weird stuff in my tank!

[sooz]

Ok there is just weird, weird stuff in my 50 gallon hex tank (FOWLR, closed system). I posted awhile back about the uncontrolled "sponge growth" on my live rock. Well, I took the LR out and scrubed off as much of it as I could but it is coming back (see 1st pic below). It just coats.
I also have these spongy "puffballs" - they don't bother me quite as much - see red circles in 2nd pic below.
And WHAT THE HECK is that orange thing? (circled in blue on 2nd pic below).
I also have a ton of these worms that live in my substrate and wave hairlike white things all over (see badly focused pic #3). I think they are Spionid worms, because they are forming the little tubes out of my substrate, and I have read that these eat detritus, but there seem to be a lot of them, more and more all the time, and when I fed today they went a little nuts. Does anything eat them, or should I be at all concerned?
Thanks as always for all of your wisdom!

 

[bonita69]

Good stuff to have why do you want to remove them? All of these things add to your nat. filters. These are sponges and looks like the orange one is a tube worm/feather duster to me.

 

[t316]

Ok there is just weird, weird stuff in my 50 gallon hex tank (FOWLR, closed system). I posted awhile back about the uncontrolled "sponge growth" on my live rock. Well, I took the LR out and scrubed off as much of it as I could but it is coming back (see 1st pic below). It just coats.
I also have these spongy "puffballs" - they don't bother me quite as much - see red circles in 2nd pic below.
And WHAT THE HECK is that orange thing? (circled in blue on 2nd pic below).
I also have a ton of these worms that live in my substrate and wave hairlike white things all over (see badly focused pic #3).
I don't see anything bad so far. Pic 1 looks like sponge growth, pic 2 unsure about, but nothing to worry about, orange thing in pic 2 is a feather duster (very good to have), and badly focused pic 3 looks like bristle worm (good to have, just don't put your hand near it).

 

[t316]

BTW...what kind of star is that in your avatar? Is this your's or just a pic. Very pretty.

 

[sooz]

Originally Posted by T316
http:///forum/post/2506424
BTW...what kind of star is that in your avatar? Is this your's or just a pic. Very pretty.
Thanks! That is my CiCi - the most beautiful chocolate chip starfish in the world. It really was that exact purple color. I inherited it with the tank, and enjoyed it for a long time. Unfortunatly it died a few months ago - still not sure why.

I have several feather dusters in my tank already and love them - just never saw an orange tube like that before, and all coiled at the bottom. The sponge and the substrate worms only concern me because they are so prolific. My tank is not very big, and there is more and more all the time.

 

[t316]

I thought it was a chocolate chip, but the pic color looked like a Carolina blue or royal blue, and I had never seen that color before. Sorry for your loss, but very pretty star pic.