Cloudiness, is it because I am underfiltering?

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RadleyMiller

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Aug 15, 2006
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Delaware
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I was just wondering if I was underfiltering my 75 gallon tank. I have 2 biowheel 350s, 2 250gph sponge filters at the bottom of the tank, and two powerheads at the surface. I know the powerheads don't do much filtration wise, but they stir up the surface. My water has been cloudy for almost a month ( it has gone down, but it is still cloudy) and the tank has been set up for 2 and a half months. Is it stil cycling, and what should I do? Right now my ammonia is 0, and my nitrite is 0, and i ran out of nitrate testing supplies. In the tank now is:
2 Mollies
1 2" Datnoid
1 2.5" Archer
1 3" Mono argentus
1 4" Silver Scat
1 6" Needlefish
2 Fiddler Crabs
1 Blue Crab
1 5" Columbian Shark
2 2" Figure 8 Puffers
3 3/4" Bumble Bee Gobies (well, i think there is three)

I cut back feeding a lot but I still have to feed guppies to the Datnoid and Needle. There are also a few ghost shrimp in the tank. Do I need more filtration? Is there something that I am missing?
 
Zorro;508134; said:
how long has the tank been running
Click to expand...

RadleyMiller;508115; said:
My water has been cloudy for almost a month ( it has gone down, but it is still cloudy) and the tank has been set up for 2 and a half months.
Click to expand...

;)
 
It is possible that you are over stocked, but then you have a lot of small fish. The rule of thumb is one inch of fish per gallon but that does not hold if you have a bunch of meaty fish. I have no idea what size bio-load the blue crab will generate. It depends on how big it is. By the way, you have a tank full of fish and crabs that are going to eat each other. The Bio-Wheels are great and I swear by them in smaller tanks. A wet/dry filter will solve the problem if it is due to over crowding (though your readings do not indicate it). Get your nitrates tested. If they are through the roof, then the tank is over stocked.

Also, take a super close look at the tanks glass. If there are tiny white specks or fur, then the glass just needs to be cleaned.
 
Thanks chompers, i have been meaning to do a W/C but I was waiting til the cloudiness went down. I am gonna pick up some salt and new filter cartridges and fix everything this weekend. And I am gonna get some more clarifier because it seems to be working!
 
the decorations include a piece of coral that my crab hides in, crushed coral substrate, and plastic floating plants. They only float because they fish keep uprooting them. I also have some plexi wedged against the glass with the help of some more coral to make a cave for my Columbian shark and another cave made out of 1" pvc connectors for my crabs and bumble bees
 
Is it possible that the crabs and or fish are keeping the bottom stirred up causing the water to cloud? Just a thought.
 
How many water changes have you done? Does it clear up after a waterchange?
 
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