cloudy and seems to just stay that way. It is a brand new tank and filter pump. Any help would be appreciated.

Answer 1

Buy activated carbon filters. Here are some examples:

http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.js...

http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.js...

http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.js...

You can also buy it in bulk like this:

http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.js...

Never put activated carbon floating free into your tank...it needs to be contained in something, and it needs to be somewhere where water is flowing over it. It can injure your fish if they eat it.

Carbon filters are what clean out all of the small particles floating in your water. They are sort of like sponges, sucking up the stuff that makes the water cloudy.  They need to be replaced periodically. Once they are "full", they stop working. Fortunately they are cheap.

Most power filter cartridges include carbon layers in them. The first link above shows a cartridge that snaps into the top of an under gravel filter tube.

A fully cycled tank will also have a colony of benign bacteria that eat impurities in the water, and that will keep it clear as well. It takes several weeks for the bacteria to fully colonize a tank. The guy who said not to rinse your filter pad is correct; tap water contains chlorine which will kill the bacteria, and you don't want that. A combination of carbon filters and a fully cycled tank should keep your water crystal clear.

Answer 2

Usually in a brand new tank, you should only have one to two small fish max to start off with and only feed them a tiny pinch every second day. After 2 weeks you can add a couple more fish.

The reason for this is because fish produce ammonia whenever they poo. The more they eat, the more they poo and the more ammonia there is in the tank.

Over feeding is the most common reason for fish dying (because there is too much ammonia in the tank which burns the fish).

Take a small jar of your tank water to your local pet shop to get it tested. It's usually free and takes just 5 minutes or buy a ammonia test kit.

Don't clean the tank out for 2 weeks, and don't rinse the filter any more. You need to build up good bacteria in the tank.

Answer 3

goldfish release a lot of ammonia into the water when they pee (yes fishdo pee) which explains why the water is constantly getting cloudy. also sometimes if you have rocks in a fishtank and you didnt wash them out well they can releaseaa weird color into the water.  

Answer 4

Gold fish are just plain "dirty" fish.  More waste, the dirtyer the tank.  It will need to be cleaned oftener than most other tanks.  Daughter has the same problem with her gold fish.  Tank gets cloudy and needs to be cleaned more often.

Answer 5

take the fish out let the tank run without them for about 2 hours than put them back in.. this should clear it up... if not message me ill do some further reasearch in the meantimes

Answer 6

Is there any fish in the tank? How many? How often are you feeding them?

Usually in a brand new tank, you should only have one to two small fish max to start off with and only feed them a tiny pinch every second day. After 2 weeks you can add a couple more fish.

The reason for this is because fish produce ammonia whenever they poo. The more they eat, the more they poo and the more ammonia there is in the tank.

Over feeding is the most common reason for fish dying (because there is too much ammonia in the tank which burns the fish).

Take a small jar of your tank water to your local petshop to get it tested. It's usually free and takes just 5 minutes or buy a ammonia test kit.

Don't clean the tank out for 2 weeks, and don't rinse the filter any more. You need to build up  good bacteria in the tank.

Answer 7

new tank syndrome it takes time to clear up specially you got pebbles

kOi keeper & goldfish keeper

Answer 8

You need to alot 10 gallons per fancy and more than 20 gallons for each common/comet/shubunkin.  If you don't have that, it's the root of your problems.  Goldfish produce alot of waste.  A filter of with a gph of 10x the tank gallonage is usually reccomended.  Fancies can get to 8 inches  and the other can get to over a foot.