CichlidFish.com - Fish That Think.

What's with the stinky water in my tank? No, we did not cycle before adding the fish but I test the water at least twice a day, I try for 3 times but that all depends on how bad my kids are being. (Just kidding! Just have my hands full with a 1 year old and a 2 year old!!!!) 50% Water change last night due to rising ammonia levels. And don't yell at me for this, we have our 2 2" oscars in a 20 gallon tank. I know, I know, we are working on getting another one, but see above about the 1 and 2 year old......they cost A LOT

Anyway, the water is a little on the cloudy side and has a very musty smell. I can't even describe it. It just SMELLS.

Any suggestions?

Thanks,
Kimma

you could be having an algee bloom my tank gets that ALOT, if it is near windows that have frequent or alot of sun that could be the problem, and trust me i have a four month old, i know that money can get tight. your o's being small should do fine for a little while, at least you didn't have them in a ten gal. like i foolishly did. but ummmm, Persona; Message Fuzzy, Mark Stone, or Tug they should know what that is.

*Sniff sniff* You've got an aquarium, don't ya?

There are a few different things that cause "Rank tank".
Over feeding is one thing. Algae is another.
I suspect in this case though, it's the cycling of the tank that's the cause - especially if it's going through an Ammonia spike. We all know Ammonia (NH3/NH4) stinks. It only stands to reason if the water in your tank has rising Ammonia levels, it's going to start smelling.
To reduce the smell & save your fish from ammonia burns, I do a 25-50% partial water change (PWC) every 24hours.
Be sure to keep testing your water parameters. If the NH3/NH4 or NO2 readings hit 2 do a 50-75% PWC - the higher the reading, the more water you should change out. Don't forget to adjust the water temp to match what's in the tank already & to add the dechlorinator.

Once the tank is finished cycling, the smell will drop off.

Changing the carbon packs in your filter will help, but only for the first 4-5 days.

Whatever you do, DO NOT USE ARASOL AIR-REFESHENERS OR DEODORIZERS!
Quite literally, the "fallout" from them can be deadly to your fish.

A solid type air freshener is OK. As the commercials say, "This looks like a good place for a stick-up!"

You could also try the same trick you use for refrigerators. Keep an open box or container of Baking Soda very close to the tank.
((NOTE - For the safety of your fish, do NOT put it anywhere it could be accidently knocked or dumped into the tank.))

Hope that helps ya,

rank tank:redlaugh: thats funny i like that from now on when my tan kgets dirty and smelly i am going to tell my husband to clean the rank tank.

Just add to Scorpi-O`s advice,,Id minimize feeding and be able shopping for a new tank setup asap... If this cant be done then consider something much smaller and take the Os back (I realize the costs involved which is why I strongly suggest this as an option as a lfs wont take them back at a bigger size usually)