# Substance ID: Growing on Suction Cups



## mark4785

I have 4 suction cups in an open-top aquarium and I have just noticed that they are covered in a white slimy substance (it has a very slight yellow tinge to it too). To the touch it resembles a cream that say you'd apply to the skin/face.

There's also a bit growing on the output pipe.

Take a look:












The aquarium receives little light as it is currently not stocked.
The aquarium is also undergoing a fishless cycle.

Any ideas on what it could be? Thanks.


Edit: Slightly dreading that the aquarium growth described here: Help! - Orange Slimy Matter Growing On All Surfaces | UK Aquatic Plant Society is returning again.


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## tim

I've had this grow on suction cups on drop checkers etc in new setups wipe it of during tank maintainence, it goes eventually not sure what it is, similar to the mould/fungus I get on wood in new setups.


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## LancsRick

I had this on my latest bit of new equipment. Seems entirely harmless, and some fish even like to graze on it. At the suggestion of someone on here, I found a good rinse and rub with thumbs under very hot water got rid of most of it. Pretty unsightly though I'll agree.


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## linkinruss

Yeah. When I do my weekly clean I take the section cups and just put them aside in boiling water. 
Brings them back to life and would kill any algae on there. A good scrub also helps.


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## mark4785

Thanks for the replies.

Is the substance something that will only crop up in a new aquarium or does it keep recurring no matter what?

I have a separate tank and all the suction cups in there do not have this growth.


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## LancsRick

From personal experience and also various posts on the net of people having the same mystery issue, I think it's just something that happens with new suction cups - maybe it's a residue from something? I know a few people have that view and it certainly seems logical.


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## tim

It's always disappeared after a few weeks for me, as lancsrick states it does seem to only happen with new suction cups and for me only in new setups, though if I think back not using old equipment in new setups nor new equipment in mature setups, baffling to be honest


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## mark4785

LancsRick said:


> From personal experience and also various posts on the net of people having the same mystery issue, I think it's just something that happens with new suction cups - maybe it's a residue from something? I know a few people have that view and it certainly seems logical.


 
Ok hopefully this proves to be true as it's unsightly and it has grown very quickly. I'm on edge when it comes to anything mysteriously growing in this aquarium as a few months ago I had a substance in the same tank that covered almost all surfaces and consumed all the dissolved oxygen; see here: Help! - Orange Slimy Matter Growing On All Surfaces | UK Aquatic Plant Society

The stuff on the suction cups looks many shades lighter compared to the stuff that I previously had growing in the aquarium as described in the thread I've linked to above.


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## tim

For me, the most important thing I've picked up over the last year from ukaps is cleanliness is essential to run a planted tank efficiently, if I see plant waste, algae, fish waste, mould, fungus, anything I'm not happy with, remove it clean it and follow that up with water changes and then try to resolve the issues. Helps run a happy tank, hope this helps, good luck with it mate.


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## mark4785

tim said:


> For me, the most important thing I've picked up over the last year from ukaps is cleanliness is essential to run a planted tank efficiently, if I see plant waste, algae, fish waste, mould, fungus, anything I'm not happy with, remove it clean it and follow that up with water changes and then try to resolve the issues. Helps run a happy tank, hope this helps, good luck with it mate.


 
Definitely. I can definitely remove/clean it but as for dealing with causation, I'm very clueless


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## Nealeg

I'm 5 days into a fish-less cycle and one of two pieces of bog wood has developed a growth of white mold/fungus. I've looked at many forums and there are varied opinions on whether it's detrimental to plants and/or fish. Many views ranging from "leave it as it will go away it will go away eventually" - "brush it off and then boil it". All appear to be speculation as to what it is and what to do to get rid of it. Is there anyone out there who actually knows what it is?, Is it harmful to fish?, is it harmful to plants?, what causes it? and how do you get rid of it?. No speculation please there's already enough of that about.	 .


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## mark4785

Nealeg said:


> I'm 5 days into a fish-less cycle and one of two pieces of bog wood has developed a growth of white mold/fungus. I've looked at many forums and there are varied opinions on whether it's detrimental to plants and/or fish. Many views ranging from "leave it as it will go away it will go away eventually" - "brush it off and then boil it". All appear to be speculation as to what it is and what to do to get rid of it. Is there anyone out there who actually knows what it is?, Is it harmful to fish?, is it harmful to plants?, what causes it? and how do you get rid of it?. No speculation please there's already enough of that about.	 .


 
I've had this occur before and it is currently growing on a small segment of bog wood in my established aquarium (not the one discussed here). It's a fungus that is completely harmless. The fungus is usually a grey coloured fuzz and grows a few cm away from where it was seeded. The stuff growing on my suction cups is a thin slime.

