Stinky, Nasty Slime

[Cheapeeper]

I have this stinky and nasty slime that has taken over my 55 gallon in the past 2 days. Today I did like a 90% water change with little affect to the slime and nastiness. I cleaned out my filters and vacuumed the gravel.
What would be my next step?
I need help fast. I can barely see my figh through this nastiness.

[Coler]

Is it 'slime' on the glass of the tank ?

Water change alone will do nothing for you. You need to clean it off.

Clean off the inside of the tank, then do an immediate water change to suck out as much of the gunk as possible. Clean off the tank as necessary.

To be honest, if you can't see through the coating, you've got major issues with tank maintenance.

Can you post test results for ammonia, nitrite & nitrate taken with a liquid drop test kit ?


What is your usual maintenance regime ?

Do you have live plants ? How long do you leave lights on ?

What colour is the slime ?

What fish and size fish are in there ?

Answers to those q's will help get to the bottom of this.

[Cheapeeper]

It's an Oscar tank. 1 Oscar in a 55 gallon. It's funky whitish slime. It was on the sides of the tank and in the water. I wiped off tank sides and did like a 90% water change today. It is better but still there, I even took apart and cleaned my filter.
It didn't apear until yesterday and I change water once a week on the weekends. There are no live plants. Just the gravel and a few rocks.
A friend of mine also into fish suggested it might be some type of bacterial bloom. it's not algea. Oh and the lights are rarely on.
I cleaned it off today when I did the huge water change. I plan on doing another water change Sunday. Which is 2 days from today.

[Rbishop]

What filtration are you running on the tank? And what foods are you using?

[Coler]

How much water are you changing each week ?

How long is the tank set up ?

Can you test especially for nitrates with a good liquid drop kit ?

[cellodaisy]

Sounds like it could be slime mold? Slime mold is gross, but my understanding is that it is harmless and some algae-eaters will eat it. I have some on my driftwood and from what I've read it will go away on its own when it runs out of nutrients in the wood. That doesn't help you, though, if yours is on the glass. Good luck!