Oily film on water surface

[Tarkus2112]

View attachment 25911
View attachment 25912
Not the best pictures, but I tried.

Does anyone know what this is or what is causing it? I just noticed it last night.

 

[Andrewz00]

looks like biofilm to me...

i had a thread on this awhile back... you can check it out Here

 

[BigJim]

If it's indeed an oily film and not cloudy water, it can come from a lot of sources. Aerosol propellents, cooking fumes, even skin oil can make that film.

 

[melosu58]

I`m a SW person but Surface aggitation does a good job of breaking it up. I`ve also seen people put a paper towel on top of it and then pull it out.

 

[CA_BroncoFan]

Ive seen this atributed to oil skin alot, especially if you have lotion or something on when you reach in the tank.

 

[PzIkHo]

I have this problem about once or so a month, and when it starts to happen I notice the bubbles float around on the surface longer before they pop. The water just looks thick. But then I started noticing my aqueon filter was filled and the water was just bypassing the filter, getting run through a pump and dumped back into the tank. So I started keeping an eye on it, and whenever I notice the film start to appear and the bubbles start taking longer to pop, I just change out my filter and it goes away within a day.
Good luck!

 

[mfdrookie516]

Sit dechlorinated water in a cup or bowl for a few days with no agitation and you'll see the same thing. I used to have bio-film appear on my tanks, then I increased surface agitation by means of a spray bar... haven't seen it since.

 

[Andrewz00]

+1 for surface agitation as a solution...

 

[Marconis]

This used to happen to my 72 gallon. I never found out why, but I wound up relating it to my oily skin (don't be grossed out, I'm not greasy, just have excess oil on my hands ) Anyway, like others have said, agitation breaks it up nicely. It always occurred in the dead spots of my tank.

See? Lol

 

[Tarkus2112]

Surface agitation is the key.

As my water level drops from evaporation my AC70 causes a lot more surface agitation. I guess I had my water level a little to high? Now the film is barely noticeable.