[ChocolateChipStar]

Well, we finished our cycle. I did a water change yesterday, and the water looks better, but how long should I expect the partial murkiness?

Should I keep checking nitrate levels every other day and change wter as levels dictate, or is this the time when I just go to weekly changes?

Thanks!

[pogodzib]

Do you know what the murkiness is being caused by? If it is from an algae bloom, it should go away once your tank is stable and more mature. If it is from an algae bloom, I wouldn't add anything to your tank yet and wait until it goes away. If it is from your substrate (sand) being disturbed from either placing it in your tank, manually disturbing it, or a powerhead blowing at it, I wouldn't worry about it and it will stop once your sand gets more bacteria built up on it to weigh it down.

As for checking your levels, I'd check the ammonia and nitrite levels a week from now to make sure that they are still zero and check your nitrate levels bi-weekly for a few weeks so you can keep an eye on how the levels are changing. As for water changes, once a week is plenty unless your nitrates are skyrocketing for you and if that is happening, something is amiss in your tank.

[ChocolateChipStar]

Thanks! I know it's from algae growing during the cycle. We added a partial cleanup crew yesterday of crabs and snails, so they're working on it, and I'll add some more critters next week (after we're totally sure this batch is well).