floating stuff ? sheet of algae ?

ive noticed a sheet of film like substance forming on the surface of my tank ? is this some kind of algae ? i have my water disturbance at a very minimal level. its kinda pungent er... grassy smell smell when you touch it and it looks like oil but more sticky or something ?

edit
http/www.thekrib.com/Filters/Busko/
ive read around and found this ? does anybody have experience with making one ? im using a HOB filter... and i dont have a tank lid so my water level sinks pretty fast.. faster then my weekly water change

Ive got kinda the same thing in my 10gal. I only have a single black skirt that has been living in there over a year.

Does the film kinda look like a "gasoline on top of water" effect? With just kinda a light brown color on top?

This has still been there after many water changes and tank cleaning.

Wolf

Alot of the surface film comes from the food u feed your fish. Altough thats not the only major reason. (sometimes its from new tank syndrome too).

I read that if it gets really bad, lay a sheet of newspaper on the waters surface for a few seconds, then lift the paper off to remove the film off the surface of the water, but b careful, cause the newspaper can disintergreat in your fingers once wet.

Surface agitation also helps.

Goodluc guys

edit
http/www.thekrib.com/Filters/Busko/
ive read around and found this ? does anybody have experience with making one ?

Click to expand...

haha i just made one. its pretty simple. and yes, taht is surface scum from foods, wastes, rotting plants, etc.

what you do is you get a bottle or something, and fit it onto the intake of your HOB just below the surface, so that it will suck surface. Ill draw a picture and post it later.

edit: wait i just read the rest of that article. he uses a different method than mine, but mine is still pretty good imo

ok here goes

edit: ok it worked! all right, heres what it is

the squiggly is the water surface, the block thing is the HOB, and the thin tube is the intake. the thing on the tube is the container (i use a clear plastic cup), you adjust it so its just below the water surface, and it sucks the scum up.

the only problem with this design is that if ur water level lowers due to evaporation, the water will stop flowing to the filter and on some types of filter this can cause the engine to overheat and die. otherwise its a pretty efficient (and cheap) surface 'skimmer'

I dont see how i could have so much excess foods and waste. And i dont even have live plants! I only feed my ONE fish what he can eat and no food really gets wasted in the tank! grr

Wolf

it could be just dust, if ur tank is open top, or just a little opening where dust or oils from foods can settle on the surface, it can make a film

Hmm i have no idea why its like that. I have a fullly covered hood covering the tank. Oh well...

Wolf

ic ic, is there another way to create a suction from the surface ? or the cup method is a good one, i dont think i can keep up with my evaporation rate maybe if i use a tube or something ? with slits on the side and connect it to my hob intake ? hmmmm ideas ideas