Desperate question on tank set-up please...cloudy water

[Cliff Tishler]

Mixed my salt with RO water and nearly filled my 90gal. and 30gal. sump. Almost immediately became very cloudy and has not cleared in 5 days. I did add some sand (30 lbs.) which did settle but tank is completely cloudy and there seems to be some salt globs floating on the top. Added a couple of power heads but made no difference. Salinity is about right.

Never had this problem before. Any thoughts?

Thanks so much.

 

[beckbrass]

Did you rinse the sand? I had the Marco fine sand and it took a long time to settle down.

 

[pallobi]

+1... dry sand must ALWAYS be rinsed thoroughly before being added... I am guessing you didnt as you have floaties and an extended cloudy period... i could wrong though...

 

[Cliff Tishler]

None of my sand was dry...that's what really confuses me. The floaties look like "suds" rather than clumps...more likely undissolved salt than sand but, again, I have never
experienced this before. I guess I'll try circulating and see what hapens??

 

[pallobi]

Ok then... if it was "live" it might have come with a "bio magnet" cleaner? Enclosed in with the sand???

 

[frank180reef]

yup it is the sand

 

[Cliff Tishler]

I think you could be right about the bio magnet...I don't recall taking one out of one of the bags...Now what? Should I "fish" around for it or is it likely dissolved/

 

[tommy6905]

Its completely normal even when u use the bags of sand, the stuff u see on surface I think is the nasty crud that was in the sand, I just took a net and scooped all that off the surface when that happened to me...give it a few days it will settle out fine, and be crystal clear. If you have filter socks in your sump that'll help clear it up even quicker

 

[Cliff Tishler]

I like your confidence...I'll give it a try and let you know. Thanks for all the feedback. But it's not normal to drop the "bio" magnet or whatever that little
packet is that comes in the bag of sand into the tank??

 

[tommy6905]

I've never heard of any bio magnet, I think they mean its like a chemical in the sand, not a legit magnet I don't think, lol

 

[Cliff Tishler]

In one of the bags of live sand I found a small packet like you sometimes find in a can of coffee or in some other perishables. It may be some kind of moisture
scavenger or something to prolong freshness. In the other bag of live sand I didn't catch this packet and probably dumped it in the tank. In any case, I'll let you know when this clears up. I know this all sounds quite stupid on my end.

 

[pallobi]

Its a small white packet that usually comes inside the bagged sand (gotta put it somewhere)... its a goop like substance... u open the packet and dump it in the tank, and within a couple hours, with a circulating system, it clears up jus like that, and quickly... if u used live sand, i would look on the bag for anything saying it came with one, and i would check the sand bed... i wouldnt jus leave it in there, if there is in fact one there... for example, i beleive ALL carribsea "live" sand uses one, and comes with one...

 

[tommy6905]

Haha if there was some in the bags I used in my old tank then who knows what happened to them, or maybe that's something new

 

[Cliff Tishler]

Appreciate eveyone's feedback. Unfortunately, no improvement to date. The tank has been circulating for a week and all is completely cloudy. Will test water today,
maybe an ammonia bloom or something?

 

[Cliff Tishler]

Said I would update...I put a filter sock on last night and the tank is much clearer today. There's kind of a white scum in the sock. Not sure
what it is or where it came from...maybe salt. Will clean the sock and continue for awhile.

 

[MisFit]

Its the crud in the sand, fine dust. It takes a while to settle out