Rusty Color on Live Rocks and Sand???

stafonb

stafonb

New Member
Hello to all. I'm new to the hobby and have been on pins and needles to wanting to do everything perfect in working with my tank in this cycling phase. I set my tank up 3-weeks ago. The color of the water is crystal clear. But at this point there is a rusty, metal like color on the rocks and on the top of the sand. In the last couple of days, there is also a grayish type color on the back glass. The water is still crystal clear, the salinity is in range, the NH4 level is 0, the NO3- is 0, the N02- is .5, and pH is at 8.1. The tank is a 75 gal tank w/live sank and live Fuji rock and other live rock. No organisms in tank yet. can somebody please tell me what is going on with the rusty like color that is all over everything in the tank. It looks as if someone took a fine rusty metal colored salt and just sprinkled it all over the tank. The water is crystal clear. What is going on?
PLEASE HELP!
 
aquatica-tech

aquatica-tech

Member
Well your tank is still new and is going to go through stages and this is one of em. But im not going to keep going with this cause I dont want to seem like a fool haha but im just throwing a suggestion it might be im really sorry
 
yosemite sam

yosemite sam

Active Member
Yes, it sounds like diatoms. They are a type of algae and common in new/cycling tanks. Did you use tap or RO/DI water to fill your tank?
 
stafonb

stafonb

New Member
Thanks. Well I have a clean-up crew on the way from saltwaterfish.com (the janitor clean-up crew). Is it safe to put them in the tank? Or I'm I sending them on a suicide mission and not a clean-up mission????
 
yosemite sam

yosemite sam

Active Member
Originally Posted by Stafonb
I used tap water to fill it with the mix salt crystals. Should I have used RO/DI water?
Yes. Just keep an eye on it. Only use RO/DI water from now on. The diatoms should go away on their own.
Also, how much flow do you have in the tank (powerheads, etc.)?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top