Spiderwebs??? In overflow

Trouble1375 · Jul 14, 2021

Always something new - just got done treating Cyano and now I have these oddities pop up in just one of my overflows Pic 2 is some sort of spiderweb-ish growth Pic 3 I believe are sponges Pic 4 I believe is sporoid snail - hard and spirally on the glass I have searched everywhere else in the other overflow, the sumps, the tank The other overflow has some sponges and the spirally things but not the webs. Parameters are stable at these numbers. Any insight would be appreciated No changes recently other than one round of Chemi-clean followed by 30 gallon water change almost 2 weeks ago

andiesreef · Jul 14, 2021

maybe ctenophores. those sponges are pineapple sponges, good filter feeders, and that swirly shell-looking thing is a spirorbid worm, another filter feeder.

BostonReefer300 · Jul 14, 2021

Is this a new tank? Pineapple sponges are pretty common in new setups and they usually go away on their own. I'm not sure if the spiral shelled things are probably spirobids but could also be small vermetids---I can't tell for sure from the pics. I'm not sure about the webs in the first pic. Usually when I see lots of webs, I think vermetids, but that's a lot of web and i don't see any vermetid shells in that pic. The webs in the last picture with bubbles look like dino to me, but that doesn't make much sense unless it was sucked into the overflow from your DT. Dinos need light. (I'm assuming your overflow isn't brightly lit)

Trouble1375 · Jul 14, 2021

andielehman said:
maybe ctenophores. those sponges are pineapple sponges, good filter feeders, and that swirly shell-looking thing is a spirorbid worm, another filter feeder.

Thank you

Trouble1375 · Jul 14, 2021

BostonReefer300 said:
Is this a new tank? Pineapple sponges are pretty common in new setups and they usually go away on their own. I'm not sure if the spiral shelled things are probably spirobids but could also be small vermetids---I can't tell for sure from the pics. I'm not sure about the webs in the first pic. Usually when I see lots of webs, I think vermetids, but that's a lot of web and i don't see any vermetid shells in that pic. The webs in the last picture with bubbles look like dino to me, but that doesn't make much sense unless it was sucked into the overflow from your DT. Dinos need light. (I'm assuming your overflow isn't brightly lit)

The tank is just over 2 years old - we did have a 90% emergency water change 3 months ago due to NOPOX overdose that turned the tank milky white (dosing head went bad).

We had vermitids over a year ago but a pair of Melanurus wrasses and a handful of bumblebee snails knocked those out.

The bubbles aren’t attached to the webbing - they are from the water coming through the weirs. The overflow has shadowed light from our reef lights and it gets ambient light from the room. We have UV blocking curtains in the room the tank is in but there is lighting from the kitchen window that lights that end of the tank with filtered lighting.

The sponges and spirorbids are in both overflows but the “webs” are only in one.

ASIN28 · Jul 14, 2021

Trouble1375 said:
The tank is just over 2 years old - we did have a 90% emergency water change 3 months ago due to NOPOX overdose that turned the tank milky white (dosing head went bad).

We had vermitids over a year ago but a pair of Melanurus wrasses and a handful of bumblebee snails knocked those out.

The bubbles aren’t attached to the webbing - they are from the water coming through the weirs. The overflow has shadowed light from our reef lights and it gets ambient light from the room. We have UV blocking curtains in the room the tank is in but there is lighting from the kitchen window that lights that end of the tank with filtered lighting.

The sponges and spirorbids are in both overflows but the “webs” are only in one.

The only thing that seems to make webs in my tank are vermitid snails so that would be my guess however I see you already ruled them out.
But, I have an infestation of tiny vermitid snails. Melanarus Wrasse and also bumblebee snails will definitely eat them?

vetteguy53081 · Jul 14, 2021

The stringy stuff may be flagellates (not to be confused with Dino). Increasing water flow will generally prevent its appearance in the tank. You can blow loose with a turkey baster or simply net it.
Pineapple sponges are short lived and thrive best in dark, shaded areas of tank. They are supported by silicates either from RO unit or even tap water if you are using water from the faucet.

Trouble1375 · Jul 14, 2021

vetteguy53081 said:
The stringy stuff may be flagellates (not to be confused with Dino). Increasing water flow will generally prevent its appearance in the tank. You can blow loose with a turkey baster or simply net it.
Pineapple sponges are short lived and thrive best in dark, shaded areas of tank. They are supported by silicates either from RO unit or even tap water if you are using water from the faucet.

Hmmmm my RODI is testing 0 TDS - I just sent in for ICP so we’ll see what that says.
Not sure how I can increase the flow - they’re in the overflow and we have a generous amount of flow though the system. 2 - 1200 GPH return pumps with no restrictions.

Trouble1375 · Jul 14, 2021

ASIN28 said:
The only thing that seems to make webs in my tank are vermitid snails so that would be my guess however I see you already ruled them out.
But, I have an infestation of tiny vermitid snails. Melanarus Wrasse and also bumblebee snails will definitely eat them?

Yes the bumblebees and the Melanurus took care of them. I can’t have shrimp or feather dusters because of the Melanurus pair but it’s worth it to not have vermitids. After I realized why I was losing shrimp I got my male a girlfriend who he was a bit overzealous with at intro and she hid in the sand for 47 days but they are a beautiful pair to watch now and they get along with the 6-line.

BostonReefer300 · Jul 14, 2021

ASIN28 said:
The only thing that seems to make webs in my tank are vermitid snails so that would be my guess however I see you already ruled them out.
But, I have an infestation of tiny vermitid snails. Melanarus Wrasse and also bumblebee snails will definitely eat them?

I've had two melanarus wrasses over the years (not at the same time) and neither one ever touched a vermetid unfortunately.

ASIN28 · Jul 14, 2021

Trouble1375 said:
Yes the bumblebees and the Melanurus took care of them. I can’t have shrimp or feather dusters because of the Melanurus pair but it’s worth it to not have vermitids. After I realized why I was losing shrimp I got my male a girlfriend who he was a bit overzealous with at intro and she hid in the sand for 47 days but they are a beautiful pair to watch now and they get along with the 6-line.

Do you think he will touch my cleaner shrimp or coral banded shrimp? And do you think he will be ok with my carpenter flasher wrasse?

vetteguy53081 · Jul 14, 2021

Trouble1375 said:
Hmmmm my RODI is testing 0 TDS - I just sent in for ICP so we’ll see what that says.
Not sure how I can increase the flow - they’re in the overflow and we have a generous amount of flow though the system. 2 - 1200 GPH return pumps with no restrictions.

simply blast with a turkey baster