White slime on my manzanita wood? [Archive]

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fishyj

03-02-2009, 04:26 AM

Hi all. I took my manzanita wood and boiled it in my sink to stop it from leaching out. It did stop this but now the problem is after in tank a couple of days I am getting white slime on it. How do you get rid of this stuff?

Eddie

03-02-2009, 04:40 AM

fishyj

03-02-2009, 05:01 AM

Thanks. Will do.

Chad Hughes

03-02-2009, 12:38 PM

This is something that you might have to deal with until you get bacteria to form on the wood. Your ne wood is basically sterile. Typically with brand new aquariums, you'll see similar "white film" develop on new tank items. In time it will go away once it becomes acclimated. Wipe downs until then would be a good way to remove it.

Best wishes!

FLGirl1977

03-02-2009, 01:37 PM

Very good explanation Chad! BTW, how's the belly-button doing? (I would have PM'd that... but apparently you can't get PM's) lol! ;)

poconogal

03-02-2009, 01:39 PM

My BNs clean my wood, so I've never had any sort of flim on them once I added the BNs to the tank.

fishyj

03-02-2009, 02:00 PM

Thanks for the help. I may get a bn to take care of it. It would have plenty to eat.

Chad Hughes

03-02-2009, 03:23 PM

Very good explanation Chad! BTW, how's the belly-button doing? (I would have PM'd that... but apparently you can't get PM's) lol! ;)

No worries! Iam doing very well. First day back to work today! It was a nice break, but I was definately getting stir crazy sitting around the house. I can get PMs. I'm not sure why you were under the impression that I couldn't. The only thing that I can't see while at work is some of the linked pictures. Our computers have some weirs firewalls that block them.

Other than that, all is well! Have a great week!

Best wishes!

Wahter

03-02-2009, 08:51 PM

Thanks for the help. I may get a bn to take care of it. It would have plenty to eat.

Yes, a BN will definitely munch on it. :)

Walter

Eddie

03-02-2009, 09:15 PM

Yes, a BN will definitely munch on it. :)

Walter

And the discus! :o

Eddie

fishyj

03-02-2009, 10:03 PM

Maybe I won't get a bn now!!!

FLGirl1977

03-02-2009, 10:15 PM

My BN's never bothered my discus... it's all dependent upon their personalities and how well you feed them IME.

Eddie

03-02-2009, 10:25 PM

Yeah but they do it, give them a chance. Not feed them or give them items to feed on and your discus slime coat will be like dessert!

Eddie

fishyj

03-02-2009, 10:31 PM

If i'am feeding the tank the way I should would that be a problem then?

Eddie

03-02-2009, 10:36 PM

it's just a possibility. I have been taught to take risks only when the benifits outweigh the cost. How much does a discus cost? How much does a BN cost? No chances for me.

There are tons of folks here who have BNs and they've never ate of the sides of their Discus, from what they see.

Its up to you Jim.

Eddie

fishyj

03-02-2009, 10:38 PM

All I can say is whenever I gamble I lose!!!! So I guess in my case I won't.

Eddie

03-02-2009, 10:42 PM

All I can say is whenever I gamble I lose!!!! So I guess in my case I won't.

Me too Jim, I can't even step foot in a casino. I can easily just throw hundreds of dollars in the trash instead. LOL

Eddie

fishyj

03-02-2009, 10:45 PM

We have one around here and thats all about I do. It would be easier to open the door and throw the money in. The good thing about this tank its going to take all my free money.

poconogal

03-03-2009, 09:29 AM

I've had my BNs for over 2 years now and they've never, ever shown any interest in the Discus, nor have the Discus ever had even a single mark on them that could be from BNs. While there may be the occassional BN that will bother a Discus, probabaly 99% don't ever bother them. And I really question the few that do -- I think its just due to people not providing food for the BNs. They get some BNs to eat algae, but have NO algae in their tanks for the BNs to eat, and since its a Discus tank, most remove any excess food from the tank pretty quickly. So, a starving BN will eventually look for some food... rather than die, no surprise there! Throw in a few algae wafers every few days and you won't have to worry. I also purposely leave some algae on the back wall of the tank for them.

