Cloudy water and yellow tinge to water

Question
I have well water which has some iron in it. We do have a water conditioner. I set up a 55 gal. freshwater fish tank.
After 2 months  and 50 percent water change and numerous treatments to the tank I still can't get rid of the cloudy water or yellow tinge to the water color. What can I do. Thank you for your help

Answer
Dear Edna,
First we really need to know more about your tank. How long does it go between water changes? What kind of fish does it have in it?Can you test for your ammonia,nitrite, an nitrate readings in your tank?

Cloudy water is often due to a bacterial bloom feeding upon excess nutrients in the water either from overfeeding, too many fish, or just fish that produce a lot of waste themselves (example-oscar cichlids, goldfish or plecos) Cloudy water can even be caused by gravel or sand that hasn't been rinsed well in the beginning or in the case of sand where fish or currents from your filter or powerheads stir it up constantly, creating a almost never-ending cloudiness.

Yellow water is similar to cloudy and hazey water. It is due to a high buildup of dissolved organics that release tannins into the water that produces the slightly yellow to even golden colored tinge much like tea sometimes.
The only reason your aquarium water would be yellow is if the water hasn't been changed for a long time, or simply isn't changed enough. But yet another reason for yellow tinged water is driftwood or bogwood used as decoration. When the yellow tinge comes from driftwood, it is relatively safe and actually beneficial to many fish. The tannins released from the wood that make the water yellow also tend to lower the pH of your water, a good plus benefit for acidic water loving fish like Cardinal tetras, discus, or other amazon river species.
But some fish don't do well in water with a lower pH and really the bad benefit to this is if you do a large water change with your well or tap water which might have a higher pH, your fish would be thrown into shock.

Anyway, the best and most natural solution to both your problems in much more frequent water changes at least 30-50% everyday until the problem resolves itself. If your fish aren't use to frequent large water changes than do about 20% everyday to avoid any shock. As a rule and from my own experience, no chemical has ever helped with a cloudy water problem no matter how good they claim the product is. The best thing by far is frequent water changes. The addition of quality carbon or charcoal to your filter will remove much of the yellow ting. But the cloudiness must be resolved at the source of the problem, maybe overfeeding? Maybe just not enough water changes? You may have to do some experimenting and careful investigating to see what has caused the cloudiness and do your best to resolve it. As always, if you need any help feel free to write.

Iron is usually not harmful to fish and is actually beneficial to aquatic plants. You can also easily test your aquarium water for iron with a test kit. But for now, just pay attention to how your fish are behaving and concentrate on getting your water clear and healthy again.

Best wishes and feel free to write again!
Karen~