# Lesson learned: Cleaning filter pipes help with algae



## IUnknown (Feb 5, 2003)

I had a chronic problem with beard algae. Algae would appear 3-4 days after a water change. I was using a wet/dry filter that always left particulates in the water column. My eheim tubing was filthy, and for some reason I thought it was just the beneficial bacteria and should be left that way. After reading a post on the forum, I did a complete overhaul of the system. I put my old canister filter back on and cleaned all the tubing. The water is crystal clear and the algae is on its way out. So for a reminder, good algae prevention is to have a clean system, so that you can add the exact amount of No3 and PO4.


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## pphx459 (Jun 25, 2004)

You ever get that white foam looking pieces that come out of the filter when you power it back on? Have any clue what it is?


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## anonapersona (Oct 19, 2002)

*white stuff*

My guess is that is lubricant.


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## bharada (Mar 5, 2004)

No, it's not lubricant. In my filter hose it almost looks like calcium deposits, but it isn't hard. It got really bad once so I started tapping on the hoses and let loose a snow storm of cream-colored flakes into my tank. I got all paranoid and busted out the diatom filter then spent the next hour vacuuming out as much of it as I could.

It left a coating on my foam pre-filters that the shrimp really went off on. The next day it was all gone so the shrimp ate some of it, but mostly it just dissolved. So now when I restart my filter and some flows out I don't sweat it.


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## anonapersona (Oct 19, 2002)

*clearing tubes*

That stuff was one of the reasons I began clearing the tubes when I opened the canister filters. 

After I disconnect the lines, I shoot some water thorugh each line into a bucket. That gives me water to rinse the media in, and it helps clear that junk from the lines. 

I thought that it stopped showing up after the new filter got broken in, maybe I just dont' see it anymore.


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## frogfone (Mar 8, 2004)

The white looking stuff is likely to be a bacterial film lining the tubes. That's probaly why the shrimp muched it all up. It will also be half eaten/broken down food waste. 

HTH

Sharon


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## pphx459 (Jun 25, 2004)

What kind of shrimp eats that stuff? I have ghost shrimps and they don't do anything with it. I hate cleaning that stuff out once it is in the tank.


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## dennx (Aug 11, 2004)

I have this crap showing up in a new tank setup. I was wondering where the heck it was coming from. It's like soft white flakes floating around. My Eheim was full of it the first time I cleaned it out.


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