EMERGENCY

The friendliest place on the web for anyone with an interest in aquariums or fish keeping!
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.

brndfrb

Aquarium Advice FINatic
Joined
Jul 27, 2003
Messages
753
Location
Danville, Indiana
Ok i have a problem and i don't know what it is. The top of my water is very very gross. It looks like an oil slick but it is actually kind of thick. And sometimes there are little patches of redish prurple slime like stuff floating on the top of the water. So when i see that i suck it out. What the heck is this stuff. Are all my creatures in danger? All water perameters are perfect. PLEASE HELP ME..

Thankls

Brandon
 
Sounds like what is typical when you don't have an overflow or surface skimmer on the tank. It is protein building on the surface, and this happens without causing a danger to your tank.....unless you have no powerheads or anything directed at the surface of the water in which case oxygen transfer could be hindered. The reddish/purple slime sounds like cyanobacteria that has come off of a the rock or substrate and is floating in the tank. Any areas of this should be siphoned out if possible.
 
aquaclear makes a good surface skimmer attachment for their hob filters. Id invest in one.
 
So even though i have a protien skimmer on the tank i should still get a surface skimmer? I am going to be getting a sump in a couple of weeks. Will that take care of the problem hopefully?
 
Back
Top Bottom