vacuuming a tank?

[aotto]

I just set up my first planted aquarium 2 weeks ago. (See stats below.) No fish yet - just trying to get things running smoothly before I put any in.

My main problem now is that I have a big piece of bog wood - bought from aquarium shop - as my center piece. All my plants are in. Water is clear but everything is covered with a layer of brown debris, presumably from the bog wood (or maybe the Seachem substrate, not sure).

I'm thinking of getting a vacuum, but am afraid of uprooting the plants. One person I spoke with said the debris will eventually filter out. But since it's not suspeded in water - and is sitting on the leaves - I'm skeptical.

Any thoughts?

Thank you!

Tank info:

12 gallon Eclipse 12 biofilter system
L 21 inches x W 9 3/4 " x H 15 1/2 "
full spectrum FL bulb (unsure of wattage)
10-12 hours of light a day
CO2 injection - Red Sea turbo injection pump
no fertilizer
Seachem flourite substratte
water changes = 25% once every 10 days
water at surface moderate movement
all chemicals normal
no fish

[|squee|]

Might be what you suspect; it's the driftwood. I suggest perhaps waving your hand at the plants to shake off the debris and let the filter filter it out, or get a couple of fish like mollies/platies and see if they eat it.

[Quixotic]

If it's those brown fine particles, it's the Seachem Flourite. They will rest on your plants and driftwood and create quite a layer on your driftwood.

Not too sure about your filter but with better water flow, it would be very much less visible.

As mentioned, when performing water change, siphon them out as much as possible and use your hands to fan around the plants and driftwood to create as much flow. Eventually, it would be cleared by your filter but do not expect instant results. It would take some time.

[|squee|]

I didn't know Seachem Flourite was so "dusty"

[PeterGwee]

Just fluff the plants a bit during water changes would remove it. Try doing large water changes 2x a week for a couple of weeks should clean things up well.

Regards
Peter Gwee

[Quixotic]

I didn't know Seachem Flourite was so "dusty"

You'd be surprised to see layers of brown particles trapped in the filter medias, it clogs up the media pretty fast. Which is why I don't use it alone on itself after my initial encounter.

Although I swear by Seachem Flourite, I now use them as a base layer, topping them up with lapis sand.

[vinz]

It could be brown algae, which is common in new planted tanks.

[aotto]

Thanks to everyone!

I'll give the water changes a try & am going to try Tetra's Water Clarifier, which allegedly makes all the dusty stuff clump together & makes it easier to filter.

I'll let you know if it works - or if it wrecks my filter.