"Yello Gelatin"-like film in my aquarium! HELP, pl

[Tiffi]

Since a couple days I've recognized a strange film on my driftwood and some of my plants (see picture Tiger Lotus bulb).
It is quite easy to get off with a nice swing of the fishnet, but it'll come back in no time.

What is it? Can it harm my plants? What causes it?

Or is it maybe just so much bacteria growing? I've never seen something like that before. The tank is cycling right now Ammonia is about 2.5mg/l.

 

[greenmaji]

What kind of wood is your driftwood? Is it collected or store bought?
I have never seen something like that before 8O
I have this feeling that it might be the wood, like evergreen maybe?

 

[Meredith]

Something very similar happened in my betta tank when I was treating it with Maracyn two. It reacted with my hard water that made this slimy stuff grow all over every thing. It also made the water thick looking. When my betta would swim, it looked like it was swimming through cobwebs. What are you using to cycle your tank?

 

[Tiffi]

I think I've found the answer for what it is. Been surfing the German aquarium pages for a few hours today and found people that had the exact same thing in their tank, when they started. It even looked completely the same (some had pictures) .

It is supposed to be a fungus, which does not harm the aquarium or fishes. In fact, it results from not desinfected (boiled) driftwood and will be there as long as the tank is not completely balanced. People said that it will dissapear after a while and catfish even love that stuff and it doesn't harm them at all. If it still doesn't leave though, I could take the driftwood out and "desinfect" it.

With the tanks I had before I've always boiled every piece of driftwood. But this time I guess I thought it's not that important .

So I guess I'll be doing what is mainly so difficult - give it a little time. What do you think?

 

[krap101]

once i had that stuff on a sinking pellet thing they no one ate

 

[dskidmore]

I've never heard of boiling driftwood. Do you do this to hand-collected wood, or also to professionaly cured wood? I've been thinking of buying some very large pieces for my upgraded tank, but I don't have a pot that big!

 

[krap101]

boiling it helps taking tannins out of the driftwoof faster, but it also supposedly makes it rot faster. this is also to kill anything living in it

 

[Tiffi]

Well, and to clean it from fungus for example .
If you don't have a pot that big, you could just pour hot water over it.

I've never heard before that it's supposed to make it rot faster .

 

[Meredith]

If you don't have a pot that big, you could just pour hot water over it.

That is what I did. I put my wood in the sink with a stopper and poured boiling water over it until the sink was filled.

 

[Fishyfanatic]

I had that exact same thing when I put my Malaysian driftwood in the 55 gal tank. it went away on its own. It stayed for a few weeks but then all of a sudden it was gone. My cories and pelco loved to eat on it. Even the Tetras gave it nibbles.

 

[Tiffi]

It's finally getting better since a few days! There are only a few little white dots on the driftwood left and I guess I am ready to go then!

Well, still have to wait for the end of the cycle though !

 

[PBirdsong]

I had that stuff on a cocktail shrimp I threw into my tank to cycle it. My fish ate it all up.

 

[Lonewolfblue]

I have 3 pieces of malaysian driftwood and 1 african driftwood in mt aquarium and never had that. I didn't even boil the driftwood, just soaked it for 4 weeks before placing into aquarium, changing the water in the bucket about every 3 days.

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[Tiffi]

Well, I guess it's just one of them things where you can have luck with doing it that way or not. In my case I didn't have that much luck, but it's not bad so I'll be ok .
Just wanted to let you all know that it's gonna be over now 8) .

 

[Fishyfanatic]

Congrats. Mine finally went away also after a few weeks but I still have some on the ends of the piece. The pleco and cories love to munch on it. So it's natural food for them.

 

[severum mama]

This happened to one of my pieces of driftwood as well. I noticed some my fish picking at it, and then a few weeks later it was gone. It hasn't come back yet, but I guess if your fish like to nibble on it then it doesn't matter anyway.