white mucus/slime on top of water?

[splix]

155 gallon tank with 30 gal sump/refuge.
I have this white "stuff" on the top of my water. I first started seeing it in my refugium, but in the past 2 days it's all over the top of my tank. It looks like saliva honestly. It's now gotten to the point that it's collecting along the glass and hosting bubbles. Should I be worried?

Only thing in my tank is a small clean-up crew (15 hermits, 5 tiger snails, 1 tuxedo urchin, 1 emerald crab), a small condy anemone, and 1 small (4 heads) hammer coral.

I have diatome over most of my sand, but not that I can see on my rock. It's been going for almost a week now. Parameters are in check for water quality.

I thought I had enough surface aggitation from my dual return nozzles, but maybe not.

It's difficult to get a picture of because the camera wont focus on it. Here it is in my refugum

Diatom level

 

[username in use]

If it's only been setup for a week give it a little time. Might just be bacterial blooms that are manifesting as a surface slime.

 

[splix]

If it's only been setup for a week give it a little time. Might just be bacterial blooms that are manifesting as a surface slime.

No, the tank has been setup for coming up on 3 weeks now. Sorry, the diatom bloom has been active for a week.

 

[matt880305]

+1 on the bacteria bloom even tho the tank is 3 weeks old it is still a very new tank, and the tank will not be completely stable for awhile. Unless the prob gets alot worse and maybe starts to change color its nothing to worry about, just keep an eye on it

 

[matt880305]

Oh forgot to ask what is you phos ant nitrate levels?

 

[splix]

yesterday's nitrate levels were at 2 ppm. I havent tested everything yet today.
I dont have a phosphate test yet. Probably picking one of those up today. I have been running GFO for the past week to be on the safe side since I dont have a phosphate test yet.

As long as it's normal, thats all I care about.

 

[splix]

I'm wondering if it's time for a water change. My ammonia is 0, nitrite 0, nitrate 2.

 

[DrPheel]

I get the same thing in the return section of my sump (very low flow area) if I forget to plug my maxijet for water movement. If you are getting this in your display then you may want to up the flow or have a powerhead agitate the surface water. Fairly common when adding LR to a system. Even tho it is cured you will still get some die off that will start the tank cycle and its some sort of bacterial bloom just like your diatoms. MY tank has been up for 4 months and I still get it if I dont plug the maxijet in the sump. You have very nice LR and it looks covered in coraline already ! best of luck with your project

 

[splix]

Phosphates read 0

 

[splix]

I think I figured it out.
My friend gave me chaeto from his refug to put into mine during my cycle. It was doing good but started to die off lately. My refug was just full of that slime stuff in the water. It was all over the chaeto and everything. I took out all the chaeto and the water has been sitting for a good 30 minutes in the refug now and no more slime. Hopefully my DT will clear up soon. I'm hoping that was the issue.

 

[Bogue Chitto]

It's also good to have the surface water agitated a little, sorta like the waves in the sea...not rough though. That helps keep oxygen in the water as well as push floating stuff into the overflow.

 

[garyinco]

Phosphates read 0

With what kind of test kit? A lot of the fish stores ones won't read near low enough for a reef tank. Get a Hanna lo Phosphate checker (available at BRS and MarineDepot, among other places). I've bought a number of phosphate test kits over the years and they have a similar blue result I couldn't read. The Hanna removes the human element and is not subject to our adapting brain's biases.

As far as your scum layer... can you increase flow and/or aeration? I've had the same thing happen on all-in-one tanks. Increased circulation cured the problem. Maybe a vortech (pricey as I'm sure you know or a Jabeo with lower quality) would help. You can find the former on craigslist and classifieds here and other more local forums. I've had pretty good luck with the used ones (I've only had one bad experience so far, and it wasn't the end of the world - just had to completely rebuild the wet side). I think you'll want at least one of these shortly down the road anyway.

 

[Nuluxe]

Is there sufficient flow?
Looks like you have that overflow but doesn't seem like any water is going down there.
Overflows circulate the top later of the water, in this case it looks stagnant due to the macroalgea blocking the route?

 

[splix]

I did 2 things before I went to sleep last night and the slime layer is almost gone.
1. removed that dying chaeto. My fuge used to have a huge layer of slime on top, now it's clear. The refugium has very minimal flow so I'm guessing this might have been the source of it all.
2. Angled a power head to hit the surface of the water as it blew across.

I just picked up the API phosphate test kit. It was clearly 0 which was a deep yellow, since the .25 (next step) was dark green. Maybe API has gotten better with their kit coloring, because it was very clear and the colors are far apart on levels, not just a bunch of shades of yellow haha.

I custom designed my over flow boxes and 3d printed them myself since I didnt want to spend more $ on an acrylic box, and it gave some uniqueness to my tank. They work surprisingly well. They skim the top surface since they are 1/2 under 1/2 over the water level, and thread right into the bulkhead. The outlet is at the bottom of the piece so it creates a vacuum for the inlet which actively pulls down the surface layer instead of letting it float across.

 

[username in use]

I did 2 things before I went to sleep last night and the slime layer is almost gone.

Im glad it's gone. But just from an experimental standpoint, only change one variable at a time or you won't know what the issue was. It could have been the chaeto, it could have the been the surface agitation.


Also, cool overflow. Nice to see people getting their 3d printers involved in figuring out new designs for things like this. If you were so inclined you could sell the program for other people to print their own.

 

[splix]

I typically just sell prints (seems like I'm always printing for people ). I dont have access to the selling forums here yet so I cant post these to see if anyone wants a few of them.

Off to my next ventures with this tank. Lighting mounts....

 

[Shawn O]

Nice overflow design.

 

[lifeoffaith]

I don't know if you've already been in the hobby for awhile and just setting this tank up, or if this is your first tank, so pardon my question. You have a Condy Nem and coral already in a cycling tank?

 

[splix]

I don't know if you've already been in the hobby for awhile and just setting this tank up, or if this is your first tank, so pardon my question. You have a Condy Nem and coral already in a cycling tank?

Tank is 0 ammonia, 0 nitrite, 2 nitrate. It's cycled. Condy and coral havent been in for very long at all. They're hardy so they're more of my "test" to make sure nothing will die when it goes in haha.

They're honestly my lighting test to see how my lighting is and how they react to it.

 

[garyinco]

Neat on the printed overflows. What'd you make them out of? PET+?