Slime on driftwood

Mar 4, 2009
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NJ
#1
I have this white, cloudy, slimy stuff growing on my driftwood. I have read conflicting posts on various other sites on how to get rid of it: some scrub it and others say it'll go away on its own. Anyone have any experience with it?
 

Mar 4, 2009
49
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NJ
#2
I could really use some help on this. I disturbed this slime the other day and it smells horrible. it also left this brown dust on everything in the tank, and the slime has continued to grow. I don't know what to do to get rid of it. Anyone?
 

brian1973

Superstar Fish
Jan 20, 2008
2,001
3
38
Corpus Christi, Texas
#3
I have seen this before on mine, I have done both left it alone and scrubbed it and in my experience both seem to work just as well, I dont know what causes it but if it is bothering you take it out and clean it off, if not just leave it and observe it. It did not have any negative effects on the fish that I saw.
 

Ammy

Small Fish
Apr 3, 2009
26
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0
#5
If it smells awful, I would go ahead and say it could be caused or related to decaying food matter that floats down and settles on the log. Any thing that smells awful should be cleaned because it is most likely rotting. Does it just look like slime or does it have a fuzzy appearance? I would also move the log to an area of the tank where there is more current, like right under the filter, just to be safe and make sure stuff won't settle on it. If it keeps coming back, it could be the wood rotting itself, and I would say you should remove it for good at that point. Otherwise, it just sounds like maybe some food or other organic material has built up on it and begun to rot, so I would clean it off immediately, just to be safe, because if it IS rotting food, that can mess up your nitrates.
 

Ammy

Small Fish
Apr 3, 2009
26
0
0
#7
What kind of smell is it? Does it smell like rotten eggs? If so, that could be a sign of anaerobic decay going on (though unlikely since it is not buried under substrate). Anaerobic decay will produce hydrogen sulfide (I think) gas, which is toxic to your fish. If it smells like that, get someone else to take it out for you, or hold your breath, because it should be removed if that is going on.
 

simplyfish

Medium Fish
Feb 18, 2008
89
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#9
I had a similar sounding thing in my 10g a couple of years ago, the slime seemed to coat almost everything in the tank and the smell was horrific. Ironically the water was absolutely crystal clear...

I did a number of water changes and added a carbon sponge in to my filter and changed that every couple of days. I also stirred the water to get the slime into the water and then the filter. I also turned the light off in the tank. After about4-5 days of this the tank overnight went clear again, there was no apparent reduction in slim in the tank, just there one day and gone the next!

I posted on here at the time and though nobody was able to identify the cause, with these suggestions it seemed to clear the problem.

Hope this helps.

PS if you click on my avatat you may be able to find the messsages from that time and see hwat advice I was given.
 

Mar 4, 2009
49
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NJ
#10
The slime is only on the driftwood. I can't do water changes right now cause I'm in the midst of cycling. I know there is carbon in the filter. I also don't keep the light on because there is nothing (plants/fish) in the tank at this point.

Hmmm.. my only problem with stirring it up is that it leaves brown dust everywhere the following day. Maybe I'll do it anyway.