Bits in the water driving me mad!

[AdamK1]

Literally as the title says. There's so much stuff flying around in my water, and it's driving me mad!

I've a 300l system, running uv, carbon, oversized roller mat, big skimmer. My water is gin clear. White bucket test is a pass! The fish would look like floating in air if it wasn't for all the little bits of whatever floating around. I'll watch a fish take a dump, then soon enough it hits a powerhead and gets sprayed all over the place. Then there's other suspended particles. Uneaten food, etc. I've dropped down on feeding, but it still happens. Its driving me mad.

It's not sand. I do have sand but its quite course, and any of that that gets picked up drops right back down again.

Why isn't my mechanical filtration doing the job? I'm running a 4k lph return pump at 80%, it's like my sump isn't turning water over fast enough, but by the numbers it's very much enough. I feel like hooking up a big canister filter full of nothing but floss and running that, but I know it'd be a nutrients factory within hours!

What am I missing? Any tips?

 

[Dan_P]

Literally as the title says. There's so much stuff flying around in my water, and it's driving me mad!

I've a 300l system, running uv, carbon, oversized roller mat, big skimmer. My water is gin clear. White bucket test is a pass! The fish would look like floating in air if it wasn't for all the little bits of whatever floating around. I'll watch a fish take a dump, then soon enough it hits a powerhead and gets sprayed all over the place. Then there's other suspended particles. Uneaten food, etc. I've dropped down on feeding, but it still happens. Its driving me mad.

It's not sand. I do have sand but its quite course, and any of that that gets picked up drops right back down again.

Why isn't my mechanical filtration doing the job? I'm running a 4k lph return pump at 80%, it's like my sump isn't turning water over fast enough, but by the numbers it's very much enough. I feel like hooking up a big canister filter full of nothing but floss and running that, but I know it'd be a nutrients factory within hours!

What am I missing? Any tips?

Do the particles appear fluffy like bacteria floc or solid like a mineral? If you capture the particle in a little water, would it float or sink?

 

[TangerineSpeedo]

Is this a fish only tank? If you have corals, you are going to want all those "particles of fish poop". If you can list and use photos to describe your system it would help.

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

Ugh. Please don't make multiple identical posts.

 

[twentyleagues]

look up coral snow.

 

[AdamK1]

Do the particles appear fluffy like bacteria floc or solid like a mineral? If you capture the particle in a little water, would it float or sink?

Really interesting!

I decided the only way to answer that was to knock the flow and return off and see what they were doing when the water was still. Some up, some down, some just hanging.


What's interesting, is that when I knocked the return pump back on, along with a bunch of bubbles, it spewed thousands of these little white bits into the tank! It's coming from my return pipework! what the heck! Is it bacteria floc? Looks more like organics than mineral. I'm dosing Nopox.

Short video added. Best that I can get.

 

[AdamK1]

Ugh. Please don't make multiple identical posts.

Who did that?

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

Who did that?

You

 

[AdamK1]

You

Not intentionally! My post button didn't respond first time. May have hit it twice.

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

Really interesting!

I decided the only way to answer that was to knock the flow and return off and see what they were doing when the water was still. Some up, some down, some just hanging.


What's interesting, is that when I knocked the return pump back on, along with a bunch of bubbles, it spewed thousands of these little white bits into the tank! It's coming from my return pipework! what the heck! Is it bacteria floc? Looks more like organics than mineral. I'm dosing Nopox.

Short video added. Best that I can get.

If the particles are making it to your return pump chamber, you may need to increase your mechanical filtration in the sump.

 

[AdamK1]

No, they're in the pipework. Was only when I turned the return off for a bit that it spewed it all out when I turned it back on. My mechanical filtration is a hugely oversized roller. 100% not that.

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

No, they're in the pipework. Was only when I turned the return off for a bit that it spewed it all out when I turned it back on. My mechanical filtration is a hugely oversized roller. 100% not that.

Then you need to clean out the pipes... I was assuming the return pump was picking the particles up from the pump chamber.

 

[Dan_P]

Really interesting!

I decided the only way to answer that was to knock the flow and return off and see what they were doing when the water was still. Some up, some down, some just hanging.


What's interesting, is that when I knocked the return pump back on, along with a bunch of bubbles, it spewed thousands of these little white bits into the tank! It's coming from my return pipework! what the heck! Is it bacteria floc? Looks more like organics than mineral. I'm dosing Nopox.

Short video added. Best that I can get.

Aha! It seems we have the answer. The bacteria biofilm from the carbon dosing is coming loose.

 

[AdamK1]

Aha! It seems we have the answer. The bacteria biofilm from the carbon dosing is coming loose.

Yeah I think that's it, amongst possibly some dead spots causing detritus to build up. Only to be kicked up by a fish moving through.

I've made some flow adjustments last night to sort the dead spots, and will add a heap of hermit crabs and some sand sifting snails too.

The bacterial film in the pipes coming loose certainly seems to be the main issue. Is there any way to stop that without having to stop the carbon dosing or clean the pipes every few days? I've been having waterborne bacterial blooms which I've added a UV for. My thinking is basically kill everything in the water column so the carbon feeds the bacteria in the rocks/bio media. Is this just a waiting game, or will there always be a bacterial film on the pipes?

 

[DanyL]

Yeah I think that's it, amongst possibly some dead spots causing detritus to build up. Only to be kicked up by a fish moving through.

I've made some flow adjustments last night to sort the dead spots, and will add a heap of hermit crabs and some sand sifting snails too.

The bacterial film in the pipes coming loose certainly seems to be the main issue. Is there any way to stop that without having to stop the carbon dosing or clean the pipes every few days? I've been having waterborne bacterial blooms which I've added a UV for. My thinking is basically kill everything in the water column so the carbon feeds the bacteria in the rocks/bio media. Is this just a waiting game, or will there always be a bacterial film on the pipes?

I think you need to up your organic export rather than just killing the bacteria with UVC.

Try to adjust your skimmer to produce a more wet skimate, this should reduce the amount of bacteria in your water colum, dead or alive.

Also, if you’re dosing this much carbon that without a UVC you’re inhibiting a bacterial bloom, than imo you’re probably over using it. Increasing export should mitigate it, but you might want to consider a different approach.

 

[Dan_P]

Yeah I think that's it, amongst possibly some dead spots causing detritus to build up. Only to be kicked up by a fish moving through.

I've made some flow adjustments last night to sort the dead spots, and will add a heap of hermit crabs and some sand sifting snails too.

The bacterial film in the pipes coming loose certainly seems to be the main issue. Is there any way to stop that without having to stop the carbon dosing or clean the pipes every few days? I've been having waterborne bacterial blooms which I've added a UV for. My thinking is basically kill everything in the water column so the carbon feeds the bacteria in the rocks/bio media. Is this just a waiting game, or will there always be a bacterial film on the pipes?

I am not aware of any technique to inhibit bacteria growth on pipe surfaces. It is just a great place to live forever and ever. I thing the issue of specks goes away when you slow or stop carbon dosing.