White Surface Scum

fatdaddy · 09/13/2008, 08:49 PM

What is this stuff? About every 48 hours I've been skimming a soupy scum off the surface of my tank. It has a few bubbles, but I'm starting to think that it's a bacteria film. I have no way to confirm this.

seapug · 09/13/2008, 09:56 PM

Reef tanks generate a lot of muck that floats on the surface of the water. Do you have a surface skimming overflow? Added new sand or dosed any supplements lately?

Jay Fortay · 09/13/2008, 10:17 PM

Sounds like inadequate surface skimming/agitation.

fatdaddy · 09/14/2008, 11:30 AM

I've had big trouble with this tank for a long time. However, this only recently started when my house sitter overfed the tank, the tank cycled, and killed almost all my fish.

Since then, I've not had any house sitting, dramatically reduce my own feedings, and replaced the sump. I have Red Slime growing, but my algae is way down. I added 25 Cerith and 25 Turbo Snails.

I'll be upgrading my ASM G1 to a G3 as soon as a replacement pump is delivered.

I'm also adding a refugium as my motivation allows. I have the tank drilled, so I just need to build a stand, hook it up, etc, etc.

ahullsb · 09/14/2008, 01:10 PM

Get a powerhead directed at the surface. If there is a film it most likely means you don't have enough water movement at the surface.

seapug · 09/14/2008, 01:29 PM

Pointing a powerhead at the surface will help break it up but will really only push it around. To truly elminate it you need to use a surface skimmer to suck the stuff off the surface where it will end up in the sump and be removed by the protien skimmer. As a temporary fix until you get the sump hooked up, you can try to find a Current USA "Subcurrent" filter. I use one on my sumpless 20 gallon tank. They work quite well. It's essentially a powerhead that sits in a box that has a surface skimmer at the top for the water intake. Here's a link to their product page:

http://www.current-usa.com/subcurrent.html

rogergolf66 · 09/14/2008, 02:22 PM

powerhead to the surface here too

roger

fatdaddy · 09/14/2008, 06:25 PM

I realized how still my surface was when I started to angle my return upward, upward, and more upward. I finally have the surface moving. Hm, I did clean the return after the tank cycled, so I guess I didn't direct it sufficiently upward.

Thanks for the not very subtle hints. Sometimes I'm a little slow on the uptake.

I also moved my ASM G3 from another tank to this one today, so I'm doing some more aggressive skimming. My other tank is healthy.

fatdaddy · 09/14/2008, 06:30 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by seapug
To truly elminate it you need to use a surface skimmer to suck the stuff off the surface where it will end up in the sump and be removed by the protien skimmer. As a temporary fix until you get the sump hooked up,

I have a overflow box with a siphon U-tube on this tank and a sump. I've been using a filter sock in the sump until things get cleaned up.

I'm making slow progress on a refugium, so I don't currently have one right now. However, my tank has amphipods, cheato, and caulerpa growing.

09/13/2008, 08:49 PM	#1
fatdaddy Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Northeast Florida Posts: 1,191	White Surface Scum What is this stuff? About every 48 hours I've been skimming a soupy scum off the surface of my tank. It has a few bubbles, but I'm starting to think that it's a bacteria film. I have no way to confirm this. __________________ "We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit." -- Aristotle

09/13/2008, 09:56 PM	#2
seapug Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: 4980 ft. Posts: 7,954 Blog Entries: 1	Reef tanks generate a lot of muck that floats on the surface of the water. Do you have a surface skimming overflow? Added new sand or dosed any supplements lately? __________________ insert clever saying here. Current Tank Info: 200 gallon custom Marineland DD peninsular tank. LPS dominated mixed reef. Previous 90 gallon mixed reef TOTM April 2009.

09/13/2008, 10:17 PM	#3
Jay Fortay Uber Member Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Bozeman, Montana Posts: 929	Sounds like inadequate surface skimming/agitation. __________________ Witty line goes here... Current Tank Info: 225 gallon 88"x30"x20" shallow rimless. 185 gallon fish room. Reef Octopus SSS-5000, Apex Neptune, 3 Kessil A360W, Melevs Reef RODI, Reeflo Hammerhead Gold return http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2365282

09/14/2008, 11:30 AM	#4
fatdaddy Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Northeast Florida Posts: 1,191	I've had big trouble with this tank for a long time. However, this only recently started when my house sitter overfed the tank, the tank cycled, and killed almost all my fish. Since then, I've not had any house sitting, dramatically reduce my own feedings, and replaced the sump. I have Red Slime growing, but my algae is way down. I added 25 Cerith and 25 Turbo Snails. I'll be upgrading my ASM G1 to a G3 as soon as a replacement pump is delivered. I'm also adding a refugium as my motivation allows. I have the tank drilled, so I just need to build a stand, hook it up, etc, etc. __________________ "We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit." -- Aristotle

09/14/2008, 01:10 PM	#5
ahullsb Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: sacramento, ca Posts: 2,729	Get a powerhead directed at the surface. If there is a film it most likely means you don't have enough water movement at the surface. __________________ Andy Sacramento, CA Current Tank Info: 55 gallon reef w/20 gallon sump/ER135/ 75 pounds of live rock, 4 in sandbed, 2 b&w ocellaris clowns, yellow watchman/pistol, rosy scaled wrasse, Mystery wrasse, Copperbanded Butterfly, Lighting 48" outer orbit 2 150 mh/ 4 t5 actinics

09/14/2008, 01:29 PM	#6
seapug Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: 4980 ft. Posts: 7,954 Blog Entries: 1	Pointing a powerhead at the surface will help break it up but will really only push it around. To truly elminate it you need to use a surface skimmer to suck the stuff off the surface where it will end up in the sump and be removed by the protien skimmer. As a temporary fix until you get the sump hooked up, you can try to find a Current USA "Subcurrent" filter. I use one on my sumpless 20 gallon tank. They work quite well. It's essentially a powerhead that sits in a box that has a surface skimmer at the top for the water intake. Here's a link to their product page: http://www.current-usa.com/subcurrent.html __________________ insert clever saying here. Current Tank Info: 200 gallon custom Marineland DD peninsular tank. LPS dominated mixed reef. Previous 90 gallon mixed reef TOTM April 2009.

09/14/2008, 02:22 PM	#7
rogergolf66 im an addict lol Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Land o lakes, FLorida Posts: 12,930	powerhead to the surface here too roger __________________ Goal levels: salinity 35ppt, temp 78-79, alk 8-9, cal 430-450, mag 1310-1400 po4 .03, no3 1-3 Current Tank Info: System 1... 100 gal Zoa tank I built, 30 gal Ric Yuma shroom tank, 30 gal mix tank my sons,40 gal softie tank, 40 gal nem tank, two 40 gal LPS tank. System 2... 240 gal SPS display attached 100 gal frag SPS only tank.

09/14/2008, 06:25 PM	#8
fatdaddy Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Northeast Florida Posts: 1,191	I realized how still my surface was when I started to angle my return upward, upward, and more upward. I finally have the surface moving. Hm, I did clean the return after the tank cycled, so I guess I didn't direct it sufficiently upward. Thanks for the not very subtle hints. Sometimes I'm a little slow on the uptake. I also moved my ASM G3 from another tank to this one today, so I'm doing some more aggressive skimming. My other tank is healthy. __________________ "We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit." -- Aristotle