RyanU Posted March 17, 2021 Share Posted March 17, 2021 I checked on my fish tank this morning doing my daily water parameter check to monitor my fish in cycle process and saw that the entire top of my fish tank had bubbles across it. not sure what is causing this. could it be the fact that I am dosing daily with prime and seed to protect the fish and build the BB. I also notices some white cotton looking stuff on one of my live plants and decorations. Should I remove that or is it harmless and will go away in time. Is it safe to make the assumption that everything that I am seeing is a result of me going through the cycling process with water parameters changing constantly, or is there something else that I should be looking for. Water parameters this morning ph 7.2-7.4 (has stayed pretty constant through this whole process) ammonia <.25 (spiked up to 1 but has slowly been on the decline since starting with seed) nitirte .25 (went up to .5 but has been slowly declining since) nitrate 5 (has been the same throughout the cycling process) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fish Folk Posted March 17, 2021 Share Posted March 17, 2021 37 minutes ago, RyanU said: I checked on my fish tank this morning doing my daily water parameter check to monitor my fish in cycle process and saw that the entire top of my fish tank had bubbles across it. not sure what is causing this. could it be the fact that I am dosing daily with prime and seed to protect the fish and build the BB. I also notices some white cotton looking stuff on one of my live plants and decorations. Should I remove that or is it harmless and will go away in time. Is it safe to make the assumption that everything that I am seeing is a result of me going through the cycling process with water parameters changing constantly, or is there something else that I should be looking for. Water parameters this morning ph 7.2-7.4 (has stayed pretty constant through this whole process) ammonia <.25 (spiked up to 1 but has slowly been on the decline since starting with seed) nitirte .25 (went up to .5 but has been slowly declining since) nitrate 5 (has been the same throughout the cycling process) Cory has often remarked that the presence of bubbles on the surface or glass edges of an aquarium seem to indicate a chemistry imbalance somewhere. I am not sure what to blame it on . . . or what impact extra flow and airstone might have on such buildup. The white cotton-looking stuff . . . sounds like bio film. If you do not have good circulation, it will build up on hardscape (especially organic hardscape). There are types of fungus that will also look cotton-like. If you can post a few photos, that might be helpful. Both scenarios are likely corrected by some good flow in the tank. Your Nitrogen cycle seems to indicate that the cycle is proceeding and just needs more time. You can try to boost it by adding a liquid nitrifying bacteria dose (Dr. Tim's, Fritz, etc have pretty reliable products). I know that not everyone is a fan of using them though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daniel Posted March 17, 2021 Share Posted March 17, 2021 @Irene has a good video on bubbles: 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RyanU Posted March 17, 2021 Author Share Posted March 17, 2021 I do have an air stone in the tank and I have been dosing daily as recommended on the bottle of Aquavitro Seed to build the BB in my tank. As far as flow goes. I think I have pretty sufficient flow. Is there an easy way to measure how much flow I have? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RyanU Posted March 17, 2021 Author Share Posted March 17, 2021 Thank you for the video this was very helpful. I think based on this I am going to lean more towards the fact that I have been adding chemicals to the tank to keep my fish alive while my tank cycles, with the combination of the Air Stone that is in there as well. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brandy Posted March 17, 2021 Share Posted March 17, 2021 The white stuff sounds like bacterial bloom and the bubbles could be caused by biofilm. It is an indication that your cycle is on its way, but it can build up on the surface. It is not terribly useful there, so if the surface appears to have a film you can just lay a paper towel on it and suck it up. That will assure good air exchange for your fish, which they will need right now. However, your airstone is great insurance, and you probably don't HAVE to do anything. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RyanU Posted March 17, 2021 Author Share Posted March 17, 2021 Awesome. Thank you for the advice. I will check to see if there is a film visible when I check my parameters tonight. If I can see something I will try the paper towel trick. Thank You Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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