Do I or don't I...?
by
, 03-09-2012 at 05:20 PM (8755 Views)
So, I'm beginning this blog entry before I upload my pictures. A few days ago I wrote up a blog entry showing a picture that made me think my tank had microbubbles in it. To date it appears better to me, but for comparison's sake I took a few pictures of the tank last night. In one picture the scenario is comparable to the scenario under which the picture from my other post was taken. In the other I have turned off the protein skimmer and then actually shut off the return (for those unfamiliar we my tank, I don't have anything but fresh water in there yet so don't worry!). My hypothesis is that my glass is either a little cloudy or that my water has something in it that isn't being taken out by the charcoal that I added to one of the drain outlets. The other possibility is that there is some kind of air stream being let in through the LocLine modular pipe or that small, undiscovered gaps in the plumbing are having a similar affect. Anyway, onward to the pictures!
So this is the original photo, seems like the water is a bit cloudier in this photo than the next. (This is through the front glass not the end pieces like the other pictures).
Here's a photo of the tank at around 10:00 p.m. yesterday. The only visible light is coming from an old BioCube 14 tank light that I still have. In this photo the return pump has JUST been turned off and even as I stared at the tank I could see no difference between when the pump was on and nearly immediately there after. Therefore, this picture can be used as a comparison to the original picture.
Here is a photo of the tank after the plumbing has been turned off for 2 hours. I see no appreciable difference in the amount of milkiness or discoloration present in the water. I don't believe that there is any significant difference between the colors of Reef magazine in this photo as compared to the first photo taken from this viewpoint.
Here's another picture of the tank under the same conditions as the picture immediately preceding this one. Again, the tank had been sitting undisturbed for over 2 hours and this is still the color of the water.
So, this brings me to my "conclusion." The most obvious, and important "conclusion" is that the perceived discoloration (milkiness) that I am seeing is not due to microbubbles escaping from my sump. They may be doing just that (I have definitely seen some escaping my bubble traps, but I couldn't convince myself that any appreciable number of them were actually getting into the return line), but after letting the tank sit for 2 hours without any noticeable difference, I believe it is safe to rule out microbubbles as a cause of the discoloration I am seeing. Which brings me to my three remaining hypothesies:
1.) The glass has some kind of residue on it that is not water soluble and that did not come off when I resiliconed the internal silicone seals this past summer.
2.) Since this is just tap water, what I am seeing may be some kind of a dissolved substance that is not being pulled out by the skimmer or the carbon that I have running in this otherwise empty tank.
3.)The clarity of my water is fine and I'm just over analyzing things and need to take a chill pill because most people would love it if their water was this "clear."
If you guys have any thoughts please let me know. Also, if you have any photos of your tanks from the sides and would like to post them, I would love to compare the clarity of all your tanks with the clarity of my water. Keep in mind that my tank is only 4ft long so the amount of attenuation I am getting seems to be a bit high. Input will be greatly appreciated. Oh, and yes, I realize that saltwater will change my equation, I just figured I could trouble shoot problems like this with less expensive freshwater. If any of you feel that is totally incorrect please fill me in on why you think that as well.
Thanks guys!
Jeremy Pepper