UNDERWATER DUST

[miked78231]

on all my rocks theres this weird gray stuff, looks like dust underwater, growing everywhere. its making my rocks look like crap. what is this, what causes this, how do i get rid of it, and will it effect the growth of my coraline? i put in a calcium buffer every night and if this stuff is covering all my rocks then will the buffer still be able to do its job?

[cbianco]

Kinda sounds like "whiteout." This is when calcium precipitates. If I am not mistaking it is when you add to much calcium and the alk. is not high enough.

Maybe someone else should chime in here to fill in my gaps.

If this is what it is, it is not necessarily a big deal, the dust is sand (basically). It just looks ugly.

Christopher

[hobogato]

if the calcium is precipitating out of the water, your pH can change when that happens - not too good for your livestock.

[miked78231]

so its the calcium? i was also told that its from the food that i feed the fish. im feeding them flakes and brine. how do i get rid of this dust, will it effect my calcium buffer to where the coraline wont grow quickly enough. is there anything else that could be causeing this?

[hobogato]

IF it is calcium precipitating (i dont know if this the case), the calcium level in the tank is not stable and the coraline may not grow like you want it to. you need to get a calcium test to check the level. When you add the buffer, how are you adding it. the best way would be to dissolve it in some RO topoff water and then drip it in or pour it in VERY slowly. if you put it in the tank and you see a white cloud, then it is pricipitating out and not benefitting your tank - as Gary would say, expensive sand.

[miked78231]

im using the liquid reactor stuff and on the back it says that im suppose to throw 5ml for every 55g and each cap full is 5ml. so i throw in one cap every night. it also says that the tank is suppose to become cloudy for about an hour but that its ok.

[brewercm]

As new as that tank is I wouldn't be putting any additive chemicals in yet. You are hardly out of your cycle at this point if even completed a good one. Give your tank some time to mature a little and give it a little patience.

[miked78231]

well the whole system has been up and running for about a month 1/2, which i think i already said. how long should i wait for.

[demodiki]

Are you sure we are not talking about some diatoms on the rocks? I get this sometimes...a grayish dusting and I don't add anything (chemical-wise) to the tank.

[akm]

Is it just covering you rocks? Or is it blowing around the tank? If its just sitting on the rocks it sounds like detritus.

[miked78231]

its just sitting on the rocks