What is this?

[flmlly]

I got home from work and noticed these very strange looking spider web like pouches in the display tank. The biggest one in the picture seems to be resting in a dead spot where maybe some uneaten food is under it. I started the tank on 10/10, and added my first fish about a week ago. I have not turned any lights on yet. I suspect it’s from over feeding, but I have no idea what it is or what to do about it.

 

[Gobi-Wan]

I have no idea what that is but if it were in my tank, I would suck it up with a turkey baster and pitch it. Maybe can you get a picture more from the side so we can see it without the sand underneath? Or suck it up and put it in a clear container to have a better look?
Welcome to R2R!

 

[Alanna102499]

1st... Welcome to R2R!

2nd... I have no idea what that is but if you zoom in it looks like it’s coming from something... Hmmm

 

[flmlly]

Thanks for the welcome and for getting back to me so quickly! I’m working on getting it out and putting it in a container. Here are a couple more pictures in the tank if they help. In the smaller “patch” of it you can actually see the food suspended in it. On the other side of the tank, which has much better water movement(my wife isn’t allowing me to buy nice power heads so she has something to get me for Christmas) there is nothing. It appears to only be settling in the dead spots.

For what it’s worth, I know I’m new to this, but I can’t imagine it’s a “hitchhiker” of any kind. I started with live sand in a bag, and dry rock that I rinsed and allowed to dry outside for about a week. The only other thing I’ve added besides the fish was a refugium starter kit from Algae Barn with clean chaeto.

 

[Flippers4pups]

Looks like bacteria to me. As others have stated, suck it out.

 

[JGT]

Looks like bacteria to me. As others have stated, suck it out.

Agreed, but not with your mouth :) blech.

 

[flmlly]

I got most of it out. It actually held itself together much more than I thought. It has the exact consistency of mucus. Unfortunately quite a bit broke up and is in the water column so I went ahead and started the skimmer.

I will say, I don’t know that I’ve ever smelled anything as bad as this stuff when I put it in the bowl. It smells like something that has been rotting for 2 weeks(and I guess if it’s from uneaten food it might be).

 

[JGT]

I got most of it out. It actually held itself together much more than I thought. It has the exact consistency of mucus. Unfortunately quite a bit broke up and is in the water column so I went ahead and started the skimmer.

I will say, I don’t know that I’ve ever smelled anything as bad as this stuff when I put it in the bowl. It smells like something that has been rotting for 2 weeks(and I guess if it’s from uneaten food it might be).

Are all your fish accounted for?

 

[flmlly]

They're all still there. I can’t wrap my head around how awful and rotten that stuff smelled, but my Seneye still says I have no ammonia. Are these things accurate? The reviews seemed to be pretty positive overall when I purchased it.

 

[Gobi-Wan]

They're all still there. I can’t wrap my head around how awful and rotten that stuff smelled, but my Seneye still says I have no ammonia. Are these things accurate? The reviews seemed to be pretty positive overall when I purchased it.

Ammonia is not particularly difficult to test. The cheaper tests are generally accurate, even the little badges you can buy that change color with the ammonia level are reliable. If you want to feel better about it you could take a water sample to your fish store and they will test it for free, at least every place I’ve ever been to. Whenever I want to clear up my water column I stuff a wad of poly-fil polyester pillow batting in a high flow area and then throw it out after it clears up the water. Like in your filter somewhere. I stick a wad in my filter socks on my main tank. And in my quarantine it’s all I keep in the filter for media to grow bacteria on. Its great to have around and will polish water very clean.

 

[sunken3]

so many things it could be.. any missing anemones? they will often at the end mush up and look like a big mucus pile... and they smell terrible!

 

[Gobi-Wan]

I got most of it out. It actually held itself together much more than I thought. It has the exact consistency of mucus. Unfortunately quite a bit broke up and is in the water column so I went ahead and started the skimmer.

I will say, I don’t know that I’ve ever smelled anything as bad as this stuff when I put it in the bowl. It smells like something that has been rotting for 2 weeks(and I guess if it’s from uneaten food it might be).

Don’t serve it with the broccoli and carrots at Christmas...