help and advice on my new vive please!!!

[Teach]

I just finished up my new 75 gal vivarium and have run into some water quality problems.

A little about the tank............ 20 gallons of water (8 in high) underneath a false bottom that spans most of the tank has become fairly cloudy. No visible particulate matter exists but two small fish died within 3 hours and a paddle tail newt died overnight. I let the tank run for 4 days before putting anything in it. the tree frogs were unharmed and since been moved to a safer tank. This makes me believe its a water issue and I am starting to worry about the silicone used to build the vive.

I used GE II but am worried maybe it didnt cure long enough before I moved on to the subsequent steps. There were a few minor additions I had to add to keep the splashing from the river and the waterfall from hitting the glass. This forced me to drain some water and add the rocks. If that particular caulk didnt cure good enough, is it possible that some contaminants leaked into the water?

My other thought was the soil I used. I used miracle grow soil on top of sphagnum which I should probably have my brain examined for trying, but nonetheless, thats what I have in there. I watered the soil heavily when building the tank to address and anticipate any erosion issues I may have. I wonder if some of the fertilizers leached into the water reservoir. Could that have killed my critters in such a short time.

Although this is my first false bottom, I have created several vivaria in the past and feel embarrassed to have made such costly errors. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. I plan on changing the soil this weekend over to the proper mix of coco and sphagnum. To tear apart everything else would be devastating. Whaddya think???

[Teach]

I have switched my soil as previously mentioned and the new bottled water in my vive seems to be a little better. It still has a slight cloud to it whihc is disturbing. I will attach photos if anyone will help me out.

thanks so much, the Internet is not seeming to help much.

[lukelightwalker]

If you used miracle grow potting soil it would be full of fertilizers that would definately leech into the water. I always get a 100% organic and sterilized soil to build my Vivs.

Originally Posted by Teach

I have switched my soil as previously mentioned and the new bottled water in my vive seems to be a little better. It still has a slight cloud to it whihc is disturbing. I will attach photos if anyone will help me out.

thanks so much, the Internet is not seeming to help much.

[x5tr41ghtj4ck3t]

I have read that GE II requires a much longer curing time, as it is an "ammonia cure version of GE I" (See Aquarium safe silicone? - The Reef Tank)

[Pavel]

How much time did you allow for the GE to cure?