Caper Posted July 6, 2006 Report Share Posted July 6, 2006 Hi all! Trying to catch up on all the posts...as I said in another post, summer here :bounce: :bounce: so not on net much! Anyway, my 29 gallon tank, with tiger barbs & red eye tetras, has a "film" on the top. If I recall correctly :-? , thought I noticed it before but never really did anything about it but noticed it again tonight when I was feeding them. I did my water change last Thursday because I was going away for a few days. Planning on doing my change on Saturday or Sunday. Any ideas what this could be? Should I do my change tomorrow? (Meaning Friday here :roll: :-? 8) ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suphew Posted July 6, 2006 Report Share Posted July 6, 2006 Its normal to gt this if you dont have enough surface movement. either add an air stone, power head, or if you have a filter running on it move the output so it breaks up the surface. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fishkeepa Posted July 6, 2006 Report Share Posted July 6, 2006 I have this on mine - it looks whitish and behaves like oil almost i thought it might restrict the oxygen exchange. My filter breaks up most of it but i can still see it. Will it go away? Kiran :bounce: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sharn Posted July 6, 2006 Report Share Posted July 6, 2006 im not 100% sure but i think its a protein film? increasing surface movement helps heaps, i had it on one of my tanks when they spray bar was quite a way from the water surface, moved it up and it was gone in a day or so Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted July 6, 2006 Report Share Posted July 6, 2006 It can be caused by some fish foods, especially those high in protein. Do as suggested and increase water surface agitation or lie a paper towel or newsprint flat on top the lift and the film will stick to the paper. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Damiana Posted July 7, 2006 Report Share Posted July 7, 2006 Yup, protein film. If it reaaaally bothers you you can get a protein skimmer, but they're not particularly cheap. Ditto on the paper towel idea, just make sure that its a plain, unprinted one. My husband is an ex-printer and trust me, you wouldn't want to know what's in some inks. I guarantee that you'd go plain jane. You don't even want to conceive of what's in printed toilet paper *shudder*. I've noticed that I'll come home to protein film when someone else has been feeding and have overdone it a bit. Might want to reevaluate the quantity of food you're offering, as well as the protein level. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caper Posted July 7, 2006 Author Report Share Posted July 7, 2006 Thanks all This is the tank that I took the airstone out of because I thought it was too strong :-? This tank has the bigger filter than my other 29 gallon and I haven't seen film in that tank, at least that I haven't noticed any so far. So, wouldn't you think then that the bigger filter would cause enough surface movement?????? Maybe I'll cut back a bit on the feeding too to see if it makes a difference. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.