10G Betta Tank Questions

[quattroc2002]

Hello all.
 
I kept tropical fish years ago so I'm not a complete newbie to the hobby.  Anyway, 4 weeks ago, my wife and 4 year old daughter brought home a betta. Unfortunately, the pet store sold them the "betta bowl" to house it in. Needless to say, 250 bucks later, he was sitting in a 10g tank on a stand with an aquaclear filter.  I had no choice but to dump the guy in an uncycled tank which was not my preference.
 
So on to my questions. 
 
First off, 4 weeks later, no cycling has not started as far as I can see.  I test every other day for ammonia/nitrite and have yet to see any readings.  I'm very careful with feedings to ensure there is no waste in the tank and do a water change once a week.  I'm wondering if a single betta just isn't producing enough waste to start the cycle? 
 
Secondly, he is in a tank with 3 plastic plants and some driftwood.  I've never seen this before in any tank I've kept but there is a film at the surface of the tank.  It kind of looks like some kind of oil as its sort of miky rainbow coloured.  It's more noticeable if I reduce the flow of my filter (preferable with a betta).  I've been skimming it off regularly but it keeps coming back.  Kind of baffled as to the cause of this.
 
Thanks in advance for any replies.

 

[snork6]

the oil like stuff is a caused when there is not enough movement to the the surface of the water (the water surface is constantly moving) I know in my 10 gallon tank that will happen when 1. my filter is clogged 2. when I have to much water in the tank. I have gotten it to where I know the right level of water to put in so the filter makes little waves on top of the water. hope that helped someone correct me if i'm wrong

 

[quattroc2002]

I'll definitely try out reducing the water level but curious as to what causes it. 

 

[Gruntle]

If you're feeding a betta-specific food it's possibly higher in fat/oil content and it's the excess oil filming on the surface.
 
When I bought my quarantine tank it came with "extras" - betta pellets, mirrors, fake plants etc. I have been using a bit of the betta pellets about once a week to introduce variety into my fishes' diet, and I can see the oil leaching out of the tablets as they sink.

 

[NickAu]

 
I've never seen this before in any tank I've kept but there is a film at the surface of the tank.  It kind of looks like some kind of oil as its sort of miky rainbow coloured

 
the oil like stuff is a caused when there is not enough movement to the the surface of the water (the water surface is constantly moving) I know in my 10 gallon tank that will happen when 1

Live Floating plants help in eliminating this.