Chemical smell from skimmate...

[Setragni]

Hello,

I posted this on General discussion and did not get many responses, maybe people here in the chemistry forum will know...

After a while away from the forums I once again need advice from the more experienced reefers around here...
Here is the deal, I decided to setup a new tank and after a few days of cycle I decided to turn on the skimmer... It went crazy and produced a soap like foam, with a weird chemical smell... Well, I am trying to figure out where this is coming from and maybe you can help me, this is what I did so far.

-Setup a starboard bottom, used DAP 2.8 aquarium safe silicone to attach it to the bottom and avoid dirt under it, I let it cure for around 48 hours before I filled the tank
-I also used a bottle of IO Bio Spira the same day I turned the skimmer on
-I installed two filter socks 4 days before turning on the skimmer(I did not rinse them, which could explain the foam but not the smell)
-I used dry rock glued with 2 part reef safe epoxy (I let it cure for 3 days before adding to the tank)
-I am using a clear vinyl hose for my return line (I thought this was worth mentioning, maybe it is not reef safe?)

*Right now I am running a carbon reactor and a bag of Chemi pure Elite. The skimmer cup is filling with a milky clear water with that smell, but the water does not look milky in the DT.


Ok now... I confess I should have waited longer for the silicone on the starboard to cure, and that is my primary suspect.... What happens if the silicon was not fully cured and leaked, am I doomed?

I am open to any suggestion

Thanks Guys!

***UPDATE***
The smell is weak now, and it is getting better day by day... but I am afraid whatever it is already contaminated the tank forever... Any ideas?
I also noticed a white paste building up inside the return vinyl hose... it is not bacterial, I managed to scrape some of it out and it looks like white epoxy... but with no smell...

[dkeller_nc]

Epoxy that isn't completely cured could cause both issues - the excessive amount of foam and the chemical smell. You might be able to definitively identify the culprit by mixing up a fresh amount of the epoxy and comparing the smell to the skimmate. Uncured epoxy emits amines, which is definitely odiferous.

Silicon, at least the hobbyist kind, emits acetic acid as it cures. This (obviously), smells like vinegar. One aspect of this is that vinegar serves as a very effective carbon source for the growth of bacteria, so what you might be seeing in the tank/skimmer is a huge explosion of bacterial growth.

Either way, both of these issues will go away after a while - certainly by the time your tank's cycled a few weeks from now.

[Setragni]

Epoxy that isn't completely cured could cause both issues - the excessive amount of foam and the chemical smell. You might be able to definitively identify the culprit by mixing up a fresh amount of the epoxy and comparing the smell to the skimmate. Uncured epoxy emits amines, which is definitely odiferous.

Silicon, at least the hobbyist kind, emits acetic acid as it cures. This (obviously), smells like vinegar. One aspect of this is that vinegar serves as a very effective carbon source for the growth of bacteria, so what you might be seeing in the tank/skimmer is a huge explosion of bacterial growth.

Either way, both of these issues will go away after a while - certainly by the time your tank's cycled a few weeks from now.


Thank you!
If the white paste inside the hose is epoxy why doesnt it smell?

[dkeller_nc]

I doubt the white stuff in the hose is epoxy - epoxy doesn't move around much once formulated and put into saltwater, at least the putty kind that reefers typically use. Note that what epoxy off-gases while it's curing (amines) is, however, mobile, which may account for the chemical smell in your skimmate.