[zbandit]

I am adding sand very slowly to my tank but no matter how slow i go my tank is a cloudy mess...is this bad for my fish and how long does it take to clear up...i did turn off powerheads for now so less circulation so it will settle any other ideas??

[ericwebster]

I dont think its "GOOD" for your fish but I'm sure they will be fine. Leave the pumps off when you add it in and let it settle for a few minutes for it to clear up before turning the pumps back on.

It may take a few days for your tank to clear up completely but it will.. keep the flow to a minimum ...

Good luck.

[passinetti2007]

If you have fish in your tank and you are adding sand, what you want to do is put like a pound of sand in a container and sit the whole container with sand in it at the bottom of the tank. You'll notice it bubbling and leave it in there to let the water absorb into it. Then slowly slide the sand over the edge of the container. Doing this will enable you to get sand at the bottom of your tank without making it so cloudy. You'll want to do this only about 3-4 times and then let it settle for the day and if you need more sand you can do it again the next day. Going overboard may stress your fish out a bit.

[dfurbee]

Passinetti, thanks for the idea!! I will do it that way also!!!

[reefaddict]

I have added sand and the cloudiness goes away after a day or two. I have had no issues with my fish when I have done so. About once a month or so I take a turkey baster and blow water all over into my sand bed to stir it up and get some of the sediment up and into the water column so that the filter system can remove it. This process also makes the water cloudy and again no issues with the fish. In nature storms come and go and stir up the water and make it cloudy so I have been told that they can deal with it. But, that doesn't mean that you can just dump it in and make the water extremely cloudy. You still want to take your time and not be careless.

[crazygator]

should always rinse off anything you add to your tank that cloud cuts the lighting, oxygen, and overloads your mechanical filters so that they aren't effective. if it's live sand use water for your tank during water changes if its just extra substrate tap water is fine, but yo never know what else is in sand.