aquarium oil spill

[dan19]

there is a thin white layer building up at the surface of the water. i think it's the fat from the shrimp meat which i feed to the fishes.
how do i get rid of it? is it harmful?

 

[dugan]

That's the scuz that your skimmer should be getting. Do you have a skimmer?
Katie

 

[marine qa]

Increased surface agitation should get rid of it.

 

[salisbury a d]

It is not harmful to your tank but it is unsightly. I you have an overflow that should help get rid of it.
Adam

 

[b_ball12_99]

I agree about getting more surface circulation.

 

[flydan]

Hey, I have another post on this forum, but does anybody know of a way to put a flow deflector on a Hagen 402? I could use more surface agitation and I can't aim these ph's up. (I can do it a little by angling the whole thing at a 45 degree angle.) I called Hagen and they don't make one for this model, just smaller ones, and they don't fit.
Thanks!
Dan'l

 

[dugan]

I'm not sure if it was your post I responded to earlier... so forgive me if I'm repeating myself!
You could run a cheap Whisper filter or something similar to create good surface agitation. I have one on my 55 w/o filter media and it does the trick.
Katie

 

[tangs_in_pacifica]

Dan19,
What kind of foiltration do you have right now? Chances are, you can figure out a way to make it draw water from the surface. I know that CPR, for example, sell one for their BackPack skimmers. There are also add-on surface in-take attachments for canister filters.

 

[krazzydart]

use a skimmer and increase water flow on top of water!!!!!

 

[beth]

That "oil" slick is actually dead bacteria that is floating atop the water. More water circulation at the surface will break it up, but its still going to be in your tank. Good skimming, overflow...I heard of some people mopping it up with paper towels.