Perhaps get a swab of the growth and inspect it under a microscope? Once you get a general idea of what it looks like you could probably source a book which helps you to identify different micro-organisms and which you can rely on for cross-referencing. Without inspecting it in this way you won't be able to precisely identify it.


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## mark4785

Will keep my fingers crossed that the stuff on the suction cups is not going to spread in the fashion that I've been used to of late with this cursed tank!!!


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## Nathaniel Whiteside

Are they brand new mark? This is fairly normal, and I'd expect that its from silicates present from the manufacturing process.  It will go away if you remove and wash a couple of times. 

The 'clear' suction cups form a powdery substance on the surface too, sometimes with red spots too.

Cheers,


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## NattyAntlers

I get this on suction cups in my tank and its been set up for more than a year, also appears on areas of hose and on airline/co2 pipe under the water, basically any soft plastics/rubber but never on the hard plastics.
Sometimes more sometimes less over time, gets cleaned off once a month with filter/reactor maintenance.
Makes a hell of a mess if dislodged in the tank though.


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## mark4785

Nathaniel Whiteside said:


> Are they brand new mark? This is fairly normal, and I'd expect that its from silicates present from the manufacturing process. It will go away if you remove and wash a couple of times.
> 
> The 'clear' suction cups form a powdery substance on the surface too, sometimes with red spots too.
> 
> Cheers,


 
They are brand new. The spare ones I have smell of plastic and do have what feels like a powder on them; pretty sure if I wiped them on a white t-shirt it would become marked.

Should I take the suction cups out and boil them in salt water? Salt seems to get rid of a lot of nasties. I do my water changes on a Sunday so I'm not sure whether to wait until next Sunday or get them out and clean them now if there is a risk that the stuff may spread and grow elsewhere.


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## Nathaniel Whiteside

mark4785 said:


> They are brand new. The spare ones I have smell of plastic and do have what feels like a powder on them; pretty sure if I wiped them on a white t-shirt it would become marked.
> 
> Should I take the suction cups out and boil them in salt water? Salt seems to get rid of a lot of nasties. I do my water changes on a Sunday so I'm not sure whether to wait until next Sunday or get them out and clean them now if there is a risk that the stuff may spread and grow elsewhere.



Hi mark, 
Salt or boiling isn't really necessary, hot water will suffice.
There is no risk of this spreading either as its the residue left on from manufacture. This will go away with a rinse or two in hot water id imagine .
Cheers,


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## mark4785

Nathaniel Whiteside said:


> Hi mark,
> Salt or boiling isn't really necessary, hot water will suffice.
> There is no risk of this spreading either as its the residue left on from manufacture. This will go away with a rinse or two in hot water id imagine .
> Cheers,


 
Ahh ok. In that case I will clean it later this week.


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## sciencefiction

I've had that before in newly setup tanks, particularly on the heater suction cups. I normally just end up cleaning it when I am sick of looking at it and it doesn't seem to appear again. I've noticed fish do like nibbling on it.


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## mark4785

sciencefiction said:


> I've had that before in newly setup tanks, particularly on the heater suction cups. I normally just end up cleaning it when I am sick of looking at it and it doesn't seem to appear again. I've noticed fish do like nibbling on it.


 
Yes, it's not new to me either. I was just very scared that it was the recurrence of the previous growth that I had in the aquarium which was impossible to get rid of up until I chucked 4-5kg of salt in and 25ml of bleach. It was a dark orange skin particle that stuck to the glass, filter media, filtration unit walls, walls of the pipes etc. It also came to the surface and resembled a white film with bubbles in it. The water had no oxygen in it; fish would die 5 minutes after introduction.

I was just terrified that it was the above growing on the suction cups. I hate not knowing where from and how things come to fruition.


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## sciencefiction

It's always good to be careful. The story about the orange stuff sounds awful but the stuff on the pictures above should be harmless. I've seen it in my tanks many times after setup, possibly new equipment and suction cups as suggested above? Just clean the suction cups under running warm water till it stops appearing. I don't think I had to clean it more than once, or at least I didn't bother and it must have gone away itself, or the fish ate it.


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## Nathaniel Whiteside

mark4785 said:


> Yes, it's not new to me either. I was just very scared that it was the recurrence of the previous growth that I had in the aquarium which was impossible to get rid of up until I chucked 4-5kg of salt in and 25ml of bleach. It was a dark orange skin particle that stuck to the glass, filter media, filtration unit walls, walls of the pipes etc. It also came to the surface and resembled a white film with bubbles in it. The water had no oxygen in it; fish would die 5 minutes after introduction.
> 
> I was just terrified that it was the above growing on the suction cups. I hate not knowing where from and how things come to fruition.



Its exactly the same stuff, just not leeching from your sand in copious amounts.