Chad Hughes

03-03-2009, 09:55 AM

FLGirl1977

03-03-2009, 10:21 AM

Funny Chad... I noticed that my Albino LF BN plecos go quite a bit.... it's frustrating!

In my big tank though, I have two sultan plecos and they don't make hardly any waste... wierd??

Chad Hughes

03-03-2009, 10:28 AM

That is weird.... I guess they're all a bit different!

FLGirl1977

03-03-2009, 10:59 AM

Oh, and if we wanted to get more technical... the BN's poop is long and thin and they seem to constantly be pooping... lol...

The sultan's poop looks more like the discus, granted they are a bit larger, but it just looks different....

Yes, I seem to be a fish-poop-examiner... I just thought it was odd...

Ceahorse

03-03-2009, 11:18 AM

I had the same problem with a piece i have. I just boiled the crap out of it. for like an hour. fully submerged. I think its a sap or something leaching out. you really gotta be patient with it. and give it a really good soak.

I'd take it out a boil it agian.

fishyj

03-03-2009, 11:55 AM

poconogal

03-03-2009, 03:47 PM

onnie,

Do you find that your plecos crap a lot? I had two in a tank with my discus early on and they were crapping up a storm. Another thing that I didn't like was once they got older, they would swwop in when I fed the discus and steal their food. Just my observations. Do you experience the same?
Chad, they are king crappers, LOL!!! Its also really long stuff, too. I sometimes wonder if the algae cleaning is worth the amount of poo they produce in the tank, but I came to the conclusion that it is.

As far as stealing the Discus food, no, I haven't seen that happen. My BNs are afraid of the Discus so if a BN is munching on food and a Discus approaches the BN will quickly move away. At night with lights out when I drop some algae wafers in, the Discus steal the BNs food, though.

Ceahorse

03-03-2009, 11:07 PM

Problem is that it measures 21" tall, 18"wide and 18"deep so it won't fit in a pot. I'll put it back in the sink and boil water and pour on it and soak it that way. Also since I am getting juvies in my 125 I will be dividing the tank so maybe I'll just get some bn's for the clean up of that, keeping them away from the juvies. If they become a problem then I can take them to my local lfs. Many options to think about .

it doesn't have to stay in the tank. if your gonna divide it up for now.. its not gonna look real great until you grow them out and turn it into a display tank.. Well it will look good to discus lovers, but most people will see a tank with a hunk of wood, a plastic wall and fish. Id suggest you to not put it in the tank that your gonna grow them out.

It migh also help to let it dry out then boil it again. then soak it till it sinks .
its alot of work. and time but i saves you from having gunk in your discus growing tank.

do you have a large tub? you could toss it in there and put the pleco in there. they can take quite a long time w/o fresh water. i have an albino pelco in a pond with gold fish and very little plants. just an idea.

on the piece i had. i couldn't get anything to eat that gunk. i don;t think its algee. im pretty sure it sap. or some sort of cogagulater. (spelling) .. the stuff in our blood that stops us from bleeding.

fishyj

03-04-2009, 02:52 AM

After boiling it today I decided not to put in my tank, I am getting a garbage can to soak it in until all clear. I just don't need the added mess. Want to concentrate on growing my juvies.

Chad Hughes

03-04-2009, 10:58 AM

If this is a grow out tank with a ton of juvies, I'd just leave it out. Less to deal with. Wood is great for show tanks, not production tanks.

Best wishes!

FLGirl1977

03-04-2009, 11:11 AM

After boiling it today I decided not to put in my tank, I am getting a garbage can to soak it in until all clear. I just don't need the added mess. Want to concentrate on growing my juvies.

