need help with unusual stuff in aquarium

[sharingchaos]

Hi, so I have had a 9 gallon aquarium running for nearly 3 weeks now. There aren't any fish in there at the moment as I will be moving in a couple of months, but i have started a moss wall, growing a few varieties of plants, and started a fishless cycle so when i do move I can immediately have an aquariums ready to go and looking great.

But I have noticed some wierd, white stuff growing on the suction cups and around the top of the heater, and when I try to remove it, its extremely fragile and just falls apart, going everywhere in the tank, and regrows in the same places a couple of days later. I have no idea what this stuff is despite lots of research so if anyone can help ID and/or tell me how to get rid of it, that would be so great. thanks heaps.

[sharingchaos]

Ok, have just gone and looked at my tank to make sure it was still there and found yet another algae type attached to the glass on the heater! Its brown and looks like a bunch of short hair strands (but it isn't hair lol), so if anyone can help with that stuff as well, that would be fantastic, thanks a lot.

[Blueiz]

AFA the white stuff, i dont know what it is, but I have had it in newly set up tanks before and it dissappeared shortly after setting it up. The brown stuff sounds like diatoms to me, I could be wrong on that because its generally not got a hairy appearance.

What type of lighting do you have, are you dosing any ferts? It would be wise to get your tank balanced now before you have a real outbreak of algae..

[The Zigman]

the white stuff could be hard water deposits from well water...
I get that in my Sulawesi tank alot..

[mel_20_20]

White stuff falling apart sounds like algae, too... at least I know I have had that in the exact same places and the otos and snail ate it up. The other sounds like hair algae.

Sounds like the tank is getting in the groove, although at only 3 weeks that would be incredibly fast, what are your parameters; ammonia, nitrites, nitrates, etc.?

[williedee]

i have the white fragile stuff on my heater too. i think its just decaying algae.

[NAUTILO]

Do you have photos?
Check water parameters... phosphorus?, hardness?
Also check lighting... close windows?

[sharingchaos]

well all the parameters are fine, perhaps i have too much fertiliser in the tank? or have the light on for too long (usually for about 10 hours each day)? the snails don't appear to be eating it, is that a bad sign?