Why does my tank smell so bad?

[mythesis]

New tank, almost 3 months old.

I've noticed the smell is getting a lot worse. I took out the filter sock thinking that it was just collecting detritus and wasn't cleaning it often enough.

I empty & clean my protein skimmer every day or two.

But putting my nose about the tank is nasty.

Today, I took out an acclimation box, and it was covered in a light brown film (after being in the tank for about 2 days) and immediately stank up the joint.

Am I not filtering enough out or something? Or is this part of "breaking in" the tank?


But, the tank is in my office, and there's a noticeable odor every time I come into the room... don't love it.

 

[TX_REEF]

congrats on the new tank.

1. do you have sufficient surface agitation? lack thereof can cause bio-film to form on the surface, which does not smell good.

2. are you running activated carbon in the filter? This can help with smells.

 

[mariano]

if you are not running wave makers, i recommend you start using them, as @TX_REEF mentioned, run activated carbon. I run activated carbon and change it once a month.
What type of protein skimmer are you using? And is the cup tight sealed?

 

[mythesis]

congrats on the new tank.

1. do you have sufficient surface agitation? lack thereof can cause bio-film to form on the surface, which does not smell good.

2. are you running activated carbon in the filter? This can help with smells.

1. I think so? I'm running 2x MP40's at about 55% in "Reef Crest" mode --- enough that occasionally they'll "roll" the surface creating bubbles. Otherwise it's just enough surface agitation that we definitely can't see down into the tank from the top.

2. We are not. I will look up how to do activated carbon in a sump. Since I took out the sock, there's not really a filter to put it in anymore.

@mariano : Running a "Bubble Magus 5". It has a few holes in the top of the skimmer cup, which I assume are required but otherwise seated well, yes.

 

[PharmrJohn]

I had a bad smell on my old 90g that was attributed to my skimmer overflow container. When air was displaced out of it my dining room stunk. So I added a carbon filter to the outgoing air port and it solved the issue.

 

[mythesis]

I had a bad smell on my old 90g that was attributed to my skimmer overflow container. When air was displaced out of it my dining room stunk. So I added a carbon filter to the outgoing air port and it solved the issue.

Hm...I'm guessing the 6 holes in the cup top serve as the "outgoing air port" on the Bubble Magus.... Also at least part of the problem.

 

[twentyleagues]

Hm...I'm guessing the 6 holes in the cup top serve as the "outgoing air port" on the Bubble Magus.... Also at least part of the problem.

The hole are there to relieve the pressure from the air that is pulled into to do its job. Check this out dont know if they make one for your skimmer or not but you may be able to diy something like it.

Skimmer Compatibility

Initially the StinkSink is made to work with the most common skimmers, those with a flat lid and symmetrical hole pattern - simply sitting on top of the skimmer lid. We have just completed our design to accommodate lid mounted float valves, and are currently accepting new model requests for...

reefeco.com

 

[mythesis]

The hole are there to relieve the pressure from the air that is pulled into to do its job. Check this out dont know if they make one for your skimmer or not but you may be able to diy something like it.

Skimmer Compatibility

Initially the StinkSink is made to work with the most common skimmers, those with a flat lid and symmetrical hole pattern - simply sitting on top of the skimmer lid. We have just completed our design to accommodate lid mounted float valves, and are currently accepting new model requests for...

reefeco.com

thanks for this!

This will cut down on skimmer smell. And then activated carbon will cut down on whole tank smell?

 

[twentyleagues]

thanks for this!

This will cut down on skimmer smell. And then activated carbon will cut down on whole tank smell?

Yes and you can use the same carbon for both in tank and in the stink sink. Just make sure you get high quality carbon if you are putting in the tank and rinse it well. Carbon has been linked to HLLE.

 

[Lavey29]

Slightly off topic but the smell test is one of the key I indicators of tank health for me. I sniff my water every morning and if it doesn't smell like the ocean then something is wrong.

 

[mythesis]

Slightly off topic but the smell test is one of the key I indicators of tank health for me. I sniff my water every morning and if it doesn't smell like the ocean then something is wrong.

As a new tank...any ideas what could be wrong beyond just needing to filter.

Like I said, I pulled the acclimation box out of the tank after 2 days, it was covered in light brown film and *stunk*.

 

[ClownSchool]

The final thing to consider is if you have good surface skimming into your overflow chamber, or not.
Not having good overflow as it collects to go down into the sump will cause an ‘oil slick’ in part - or, all - of your tank that can smell and can even lower your pH.

 

[Hockeypunk1]

As a new tank...any ideas what could be wrong beyond just needing to filter.

Like I said, I pulled the acclimation box out of the tank after 2 days, it was covered in light brown film and *stunk*.

What did it smell like? Was it fishy, or something else?

 

[JTP424]

What's your cleanup crew look like? The brown "film" could be algae, or dinos.

 

[Hockeypunk1]

I had a nasty light brown slime algae/bacteria that took over a tank when I attempted a bare bottom tank with no filter other than a hang on and that smelled terrible! I attribute the smell on that tank to whatever bacteria was growing all over the tank

 

[Lavey29]

As a new tank...any ideas what could be wrong beyond just needing to filter.

Like I said, I pulled the acclimation box out of the tank after 2 days, it was covered in light brown film and *stunk*.

Well different things can cause odor. If a big snail dies the water can stink for a bit. Skimmers obviously, I keep a carbon round filter pad on top of my skimmer cup. I keep a small fan running in my sump area. I run chemipure blue which had carbon and purigen media. Sounds like you have proper flow and filtration but things are unstable in a 3 month tank. It just may be some form of algae development and then dying off too. Just keep up weekly water changes and run carbon and keep the wife out of the fish room for a bit so you don't get yelled at.

 

[mythesis]

@Hockeypuck : yes, fishy. Like stagnant sea water.

@JTP424 : just got a bigger crew. But also diatoms are still dwindling from first round of ugly stage. About 2 weeks ago had a brownish tint to the water that's finally clearing up.

@Lavey29 will try some carbon for sure

@twentyleagues : I reached out and they've stopped making those. Do you know of another manufacturer?


Thanks all for your help

 

[KrisReef]

Post a picture so we can see what is stinking up the place?

 

[mythesis]

Post a picture so we can see what is stinking up the place?

 

[BriDroid]

My little 10 gallon was starting to smell a but funky. I ended up ordering some Rox 0.8 carbon and running that in a media bag in the middle chamber. It's amazing what 1 tablespoon of carbon can do! Smell is gone.