what is this on my powerheads?

[ibrat82]

Hi Guys

I'm really new to the hobby so please forgive me if these are stupid questions.

What exactly is this that's on my powerheads? That white chauky film?

Is its just salt creep, or something else? Tank has just started cycling 3 days ago.

 

[Bogue Chitto]

Just salt and minerals out of the salt mix.

 

[garyinco]

Could be a number of things. Nothing to worry about. Leave it alone.
Salt creep doesn't happen inside the tank. It's when a mist/drizzle of saltwater is exposed to air and the H2O evaporates leaving a crusty deposit of salt. When I see it I just knock it back into the tank/sump, helps keep the salinity stable.

 

[ibrat82]

so should i clean it off or just leave it?

 

[garyinco]

Leave it.

If you try to keep the tank like some sterile laboratory you'll have nothing but headaches.

Instead, focus on the water chemistry thru test kits. Your tank has to go thru a number of phases. If you bought your tank at a local fish store they should have clued you into this. Don't try to scrub everything when you see something. You'll go nuts.

Start testing for ammonia. Ammonia will turn into nitrite and quickly become nitrate. Ammonia and nitrite are hard on livestock but you have to go thru it.

Read the stickys at the top of this forum.

 

[whosurcaddie]

Could be a number of things. Nothing to worry about. Leave it alone.
Salt creep doesn't happen inside the tank. It's when a mist/drizzle of saltwater is exposed to air and the H2O evaporates leaving a crusty deposit of salt. When I see it I just knock it back into the tank/sump, helps keep the salinity stable.

I think he meant precipitate which it could be, it also could be bacteria growth. How old is the tank?

 

[garyinco]

I think he said 3 days.

 

[whosurcaddie]

If 3 days then its most likely precipitate (trace elements) from the salt mix.

 

[CStrickland]

That's just dust from your new sand. Nothing to worry about. As the bacteria colonize your tanks surfaces, they get sticky. Your powerhead is pulling a lot of water through those vents, the dust gets caught there.

 

[billdogg]

That's just dust from your new sand. Nothing to worry about. As the bacteria colonize your tanks surfaces, they get sticky. Your powerhead is pulling a lot of water through those vents, the dust gets caught there.

x 1000