Maybe this is more "anxious parent" stuff. I dunno. Those of you who like challenges might be able to tell me...
Background: I am cycling my tank with Live Rock in it. Things have been progressing well (despite low pH -- see my other thread) to date. I have been running my powerhead while the tank cycles at the suggestion of people here and my LFS expert. Yesterday, for grins, I turned off the powerhead all day. It had been off about 10 hours when I came home. I turned on the lights and wow! -- it was like someone had gone in the tank and painted it! There's all this white stuff on the rock, and some between the rock and sand. Almost like spider webs, since they actually span distances (for example, between two rocks). The material is very thin (almost transparent), often has buggies zipping around under it, and clearly is more than just my imagination.
I also noticed HUGE amounts of little white critters everywhere. About the size of a pinhead, and they scatter and jump all around. They hang out mostly on the rock and glass now. A couple transparent super-small shrimp looking guys, and a few tiny potato bug looking guys.
After taking the pictures below, I turned back on the powerhead and this white stuff vanished as if someone had blown smoke into the tank -- it just pulled off the rocks and dissipated.
Can anyone tell me what this stuff is?
In the pictures below, the white stuff is inside the circled areas. It's kind of hard to see, since the pictures aren't 3D, but you can get the idea. Sorry for the size of the pictures -- I was going to clarity, not small size.
Anyone?
thanks,
bruce
Background: I am cycling my tank with Live Rock in it. Things have been progressing well (despite low pH -- see my other thread) to date. I have been running my powerhead while the tank cycles at the suggestion of people here and my LFS expert. Yesterday, for grins, I turned off the powerhead all day. It had been off about 10 hours when I came home. I turned on the lights and wow! -- it was like someone had gone in the tank and painted it! There's all this white stuff on the rock, and some between the rock and sand. Almost like spider webs, since they actually span distances (for example, between two rocks). The material is very thin (almost transparent), often has buggies zipping around under it, and clearly is more than just my imagination.
I also noticed HUGE amounts of little white critters everywhere. About the size of a pinhead, and they scatter and jump all around. They hang out mostly on the rock and glass now. A couple transparent super-small shrimp looking guys, and a few tiny potato bug looking guys.
After taking the pictures below, I turned back on the powerhead and this white stuff vanished as if someone had blown smoke into the tank -- it just pulled off the rocks and dissipated.
Can anyone tell me what this stuff is?
In the pictures below, the white stuff is inside the circled areas. It's kind of hard to see, since the pictures aren't 3D, but you can get the idea. Sorry for the size of the pictures -- I was going to clarity, not small size.
Anyone?
thanks,
bruce
