Snow like growth on rock

Question
QUESTION: My rock is being covered by a snow like growth.  It looks like snow, but appears
to be hard and flake off in small bits that float around the tank like snow.

ANSWER: Hello Dan,

Can you please tell me more about the 'growth'?  What color is it?  Is it even, or is it thicker in areas or thinner in areas?  Does it seem to be affected by the amount of flow you have?  Do you have powerheads aimed at it?

If you blow it off with a turkey baster or with your hand, will it look like a cloud or will it look like particles?

How long do they stay suspended in the water, and how quickly will they settle out onto the bottom.


I have a 180 gallon display tank, and it is 'bare bottom', (no sand).  Part of my maintenance routine is to blow off the rock with a turkey baster,I actually use a small Korallia nano power head, and blow off the rock and put the detritus into the water column.  I then to a water change.

I only blow off about 1/3 of the rock, and do a 10-15% water change right after to export the junk out of my tank.


I am not sure if what you have is detritus or if it is an algae of some type or something else.. that it probably isnt...

Let me know,

thanks



---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: It is more like the rocks are being bleached out.  It also happens to the stems of
the hard corals.  The looked bleached out but the corals look OK.   Parts of the
rocks, sand or other particles flake off like little bits of white dust that settle.

Answer
I presume that your peramters are all good, pH is fine.

Do you have an urchin?  Or other algae eater that might be chompin on rocks and other things in search of fod stuff?

IFnot that , i will have to apologize and admit I do not know what is going on with your system.

If you can find out and let us know, i would truley appreciate it,


Thanks again