Added Coralife Ocean Direct...SO CLOUDY! what to do?

Sixstringmayhem · 02/16/2013, 09:02 AM

Hey guys im new here,

ive been running freshwater tanks for little over 3 years and finally plunged into saltwater.
long story short,
I got everything hooked up last night as far as my filtration goes, and added my RO water and salt mix until i got the correct specific gravity....and then i added Coralife Ocean direct.

Now i now it says on the package you CAN rinse it, but you dont have to, so i figured, well since there's no fish or anything in there ill just pour it in.
Instant Cloud.

woke up this morning and it was significantly clearer but tons of fine dust covering everything. pulled out the filter pad and sponge from my filter to clean, instant cloud again..

would i be able to let everything clear up and then just rinse out my entire wet/dry with RO water?

or is there an easier trick for this?

Thanks!

RA · 02/16/2013, 09:45 AM

Do you have any live rock in the tank? If not you need to add some. The sand will settle once it has bacteria on it that makes it just a bit heavier and causing it to settle.

bnumair · 02/16/2013, 09:52 AM

Let ur system run like normal. It will settle over hours to few days.

Sixstringmayhem · 02/16/2013, 09:54 AM

Im actually going to be using dry rock and yes i have 30 lbs of it, i just didnt know whether to wait to add it until the water has cleared. since i posted this the water in the tank has cleared quit a bit, but my entire wet dry has a thick layer of dust settled on the bottom. im thinking i should just take it out and rinse it but idk if that would mess up the cycle.

Kind of off topic but will also attempt to make a Hofer Gugle buster today to quite the overflow. tank is set up in my bedroom and its a bit too noisy for my liking

bshow24 · 02/16/2013, 12:56 PM

Throw the rock in and let everything start to cycle. You could wash it out but at the same time you dont have any fish in there, so it is not going to hurt if you dont clean it.

Also, while I am at it, I see you have bio-balls in there. Be careful with those!!!!! Those things can be nitrate factories if not well cared for. Make sure you are cleaning those when you do water changes. I had a wet/dry before and learned this the hard way. One day 0 nitrates and over the next couple days it shot up to over 40 and just kept on going.

Xadieu · 02/16/2013, 01:18 PM

I don't see a skimmer, are you planning to get one? Your cloudiness will go away in couple more days but once you stir up the sand it will come back.

Sixstringmayhem · 02/16/2013, 04:31 PM

Yea, i just rinsed out the filter and all the pads and its slowly clearing up. I know about the bio balls i plan to clean a small load of them every water change and will probably just convert the whole thing to a sump once i decide to add corals down the road. your right everytime i even touch the sand a big cloud of dust comes up, does this ever go away or no?

Sixstringmayhem · 02/16/2013, 04:32 PM

also yes i have a skimmer i just havent put it in yet, would it help with the cloudyness if i do?

Xadieu · 02/16/2013, 05:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sixstringmayhem

also yes i have a skimmer i just havent put it in yet, would it help with the cloudyness if i do?

Ya it will help with the cloudiness. Eventually your cloudiness will go away but it will take a long time since you didn't rinse at all, even tho they say no need to rinse it's a good idea to rinse thoroughly. I made that mistake when i first got my tank and it took 4 months for the cloudiness to go away but if i stir up the sand again it will get cloudy but not as bad as before.

stubby 58 · 02/16/2013, 05:15 PM

Now is the time to dump the bioballs get them out before you even start with live stock. you would be better to have rock in there than bioballs. Get some small live rock from LFS and pack it in where bioballs are at.

stubby

kimdawg · 02/16/2013, 09:14 PM

A filter sock will help or if you have somewhere you can put filter floss it will quickly clear the water. If I have a cloudy tank I will put a hang on filter with filter floss to clear it. I just take it back off the tank after a day.