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## mark4785

Well I have some bad news. The orange slime is back again but there isn't as much of it. The UV filter seems to be keeping it from flourishing. Here's a few pictures showing where it is growing:


Yellow/orange slime in the pipework











Orange slime deposited in bucket





Slime deposits in the sink (after having cleaned the suction cups)






Is this harmless? It seems to be spreading a bit too much for my liking.


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## BigTom

Is your tank planted yet Mark? Can't help but think that getting a bunch of well established plants going and your tank matured and stable is the easiest way of avoiding this kind of thing.


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## sciencefiction

Mmm, that's different than what I had. Mine was white/grey


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## AverageWhiteBloke

I cleaned my pipes and lily today for the first time since putting them on, after putting the brush through them they were full of what looked like fat. Like mentioned I only seem to get this with new soft plastic which goes away and get replaced with the usual brown gunge when they've been in a bit.


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## mark4785

BigTom said:


> Is your tank planted yet Mark? Can't help but think that getting a bunch of well established plants going and your tank matured and stable is the easiest way of avoiding this kind of thing.


 
It isn't yet. I'm doing a fishless cycle on it beforehand as I'll be adding sensitive stock (Microgeophagus Ramirezi). I've had the stuff in the pictures grow after and before cycling and with and without plants.It was only a couple of months ago that I threw away over £50 of plants because of the same problem.

I'm starting to think the aquarium is built of dodgy stuff (it wasn't quality assured as it was custom-made by a LFS rather than a big company like Juwel or Ferplast) that is causing this orange slime to grow OR something in the air is entering the tank due to it being open-topped.

I'll be testing the oxygen level of the water tomorrow. If it's 2 mg/L as it has been in the past when this slime has been growing (the 2 mg/L of O2 killed 3 black neon tetras I placed in the tank) I think I will have no option but to sell everything a part from the aquarium stand.


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## mark4785

AverageWhiteBloke said:


> I cleaned my pipes and lily today for the first time since putting them on, after putting the brush through them they were full of what looked like fat. Like mentioned I only seem to get this with new soft plastic which goes away and get replaced with the usual brown gunge when they've been in a bit.


 
Did you experience low O2 levels and fish death with this? The slime I have kills fish. Nobody knows what it is.


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## sciencefiction

Have you experienced that with a different tank or just this tank?
Have you tested the water for let's say iron maybe(only because it's orange and I couldn't think of anything else  )


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## AverageWhiteBloke

I don't have any way of testing oxygen levels but lost no shrimp over it.


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## mark4785

sciencefiction said:


> Have you experienced that with a different tank or just this tank?
> Have you tested the water for let's say iron maybe(only because it's orange and I couldn't think of anything else  )


 
No, I've only experienced it with this aquarium.
I have a Seachem Iron test which I could use to test for iron but I don't think it's an iron residue as the same dechlorinated tap water is used in my pond and other aquarium and they are spotless with respect to this orange substance and their oxygen levels are fine.


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## sciencefiction

Maybe the LFS making the tank didn't use aquarium safe silicone 
What else is in the tank that is different than your others?


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## mark4785

sciencefiction said:


> Maybe the LFS making the tank didn't use aquarium safe silicone
> What else is in the tank that is different than your others?


 
There's nothing in the aquarium. It's completely empty a part from the water, suction cups and inlet/outlet pipes. The filter contains ceramic rings for biological filtration and filtration sponges to collect waste. 

The only reason the filtration system isn't choked up is because a 9w UV is running within the external filter so the gunk you see in the pipe work (see above) gets destroyed.


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## sciencefiction

It's strange stuff. It looks greazy too. There must be something leaching in the tank causing it. I can't imagine this happening just because the tank is newly setup.


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## mark4785

sciencefiction said:


> It's strange stuff. It looks greazy too. There must be something leaching in the tank causing it. I can't imagine this happening just because the tank is newly setup.


 
I know but nobody knows the specific source. Going to do a 02 test in a minute. My expectation is that there will be little o2 in there again.


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## AverageWhiteBloke

How are you testing for o2? How reliable is the test?


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## mark4785

AverageWhiteBloke said:


> How are you testing for o2? How reliable is the test?


 
Its a Tetra O2 testing kit; nothing fancy. While its probably not extremely accurate it did tell me there was under 2 mg/L of o2 in the water when my Tetras died from oxygen starvation.

I did the o2 test and the result was 4 mg/L which is a good result. But having took another look at the extent of the gunk stuck to the inner walls of the transparent inlet/outlet pipe and the fact that it is the exact same gunk that eventually deprived the water of oxygen only a matter of months ago, I've now firmly decided to get rid of the tank, filtration system, heater, light and anything else that has come into contact with the tank. There is around £650-700 worth of equipment that will probably go for under half of that value given it's history.