If you're worried about tannins, that's nothing to worry about. I remember actually reading somewhere that the tannins are actually beneficial to the fish in the amazon helping their immune systems... it just tints the water slightly, but if you're doing daily water changes, you won't hardly notice the tannins...

fishyj

03-04-2009, 02:09 PM

Not the tannins that bother me. Its not leaching anymore into the water its just the white slime is so ugly.

Ceahorse

03-05-2009, 01:36 PM

If you're worried about tannins, that's nothing to worry about. I remember actually reading somewhere that the tannins are actually beneficial to the fish in the amazon helping their immune systems... it just tints the water slightly, but if you're doing daily water changes, you won't hardly notice the tannins...

id try to verify this.. but it sounds interesting

poconogal

03-05-2009, 02:29 PM

id try to verify this.. but it sounds interesting

They actually sell Blackwater Extract which does the same as the wood leaching tannins. How much good it does a Discus is questionable, especially if you have domestics that've been raised in BB tanks. Might be more beneficial for wilds.

FLGirl1977

03-05-2009, 03:29 PM

Take a read: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Discus_(fish)

The entire article is interesting, but more importantly:

"Aside from the pH-lowering qualities of peat, aquarists have found that the natural tannins and humic acids leached from peat are very beneficial for discus."

So is it beneficial for domestically raised discus? Maybe... maybe not? I still believe that a discus is still a discus to the core... despite being bred for appearances, etc.

Long story short, tannins will not do the fish harm... but they could possibly benefit from the tannins... so it couldn't hurt. :)

FLGirl1977

03-05-2009, 03:31 PM

They actually sell Blackwater Extract which does the same as the wood leaching tannins. How much good it does a Discus is questionable, especially if you have domestics that've been raised in BB tanks. Might be more beneficial for wilds.

Or you could buy Cappa leaves (Native leaf in the amazon) and do it the natural way. :)

Apistomaster

03-07-2009, 12:00 AM

I put in pretty much a whole tree in one of my tanks and had plenty of time to deal with problems because I did not plan to add fish for a while. The white stuff is probably a mold.
One that is a temporary nuisance.
I let it go until a couple weeks before adding the Discus but I took it out an scrubbed it down with a stiff bristle scrub brush and bleach. Rinsed off the bleach and put the wood back in.
I collected this "tree' from a river side pool and it was partially waterlogged but not enough to stay down. It only took two 1/4 inch wood dowels cut very slightly longer than the inside width of the tank. These dowels were wedged into place firmly enough to hold down the large logs which are wedged together. The dowels are not noticeable because I planted around them in such a way as to conceal them.
The mold never came back.
I have one large common Ancistrus cf. cirrhosus(Common Bushy Nose) in this 125 gal tank.
I have never had one of this species of bushy nose bother Discus and I have had hundreds of both. While moving some wood in my Heckel Discus tank last week I disturbed a Bushy nose nest and about 75 baby Bushy Noses scattered all over the . Not counting these fry there are 4 adult Bushy Nose in the heckel tank.
I always have young Bushy Noses because they breed in several of my tanks. i have always kept 1 or 2 juveniles, less than 2 inches long in with my breeding Discus pairs. The small specimens help keep the glass clean but have never interfered with the breeding discus nor eaten any discus eggs. Discus pairs run off anything that small that dares to come close to their eggs or fry.
There are plecostomus type catfish that will harass discus and scrape their sides but usually it is only one of the larger species that do this.
A pleco relative, Sturisoma spp, is a fish that will harass and suck the sides of Discus. I breed Ancistrus, Peckoltia, Hypancistrus plecos and all of these are Discus safe. i also breed Sturisoma aureum. Only the Sturisoma are problematic which is too bad since they are so interesting and active during the day. I have a couple large adult Sturisoma in the 125 gal wild blue Discus tank and they do harass the Discus but I can only remove them by taking the tree out of the tank. I did a little too good of a job of simulating a Discus habitat. These Blues fight back so it will have to remain the way it is until i feel like trying to get the logs out. Several pairs have formed so I have to take out Discus soon any way. I just am not looking forward to man handling the logs and spreading everything out on a sheet of plastic on the living room carpet.