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Tank Cycling

678 views 6 replies 5 participants last post by  Thunderloon 
#1 ·
As I was cycling my tank, the water became whitish and after a few days it disappeared but i noticed that the white residue stuck to may tank and heater. the bottom and sides of the glass aquarium is now rough in texture and there is white lines where the tip of the water was. My main question is, what caused this and how to get rid of the stains on the glass? and if this is dangerous to the fishes
 
#2 ·
How are you cycling the tank? The only thing I can think of is some sort of additive to an ammonia product....

Bacterial blooms can sometimes happen and make the water cloudy, but don't leave a residue...
 
#4 ·
I have feeder fishes that live in the tank for the ammonia. I have a bio filter and a 200 watt heater inside, 20g tank. the white lines seem to be more visible on the edges where the water lowered but basically its the same substance around the heater and all over the aquarium. its rough and doesnt seem to be easy to remove. I was thinking about that as well, since current can cause a chemical reaction, but im not sure if there is current. Should a multi-tester work?
 
#5 ·
The white cloudiness, the white lines, and the residue on your heater are all unrelated.

The cloudiness in the water is a bloom of bacteria, and is a sign that your cycle has started.

The white lines are due to hard water.

The white residue is a different type of bacteria - Cyanobacteria. In huge amounts it can be harmful, but it will go away naturally as the normal and beneficial bacteria populate your tank.
 
#7 ·
^^ most bacterial use calcium as a body component and when they die they leave it behind to decay the slowest. Any concern is probably over before you see the white stuff.

Check your pH to see if its higher than 8.0, the higher the pH the slower the bacteria bones dissolve back into the water.

You can scrape both the below waterline and above off. For the above waterline I advise an actual razor blade or one of the painted window cleaning tools that use box-knife blades. Clean it and dry it carefully before first and after every use and it should do you well for the hard rim.

The rate of decay of the sequestered calcium in the bacterial shells is usually the limiting factor of biological filtration systems. If it shows up again try using more bio-surface in the filter. (and I would guess that you've got an Aqueon filter)
 
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