Tropical Fish Forums

[Ironfist18]

I put silicone sand into my already cycled 75 gallon tank. The guy at the fishstore said I didn't have to rinse the sand and that the dust would settle in a few days. Well umm.... its been three weeks and half the dust has settled. The big problem is that I already put some of my fish in the tank, which are doing fine. Is there a way I can get rid of the dust in my tank without having to completely start it over? Is there a type of filter that would totally clean out all the dust?

I can't temporarily relocate my fish because I have no other tank to put them in so I have to find a way to get rid of the unsettled dust without completely changing out all the water. Ohya, I am also worried that when I do a water change all the dust is going to kick up again.

Please help me out I am a newbie

[Steve Hampton]

Another example of inexperienced people giving bad advice at a LFS. He should have recommended rinsing the sand thoroughly before adding it to your tank. The best way to "clear" your tank of the dust is to use a Diatom filter. The diatom filter will make your water crystal clear and sparkling. Since the LFS gave you such bad advice they should be willing to "loan" you one of their diatom filters for free. If they refuse, find a new store. If they fail to cooperate you should call all the other LFS and see if any rent out diatom filters. I really hesitate to suggest you buy one, you are new and they are fairly expensive and not needed on a regular basis.

Failing to locate a diatom filter you could remove all the material in your filter and replace it with only filter floss. While keeping the disturbance to the fish a minimum, stir and/or shake the decorations in your tank to get as much dust floating as possible. Then do a water change of 25-50% while siphoning the top of the sand but not removing the sand (a tricky endeavor). Wait for the filter floss to begin to clog and the outflow to slow down, then change to fresh floss. Repeat every 3-4 days until the water is clear...it's a pain, really try to locate a diatom filter.
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[djmoyle]

ya I did, also now my fish are gasping for air, probably from all the comosion but I don't know, good thing today was the last day for meds and everything can go back to normal, the small fish are gasping but they should be okay tommorow (or dead )
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Fish Man

[djmoyle]

Hi, the fish are starting to float to the top trying to get air especially the small ones and one big silver dolllar , what is wrong?
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Fish Man

[Irons]

I bet if you check, more of then than not they aren't keeping up on their water changes. Their tap water might have changed causing the bloom.
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[Froggity]

Anti ich medicine does lower the oxygen content in the water, have you added extra aeration I.e. an air pump, or directed the outlet of the filter so it disturbs the water surface?

[Mario]

Much more likely than the ick medicine, the problem now lies with uneaten, moldy food. You need to remove this immediately, since it is rotting, releasing ammonia and other toxins.

The fastest remedy when your fish are gasping for air, rubbing at plants and rocks or in general look unhappy: do a waterchange. This will not fix the problem, but at least it'll fix the symptoms.

I have no experience with ick medicine- fortunately I never needed it. But if it does lower the oxygen content of the water, aeration might be a good option. You still need to get rid of the rotting food and the bad water conditions it most likely caused.

Hope this helps... mario

[Gillaz]

[Steve Hampton]

[TheFishZoo]

Yes you really should have rinsed the sand before putting it in the tank, I have about 100 lbs of sand in my 120 gallon tank and I rinsed it like 3 or 4 times before putting it in my tank and I still had cloudy water for a few days.

Greg