Different filtration?

[tonyg]

Hey Guys,
The next issue I want to tackle in my tank is water cloudiness. Well, its not exactly cloudy, but there is a LOT of suspended particles.

So far I've tried adjusting the flow to see if I could get more of the particles to get sucked into the vents, and I got some water polishing pads that I cut to fit and set on top of the standard filter my biocube uses. No difference.

The water pump is a small 250gph unit. I'm wondering if I upgrade, will the increased volume will help take care of the particles? There is a sponge filter in the pump chamber, perhaps replacing this with some other filter would help?

The last resort would be to try some of that water clearifier stuff they sell, but I would rater not go that route. I read lots of mixed reviews about that stuff.

Thanks in advance for the advice!

 

[little_fish]

are you sure they arent microbubbles?

And the water clearifier will at best wreck havoc on your tank, not something i would try

 

[tonyg]

are you sure they arent microbubbles?

No, I'm not really sure, I'll have to try and determine that when the lights are on tomorrow. Never considered that. What causes microbubbles?

 

[little_fish]

skimmers and return plumbing are the most common

 

[tonyg]

I just saw the other thread about the microbubbles!

I use the skimmer my biocube came with. I really can't tell how well its working. After about a week I empty it. Usually I'm just dumping out water sometimes its dark green water. My bioload has got to be pretty small, and my tests alwayse look good so I haven't worried about it too much.

The skimmer is before the filter and refuguim, could microbubbles make it past all of that?

 

[snyderju]

Are there a lot of the particles/bubbles? you could always turn off your skimmer for awhile and see if that takes care of it. Then you'll know if it is the skimmer or not.

 

[tonyg]

Are there a lot of the particles/bubbles? you could always turn off your skimmer for awhile and see if that takes care of it. Then you'll know if it is the skimmer or not.

Good idea, I'm going to turn it off now.

 

[tonyg]

I've left the skimmer off for a few days now with no noticeable difference.

There's a huge buildup of debris in the back chambers of my biocube. I bet this has something to do with it. I've got to see if I can find a smaller siphon attachment or some kind of vacuum to help get at it.

I'm planning on doing a big water change, cleaning out the chambers including the refudgium and adding some more sand. We shall see how things settle after that.