Thanks for everybody's support on this issue; it was much appreciated however there's only so much a person can take before feeling a strong urge to move onto a new chapter.


Mark.


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## Henry

I think your reaction to this slime is a bit strong. Have you tried chucking in some cheap hornwort or something? People seem to get weird algae during fishless cycles. I'm convinced it has something to do with the raw ammonia. Theres more to a biological system than just ammonia.


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## AverageWhiteBloke

I would also agree with that. Until a tank is biologically sound there are a few strange growths. I had a search today to see if I could help you at all but couldn't come up with anything like you're describing. Having said that, I've been keeping fish tanks for over 20 years and I've never came across anything like I have just cleaned out of my shrimp tank. It could only be described as what fat looks like in a waste pipe. I have confidence it will go away as the new filter matures. I would get some fast growing cheap plants like vallis or hygropholia and bang a load in see how it pans out. Without fish you have absolutely nothing to lose. If the situation improves you van start replacing them with the plants you really want.


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## AverageWhiteBloke

Just wondering, some of the people who use this board have access to some fancy equipment that they work with well beyond the realms of our bank accounts  Possibly ask them nicely if you could post them a sample of this stuff and see if any of their equipment could analyse it.


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## mark4785

AverageWhiteBloke said:


> I would also agree with that. Until a tank is biologically sound there are a few strange growths. I had a search today to see if I could help you at all but couldn't come up with anything like you're describing. Having said that, I've been keeping fish tanks for over 20 years and I've never came across anything like I have just cleaned out of my shrimp tank. It could only be described as what fat looks like in a waste pipe. I have confidence it will go away as the new filter matures. I would get some fast growing cheap plants like vallis or hygropholia and bang a load in see how it pans out. Without fish you have absolutely nothing to lose. If the situation improves you van start replacing them with the plants you really want.


 
As said previously, the aquarium grows the problem-substance when planted and when not planted (i.e. during a fishless cycle). Whatever the conditions, the substance grows. Thus, after 6 months of trying to get rid of the substance I think it's best I move onto another aquarium with a lid. This is the aquarium I'd like: Juwel Lido 120 Aquarium + Cabinet Black ; it has the same depth and width of the aquarium (if you want to call it that) I currently have and you can upgrade the internal pump to a 1000 LPH rate pump (instead of the 600 LPH pump that comes with it as standard).

I have thrown away the following things that I've used with the problem tank: net, bucket, testing kits, pen (the pen I used to log the ammonia and nitrite levels during cycling), thermometer, heater, sand, rug (situated near the tank) and will be disinfecting the unit that holds the aquarium before I place the aquarium on it. I have a HUGE amount of anxiety when going out to feed the pond fish because of the possibility of transferring the gunk via my hands from the problem-tank to the pond.

For me, an aquarium isn't for anxiety and stress so it needs to go.


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## AverageWhiteBloke

Do you have any other tanks?


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## Henry

Is it possible its a form of bacteria rather than algae? I imagine adding some liquid carbon supplement would help to clear things up. I know its a bit late, but maybe for future reference.


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## mark4785

AverageWhiteBloke said:


> Do you have any other tanks?


 
Just one other yes.


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## AverageWhiteBloke

Mate I passed a van on the motorway and thought of this post. Not sure if they could help but maybe worth a try Eurofins UK how you getting on with the tank these days?


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## Fran

I have had this issue lately. A white slime appears on the suction cups but did not cause any harm to the fish. I have found that soaking them in cups of warm water for a few days with regular water changes ensures they stay clean when you put them in the tank. Its probably the natural rubber reacting with warm water which causes it to excrete this white slimy substance.


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## mark4785

Fran said:


> I have had this issue lately. A white slime appears on the suction cups but did not cause any harm to the fish. I have found that soaking them in cups of warm water for a few days with regular water changes ensures they stay clean when you put them in the tank. Its probably the natural rubber reacting with warm water which causes it to excrete this white slimy substance.


 
This technique has helped me remove it but it isn't a permanent fix in my case. I am very inclined to think that the substance is wholly or partially created by incoming airborne bacteria/fungi as I've only experienced it in an open-top aquarium. Other aquaria that I have have closed hoods keeping most of the air from getting in. The rising water vapour under the hood ensures air flows upwards stopping anything nasty from flowing in. When you have a fully open-top aquarium, the strength of this upward flow is not powerful enough to stop dust and other nasties landing on the surface and mixing into the body of water.

In any case, I have now sold the tank and won't ever be touching an open-top aquarium again as it's not suitable for the particular environment that I have in my home.


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## MirandaB

I have had this in my tank for a while but it is now starting to go,does no harm just a bit annoying


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