55 gallon with cloudy water, pics included
 

Hi, I currently have a 55 gallon freshwater aquarium with a 70g aqua clear filter, 200w heater, and a 24in bubbler. In the past I've had crystal clear water but recently my water started to cloud up so I did a water change. Attached I have 2 pictures, one from the front and one from the side. I have 1 figure 8 puffer, 1 redtail shark, 1.pleco, 2 angel fish, 1 spoted leaf fish, 1 stick looking alge eater (forgot his name). Does anyone know what the issue might be?

Also, I had to purchase a new filter about 2 days ago (the same one). But this problem started to occur before.

You say you did a water change, do you mean you changed ALL the water? That right there could cause the tank to cloud up even more. How often do you do partial water changes?

How long as this tank been running? And how often are water changes done and how much (as finsNfur asked)? Have you tested ammonia,nitrite and nitrate, and what were the numbers? And did the cloudiness suddenly occur after something 9say a water change), or gradual?

40/50% water change

Also this just occured gradually, and when i saw the water get cloudy i decided it was time for a water change, Ive also tryed adding drops to the tank, didnt work.

it looks like you just starte the tank without cycling .. and a puffer with an angelfish? tell me how that works well those are brackish-fish im just curious if it works out with your fish? whats your ammonia level? along with all the other parameters

always list tank parameters. light, water, fish, rocks, plants, substrate, filtration devices. easiest and quickest way for anyone to help. also you should add a little salt to your tank -.- puffer will be happy, use aquarium salt since you have an angel should be fine. as for cloudyness use activated carbon, will soak up any medicine/chemical in your tank and should clear the cloudiness in a few days time.

Drops of what? You should let your tank develop the right bacteria naturally, which will take time. A new tank/new tank water will often turn cloudy. Large water changes will not help if your tank is cycling. How long has your tank been set up? You definitely need to be testing your water parameters, and possibly doing frequent, 10-20% partial-water changes depending on your water params. There are so many suggestions we could give you, but that is the first place to start so we can work from there.

Also, if your tank has been running for months, how many frequent partial-water changes have you been doing? That is something you should be doing every week or so, but again, small water changes, not large ones.

First general suggestion, do not start adding stuff to an aquarium with fish. Only water conditioner at a water change is needed, and perhaps plant fertilizer. Nothing else except as a specific treatment for health issues if one occurs.

Those "drops" are presumably some sort of water clarifier. They are bad for the fish; most clarifiers work by binding together the minute particulate matter into larger particles that can then be trapped in the filter media. Unfortunately, they also bind the gills of fish.

Salt is not needed in a freshwater aquarium. All soft water fish, of which angels are one, are sensitive to salt in minimal amounts. As for the puffer, if that is a dwarf puffer they are freshwater. But I agree with a prior comment that puffers should not be combined with angels. But that is another issue, let's work on clearing the water.

Do you (or were you) doing regular weekly water changes of 40-50%, or was that just done for the cloudiness? And how long was the tank running before this started?

Byron.