Reef Discussion

[Lesley]

YUK YUK YUK.
Ok, so last 3 weeks or so, every couple of days I have this slime floating on top of the water in my sump.
It is clear, slimy and feels like snot. IT is thick enough consistency to be able to run a net over it and it stays in net for removal.
If you look down through the water you don't even know its there, but touch the surface of the water and its just like touching jelly, you finger sort of bounces back and it wobbles. It covers the whole surface of the water over a couple of days if not removed.
I remove it by net, and its back in a couple of days.
In that particular chamber I have, live rock, mushrooms, and a coral banded shrimp
I first thought it was mushrooms excreting without enough flow, but contacted Mad About Morphs who is an absolute expert and he doesn't seem to think that what it is. Doesn't believe its the coral banded either.
It is moving with the flow to the next section of the sump and today found some in the return section, so I am desperate to find out what it is and don't want it getting into the DT.

The mushrooms and banded are fine, so I dont think it is harmful or toxic but I certainly dont want to find for sure in the DT.
Please anyone that can help, chime in and throw ideas around. I am a little desperate. thanks.

P.S
Sal 1.026
mag 1280
cal 420
alk 9.3
Nitrae 0.01
phos 0.02
no ammonia or nitrites.
All fish and corals healthy.

@Wrangy @ReeferRob @Agent M @daveH
And anyone else i forgot. thanks.

 

[MagicJ]

First off, I don't really know as I have never heard of this sort of thing before.

But, to start some discussion...

Proteins are generally less dense than water and float to the surface which is why it is always a good idea to have some sort of surface skimming weir/overflow to the sump rather than from below the water surface.

Now, that sump compartment has water entering and leaving from the bottom (not something I would necessarily recommend unless you had a specific reason for it) which means that anything that ends up on the water surface in that compartment is going nowhere, and will gradually accumulate.

I will see what else I can find...

 

[RobbieMVFC]

I recon/Guess that's its one/some of your corals spawning.
dose it smell ?

 

[Sam Parker]

Interesting point @MagicJ - I like the logic behind this.

I normally wouldn't recommend this in fear of it spreading, but as it is starting to get away from you anyway, it might be worth putting a small pump/powerhead in that section of the sump to keep the water turbulent? Then the skimmer should be able to pull it out?

 

[Lesley]

Interesting point @MagicJ - I like the logic behind this.

I normally wouldn't recommend this in fear of it spreading, but as it is starting to get away from you anyway, it might be worth putting a small pump/powerhead in that section of the sump to keep the water turbulent? Then the skimmer should be able to pull it out?

When i spoke with "mad about morphs" He said he had never heard of morphs doing this, and it would prob not be that constant, if is was them spawning.
No there is no smell what so ever, as I said if i didn't touch it I wouldn't even know its there.
Even when I haven't removed for a few days, and is totally covering the top surface quite thick in that section the mushrooms and banded are not bothered in the least, so I don't think its toxic.

The skimmer is 2 chambers prior to the slime, so I am afraid if I put power'head in it will hit DT first then possibly get skimmed out. Dont know if I am willing to take that chance.

 

[Lesley]

Thoughts please .
I have recently started using the auto sensor spray fresheners and also scented candles on a regular basis. Link contains part 1 & part 2 of the article. Surely NOT !

http://www.coralmagazine-us.com/content/mystery-white-reef-slime-part-iii

 

[Sam Parker]

I think we have a winner. Keep us updated on if that was the issue and if you solve it :)

 

[Lesley]

I think we have a winner. Keep us updated on if that was the issue and if you solve it :)

Will do @Sam Parker Thanks fir your ear today. Much appreciated

 

[MagicJ]

Definitely a first world problem if that is it!!

Interesting that you don't appear to have it growing anywhere else - maybe the still water in that section of the sump is just providing the ideal growing conditions :confused:

 

[Agent M]

I have recently started using the auto sensor spray fresheners and also scented candles on a regular basis.

Not sure about your problem but thought I would say that I use scented candles (soy based) in the same room as my tank and I haven't had any detrimental effects that I'm aware of.

 

[Lesley]

I don't know if this is the problem. I've shown quite a few really experienced reefers ( you guys included in that of course) and nobody has seen or heard of it. It's worrying me a little bit because I "just have no clue". If this gets into DT what issues may follow.

 

[Lesley]

First off, I don't really know as I have never heard of this sort of thing before.

But, to start some discussion...

Proteins are generally less dense than water and float to the surface which is why it is always a good idea to have some sort of surface skimming weir/overflow to the sump rather than from below the water surface.

Now, that sump compartment has water entering and leaving from the bottom (not something I would necessarily recommend unless you had a specific reason for it) which means that anything that ends up on the water surface in that compartment is going nowhere, and will gradually accumulate.

I will see what else I can find...

This compartment was always going to have live rock, they designed the under flow to help detritus build up and to have reasonable flow for bacteria to survive. Its the only chamber that has it this way all the other 5 have over flow not under flow. ? Interesting, I do feed the banded shrimp pellets of a night time. May also be a good answer.....where do I go from here then. ?

 

[OSCAR85]

Thoughts please .
I have recently started using the auto sensor spray fresheners and also scented candles on a regular basis. Link contains part 1 & part 2 of the article. Surely NOT !

http://www.coralmagazine-us.com/content/mystery-white-reef-slime-part-iii

i use aesop oil in my burner. Can only be found at the boutique. I know its off topic but its STUNNING ! lol

 

[Synodontis]

Pretty sure @MagicJ is on the right track with the protein thing.
We had what looks like the same problem in our frag section when the new sump went in.
I angled a couple of power heads to disturb the surface & no longer have the scum film on the surface.
It may look worse because it is a small area, imagine if your skimmer & wavemakers packed up, what would the top of the DT look like :(

We have other areas of the sump with very little surface disturbance, but don't get this slimy film. Only difference is no livestock in there, so I have put it down to the livestock in that section slimming just that section up??

Good luck with it :)

 

[ezza]

Pthalates are really nasty things. Chemical companies are exposing us to a whole lot of toxic junk these days. It's a very timely reminder for us all to consider what chemicals we spray and use around our aquariums. I've stopped using insect spray at home. I do have a toilet spray thingo in the bathroom, but we have switched a number of washing and cleaning products to "natural" ones. Most often, with very title negative impact to our "quality of life". Perhaps it's a good time to wander through your house and do a stocktake of your chemical usage.

 

[ReeferRob]

Stop using the sprays in the house. They will cause a reaction from corals if they irritate them which is what it looks like is happening. That slime being protein is lighter than water and should be skimmed off. It more than likely contains the irritating agent and should be gotten rid of ASAP. It's very rare that morphs will spawn in an aquarium, none that I've heard of. If you have a smaller diameter tube that you could use, that would be best to skim that mess out of the tank.

There are plenty of natural alternatives for air freshening. You ought to be here with 4 dogs, smells like one big dog in here at times. I go out and cut some cat mint, spearmint and peppermint and crush it, works a treat for getting rid of rancid rover, lol.

 

[ReeferRob]

Does anyone have a microscope that's close to Lesley? I think there's something else going on in there, some sort of colonial critter might have taken up residence in her fuge. It's been far too long for it to be an ongoing chemical contamination.