02/16/2013, 09:02 AM	#1
Sixstringmayhem Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2013 Posts: 31	Added Coralife Ocean Direct...SO CLOUDY! what to do? Hey guys im new here, ive been running freshwater tanks for little over 3 years and finally plunged into saltwater. long story short, I got everything hooked up last night as far as my filtration goes, and added my RO water and salt mix until i got the correct specific gravity....and then i added Coralife Ocean direct. Now i now it says on the package you CAN rinse it, but you dont have to, so i figured, well since there's no fish or anything in there ill just pour it in. Instant Cloud. woke up this morning and it was significantly clearer but tons of fine dust covering everything. pulled out the filter pad and sponge from my filter to clean, instant cloud again.. would i be able to let everything clear up and then just rinse out my entire wet/dry with RO water? or is there an easier trick for this? Thanks!

02/16/2013, 09:52 AM	#3
bnumair Dr. Reef at ur service Join Date: May 2009 Location: Tulsa, Ok, USA Posts: 7,751 Blog Entries: 15	Let ur system run like normal. It will settle over hours to few days. __________________ Water Quality: NO3 0,Phos 0,Cal 440,Alk 7.5,Mag 1300 "Reef Fast, You Crash, Reef Slow, You Pass" Mike's Reef 3:16 Current Tank Info: 350g DT,95g sump, 50g Frag tank, 4800gph return 4x Sea swirls. 6x AI Vega Color. 200# Pukani rock, dual recirculating skimmer, Biopellet, GFO Carbon rx's, Cal rx. Closed loop. 1.5hp chiller, genesis renew. Apex & RKE

02/16/2013, 09:45 AM	#2
RA Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: S. Jersey Posts: 976	Do you have any live rock in the tank? If not you need to add some. The sand will settle once it has bacteria on it that makes it just a bit heavier and causing it to settle.

02/16/2013, 09:54 AM	#4
Sixstringmayhem Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2013 Posts: 31	Im actually going to be using dry rock and yes i have 30 lbs of it, i just didnt know whether to wait to add it until the water has cleared. since i posted this the water in the tank has cleared quit a bit, but my entire wet dry has a thick layer of dust settled on the bottom. im thinking i should just take it out and rinse it but idk if that would mess up the cycle. Kind of off topic but will also attempt to make a Hofer Gugle buster today to quite the overflow. tank is set up in my bedroom and its a bit too noisy for my liking

02/16/2013, 12:56 PM	#5
bshow24 Registered Member Join Date: May 2012 Location: Thousand Oaks, CA Posts: 584	Throw the rock in and let everything start to cycle. You could wash it out but at the same time you dont have any fish in there, so it is not going to hurt if you dont clean it. Also, while I am at it, I see you have bio-balls in there. Be careful with those!!!!! Those things can be nitrate factories if not well cared for. Make sure you are cleaning those when you do water changes. I had a wet/dry before and learned this the hard way. One day 0 nitrates and over the next couple days it shot up to over 40 and just kept on going.

02/16/2013, 01:18 PM	#6
Xadieu Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2012 Location: Calgary, Canada Posts: 148	I don't see a skimmer, are you planning to get one? Your cloudiness will go away in couple more days but once you stir up the sand it will come back.

02/16/2013, 04:31 PM	#7
Sixstringmayhem Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2013 Posts: 31	Yea, i just rinsed out the filter and all the pads and its slowly clearing up. I know about the bio balls i plan to clean a small load of them every water change and will probably just convert the whole thing to a sump once i decide to add corals down the road. your right everytime i even touch the sand a big cloud of dust comes up, does this ever go away or no?

02/16/2013, 04:32 PM	#8
Sixstringmayhem Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2013 Posts: 31	also yes i have a skimmer i just havent put it in yet, would it help with the cloudyness if i do?

02/16/2013, 05:15 PM	#10
stubby 58 Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Ama TX Posts: 217	Now is the time to dump the bioballs get them out before you even start with live stock. you would be better to have rock in there than bioballs. Get some small live rock from LFS and pack it in where bioballs are at. stubby

02/16/2013, 09:14 PM	#11
kimdawg Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Comer, GA Posts: 52	A filter sock will help or if you have somewhere you can put filter floss it will quickly clear the water. If I have a cloudy tank I will put a hang on filter with filter floss to clear it. I just take it back off the tank after a day.