Help with Bacterial Bloom

Adam · Jun 5, 2019

Pezulu said: ↑

There is no real method of calculating the bacterial count, unless you have the water analysed in a laboratory.
Remember also that there are beneficial as well as detrimental bacteria present in your tank.

Left over food, fish waste, decaying organic matter and other nasty stuff in the water are the cause of the detrimental bacteria.
You need the beneficial bacteria to break down the detrimental bacteria.

Beneficial bacteria grow and multiply in your substrate and in the media in your filter, and consume the detrimental bacteria.
When you start a new tank, there are no beneficial bacteria colonies in the tank, and you therefore seed the tank with something like Seachem Stability.
The beneficial bacteria start growing in the filter media as well as in the substrate. While growing they are feeding on any detrimental bacteria already in the tank.

When you overfeed your fish, overstock the tank with fish, or don't do tank maintenance, the detrimental bacteria multiply faster than the beneficial bacteria can consume it, and that causes the bacterial bloom.
It is basically the bad guys winning the war, and the good guys unable to keep up.
By doing a partial water change together with vacuuming the substrate, you are removing some of the detrimental bacteria, and giving the beneficial bacteria a chance to catch up.

Once the tank has aged and stabilised, there will usually be enough beneficial bacteria in the tank to deal with everyday levels of detrimental bacteria.
Should something change however to cause a spike in the detrimental bacteria, the colony of beneficial bacteria may not be able to keep up, and a bacterial bloom will once again be a possibility.
An undetected dead fish, overfeeding, organic matter decaying in the tank and bad tank maintenance can all cause the detrimental bacteria numbers to spike.

What your tank needs is time.
It is at an infant stage in its life, and needs time to grow and mature.
For that reason the general recommendation is to not overstock the tank, to feed sparingly, and keep up with tank maintenance.
Remove any left over food from the tank, before it starts breaking down and spoiling the water quality.
Remove the built up waste that gets trapped in the substrate by vacuuming the substrate.

The other danger is keeping the tank too clean.
A bit of dirt is a good thing. Too much dirt is not.
Don't wash the filter media out every time you do a water change.
Rinse the filter media in old tank water only when the filter media is losing its effectiveness by being too dirty.
Never use tap water to rinse your filter media or to clean your filter with.

Once the beneficial bacteria has had a chance to properly colonise the tank, you will notice that, if everything is kept as it should, you won't have any bacterial blooms.

Once the tank has stabilised and matured, you can stop worrying too much about bacterial blooms, and start worrying about algae blooms, algae growth on the plants, ornaments and the tank itself.
You can also start worrying about what diseases your fish may get, and whether you need to rescape the tank, or introduce new livestock to the tank.
You can never stop worrying about the fish, the plants, the water quality or any of the other things you can worry about.

What you need to learn to do, is to stop worrying about what could go wrong.
Deal with what is currently wrong, rectify it, and then relax, until you need to start worrying again.
There is nothing as relaxing as sitting in front of your fish tank, admiring all your hard work, and enjoying the fishes and other livestock you have in front of you.

Enjoy the smell of the fish tank. It should smell fresh. Almost like freshly baked bread or cookies, or like rain on a dusty road, but only different.
A healthy tank has a naturally fresh smell, almost like smelling the sea for the first time.
You will know when it smells off.

Sit back, relax, and stop worrying, until the next time when you have to start worrying again.
Until then, enjoy your fish tank.
Click to expand...

DoubleDutch said: ↑

Am I allowed to add my two cents ?

In my opinion bacterial bloom is caused by heterotrophic bacteria that munch on all kinds of stuff. These bacteria have nothing to do with autotrophic bacteria that we call the BB ones.

Just some patience (and oxyginate cause they use O2) and keeping your hands out of a tank will normally help. They leave the party when the food is gone.

Waterchanges normally only make things worse in my opinion as does the addition of bacterial starters (which often also only contain heterotrophic bacteria and not the wanted autotrophic ones : they'll only buy time).

So my advise would be : Patience.

No Cory no glory
Click to expand...

Barry Roux said: ↑

@Pezulu covered it i would say. You i need to get in tune with the tank. Always remember an hungry fish will be an happy fish. And time takes care of most problems.
Click to expand...

All 3 of these posts have alot of valuable advice however there is one common advice between them...
TIME & PATIENCE
So I am heeding this. Not fiddling/interfering now.
Just controlling feeding etc.
At the end of the day, I am sitting here looking at a clear tank with healthy/happy fish (except for 1 Angel - but more of that on another thread )

DoubleDutch · Jun 5, 2019

Adam said: ↑

All 3 of these posts have alot of valuable advice however there is one common advice between them...
TIME & PATIENCE
So I am heeding this. Not fiddling/interfering now.
Just controlling feeding etc.
At the end of the day, I am sitting here looking at a clear tank with healthy/happy fish.
Click to expand...

And biggest advantage : Both are free available everywhere. In and outside ones house, the office, the kindergarten, the barbershop, etc etc...... hahaha.

Really great !

No Cory no glory

Adam · Jun 5, 2019

DoubleDutch said: ↑

And biggest advantage : Both are free available everywhere. In and outside ones house, the office, the kindergarten, the barbershop, etc etc...... hahaha.

Really great !

No Cory no glory
Click to expand...

Thanks dude...
Appreciate the advice/reassurance

Pezulu · Jun 5, 2019

Glad things are starting to look better.
Keep us updated.

Adam · Jun 5, 2019

Pezulu said: ↑

Glad things are starting to look better.
Keep us updated.
Click to expand...

Thank you, much appreciated.
Will do.

MariaS · Jun 5, 2019

Adam said: ↑

Hi all.
Thank you all very much for all the advice and guidance.
I have done a few wc's (+- 30-40%) as well as reducing/controlling feeding and this seems to have helped as the tank has cleared up.

I know the tank is still not "settled" yet but the tank is visibly cleared and fish are happy.
Click to expand...

Thats fantastic @Adam

Glad its sorted

Reedfish · Jun 6, 2019

Good to see it's improved

Adam · Jun 6, 2019

Pezulu said: ↑

Glad things are starting to look better.
Keep us updated.
Click to expand...

Hello and good evening.
Just a quick update...

Tank Post Bacterial Bloom https://imgur.com/a/lOqY2E6

Similar Threads - Help Bacterial Bloom	Forum	Date
5ft tank cracked bottom panel... Newer bigger DIY help needed	Anything DIY related	Sep 22, 2025
Need help to brace my tank	General Equipment discussion	Oct 15, 2024
Bad advise please help	New members	Sep 16, 2024
Some help needed to ID these fish	General Discussions	Apr 1, 2024
Help with Co2 solenoid tubing adapters please!	General Equipment discussion	Feb 28, 2024
Racking system help needed	General Discussions	Feb 19, 2024
Please help ID these plants.	Aquatic plants	Feb 12, 2024

Log in or Sign up

Help with Bacterial Bloom

Adam

Guest

DoubleDutch Corydorasfan(atic)

Adam

Pezulu

Adam

MariaS Retired Moderator

Reedfish Moderator

Adam

Share This Page

Log in or Sign up

Help with Bacterial Bloom

Adam

Guest

DoubleDutch Corydorasfan(atic)

Adam

Pezulu

Adam

MariaS Retired Moderator

Reedfish Moderator

Adam

Share This Page

Useful Searches