why does it look like snow?

[chadman]

why is it that by now everyday, when my lights are getting ready to shut off that my tank looks as though it is snowing inside?? there are thousands of tiny white specs floating around....what should i do?

 

[maeistero]

:notsure: never had this happen to me for more than an hour a night, but sandsifters seem to get into a routine on regular light cycles where they'll migrate down to the sand just before (an hour or so in snail terms) and burrow. my engineer goby did the same, i think as watching the snails. i believe they know the light cycles if you keep regular ones. at the same time the copepods come out for the night as the predators are asleep. moonlights are amazingly cool for seeing transition periods everyday.
jmo? :notsure:

 

[chadman]

and u think the white stuff is just them stirring everything up? my snails are all at the tops of my lr though....

 

[pallan]

do you dose any chemicals and if you do have you been watching your levels for those chemicals.
I was not and had what could be the same problem
look into your sand bed try not to stir it up but what might be there is areas of sand clumped together also check you PH, alk, and calcium if sand has clumped and or any of those levels are off you may have had a precipitation event, where the calcium has/ is turning to a solid
if you dont have any of that it may be as stated above as simple as a fish or other critter or even a powerhead stirring it up. good luck

 

[dr. evil]

what causes a precipitation event? i have noticed im getting little clumps of sand too and wondering what the heck is up with that?

 

[schneidts]

Originally Posted by chadman
why is it that by now everyday, when my lights are getting ready to shut off that my tank looks as though it is snowing inside?? there are thousands of tiny white specs floating around....what should i do?
Have you tested your levels for Calcium, Alkalinity, PH...? If so, what are they? If indeed you are experiencing the beginnings of a precipitation event, then some tank chemistry problems need to be addressed.
what causes a precipitation event?
Essentially, it's a supersaturation of calcium in the water. It can be triggered by a sudden swing in ph, temp., or calcium or buffer. The end result is CaCO3 (Calcium Carbonate, chalk) being precipitated out of solution as a solid.