# wax looking film on top of water



## pyrrolin (Jan 11, 2012)

recently moved, which means the tank was moved, used the same substrate, took it out in layers, dirt capped with sand. I have a pressurized co2 system running which I have had going for a little while. Old home had pretty bad well water, lots of iron, made the water looks bad just a few days after a large wc. New place is also well water but the water is great.

I have extremely low surface agitation and daily I have a film on the surface. Because it isn't coloured by iron like the old place, I can see it much clearer. It looks like a thin coating of wax.

I don't want to run an airstone at night since the tank is quite close to my bed if I can avoid it. I have almost daily either skimmed the surface off or used paper towels to remove the film. I don't mind doing this once a week but daily is a little much. I find the most effective and cheap method is putting a small container in and letting the surface run into it. This clears it up quickly but due to my low stock, I end up doing more wc than I want.

Not over feeding, underfeeding right now if anything due to the move.

The only thing I can think of is the co2 itself. Can it leave a film on the surface?


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## charlie1 (Dec 1, 2011)

pyrrolin said:


> recently moved, which means the tank was moved, used the same substrate, took it out in layers, dirt capped with sand. I have a pressurized co2 system running which I have had going for a little while. Old home had pretty bad well water, lots of iron, made the water looks bad just a few days after a large wc. New place is also well water but the water is great.
> 
> I have extremely low surface agitation and daily I have a film on the surface. Because it isn't coloured by iron like the old place, I can see it much clearer. It looks like a thin coating of wax.
> 
> ...


What you are getting is a Protein film , you can add a surface skimmer to your filter




can also use a spray bar with a mild ripple at the surface, any co2 loss due to
the ripple( minimal) can be compensated by increasing the CO2 delivery.
Regards


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## pyrrolin (Jan 11, 2012)

what besides food and fish waste contributes to the protein build up? Because I moved, I am going to have some plants melt and that probably also adds protein.

So is this extra amount probably temporary? When I looked this morning, there was about the same as was left last night so maybe it is starting to stabilize? I don't mind cleaning once a week but the every day thing I have had is a bit much


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## RevoBuda (Sep 3, 2011)

If you get some movement at the surface from your filter it will go away. It is not the best solution because you'll lose some CO2 but if you monitor it, you should be okay.


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## BillD (Jun 5, 2006)

Alternatively, run an air pump at night.What you have may be bacterial film, rather than protein scum. regardless, the air stone at night will break it up. 
To remove it you can use a gravel vac as a surface skimmer. Once you have suction you tip it up so it draws from the surface. It takes a while to get the hang of it, but once you get it right, it will quickly skim off the film. Works for duckweed, too.


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## cb1021 (Sep 21, 2009)

Eheim Skim350. Silent and not very pricey. It's flow is also adjustable so you can control the amount of current you have in the tank from the powerhead that drives the skimmer.

It's a great invention imo. Surface scrum sucks


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## jimmyjam (Nov 6, 2007)

I find the protein builds in the first few months of a new setup. Im not sure exactly if its from wish waste, food or breakdown. My surface issues go away about 2 months into a planted tank setup. All the above suggestions will work. gross removal seems to be the best I think.


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## pyrrolin (Jan 11, 2012)

Thanks for the info, I hope it is a temporary problem for me.


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## bluegularis (May 12, 2010)

an old time solution is to take a page from a newspaper float that on top of the tank and let it saturate and then remove the sheet, this will clear most of the greasy scum from the top. Some old tricks do work. If it keeps returning you will need to look for the source of the scum.


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## jimmyjam (Nov 6, 2007)

wow 20 years in the hobby and I have never tried that, lol. I will def give it a go next time I startup a new tank. Thanks blue



bluegularis said:


> an old time solution is to take a page from a newspaper float that on top of the tank and let it saturate and then remove the sheet, this will clear most of the greasy scum from the top. Some old tricks do work. If it keeps returning you will need to look for the source of the scum.


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## Sameer (Sep 30, 2007)

jimmyjam said:


> I find the protein builds in the first few months of a new setup. Im not sure exactly if its from wish waste, food or breakdown. My surface issues go away about 2 months into a planted tank setup. All the above suggestions will work. gross removal seems to be the best I think.


Yup same here, when I setup my tank the film was there but quietly went away. I dont have any wood or fish. I do have my filter output upwards, so there are good ripples on the surface. You should have that for a healthy tank. You will have co2 loss but thats so small that it does not matter.


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## tranceaddict (Apr 3, 2011)

yup when I first set up my rimless 118G, I had this withing 1 week of still water. Now I have the airstone and my outflow filter is aimed a lil higher to disturb the water ontop.


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