Have a few things I need ID on

Gdbyrd

life's a beach
First off is my skimmer. On the bubble side I have some red stuff growing in there. It's not really slimy and VERY difficult to get off. On the return side, there's some green stuff growing there..same deal..not real slimy but VERY difficult to get off. Damn thing looks like I'm decorating for Christmas.

Next: I have these little pointy crystal like structures on all of my limestone rocks. Not sure why it's only affecting them, they were both base rock. They completely cover the rock, irregular patterns, and they don't seem to be any different form light/dark. I haven't tried scraping them off or messing with them because I didn't know if they were good/bad.

Lastly a question. I am starting to have q tip sponges and other types of sponges show up everywhere. Do you have any suggestions for dealing with them? A handful are oK. but I'm seeing them everywhere. My cheato has it all over the place.

If I can't provide an easy enough description I'll try to get some pictures tomorrow when I get home from work.
 
The red and green stuff sound like coralline algae. Does it start to grow in little spots or circles? And it's hard? If so, probably coralline.

As for the crystals, can you post a pic?

And the sponges will disappear as your tank matures and ages. They are a good sign in a new tank. It means your tank is healthy enough to support filter feeders. Usually they die off as your system progresses. If you want to remove them, you can do so using tweezers.
 
I will make sure and get pics up ASAP. They aren't really crystals, but they look like that kind of structure. They jut out of the rock everywhere. Ah well, after I get pics hopefully you guys can see what I mean.

Biff: thanks! Glad to know they will go on their own. When I first saw them a few weeks ago I was excited, but now they are everywhere, lol.
 
Biffs got you covered on the sponges.
For the stuff on your base rock,it could be some kind of tube worm:dunno:
 
Sorry still no pics, it's hard because I have kind of a sucky camera... Those crystal looking things ballooned out and they look like more q tip sponges. There are literally hundreds of them.
 
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