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Surface Scum - Keeps Coming Back

Clive also the problem is the inificiency of the Juwel internals when it comes to planted tanks. When Clark gets the new filter then I assume he will have a lot less issues than he is having now, Juwel are great if you just want to keep some fish as I have found out with my own tank.
All I got left that came with my Juwel is the glass lol I did keep the internal going just for backup in the event my external broke while I was away.
 
Cheers Clive 🙂

My problems started when I added sintered glass media to replace the crappy 'bio balls' in the Tetratec EX700. Flow was reduced instantly. I even spent 20 minutes arranging the media for best possible flow :lol:

How much media can I remove from each filter to make flow even better, yet keep a good balance of all the good stuff needed to keep things healthy?

Right now, I have 4 trays on each filter. The bottom trays have a layer of ceramic rings, topped with a foam pad. Tray 2 has a layer of sintered glass, topped with foam, tray 3 has two layers of foam, and tray 4 has one later of foam (and room for carbon).

Surely Shirley, I can room some without any side effects?
 
ceg4048 said:
James, if you have the sintered glass you can ditch most or all of the foam. Try that first.
Cheers,
Yeah thats a lot of foam, on my external only have a layer of foam and the two trays are full of two types of ceramic media.
 
I'm sticking to the bubbles theory. they are sticky and gather debris on the way up. To the poster after me who doesn't run CO2. You run an airstone on timer. airstones produce bubbles.

Think I read about this on the barrreport so surprised I'm the only one that agrees with it 😉

I don't agree with the CO2+nutrient theory as my tank is only slow growers (crypts, ferns, anubias) and I dose JamesCs recipe for PMDD+PO4. I use the same amount even though my tank is smaller and I have 25% of his light. I use pressurised and EasyCarbo. DC is light green. bubbles move the length of the tank and stick to every plant as shown in pic.

blackpoollights.jpg

Andy
 
JAmesM said:
Just noticed this Azoo Protein remover on AE though... http://www.aquaessentials.co.uk/index.p ... ts_id=2104

I have no idea if it will affect ferts or plants though... and does it remove the problem, or just mask it?

Well, think about it for a second. Where are the proteins coming from? If that product is a fertilizer then it would help. If it's just some kind of floculent then it's masking the problem. I don't use any protein remover nor do I use any protein skimmer (which is completely over the top) or mechanical device other than strong filtration.

As you can see from the photo I don't have film or debris. Haven't had any type of film or debris in almost a decade, unless I don't dose properly. I do remember long ago struggling with white film and having to use terry cloth towels every few days on the surface to remove the film. Boy, was that a drag. :arghh: Terry cloth towels and kitchen rolls were a feature product of water change day. This problem went away when I added more nutrients/CO2 and/or improved flow. No other product was necessary.

Here is another surface snapshot I pulled out of the archive. This is after I got a hot tip about Fluval spraybars from SuperColey1 so I was able to ditch those horrible green Eheim ones (cheers Andy! 😀 ). As you can see the surface is pristine. Now, if I go looking for a film, or if I peer from the top at just the right angle then yes, I can just see a very thin film. There is always a protein ejection but it is controllable. My view is that if you feed your plants then all of these Looney Tune problems will go away. If you are already feeding high nutrients and and are at your fishes limit for CO2 and are still getting the film then that means you need more flow.
8394115845_d7ca6ffd66_c.jpg


Cheers,
 
Surface scum is a another reason I like to 'massively overfilter', usually 10-20x turnover, with plenty of surface agitation.

Sure, CO2 consumption is relatively high, but the trade-offs are well worth it. Good O2, crystal clear water, good nutrient and CO2 distribution, minimal detritus, minimal/no algae issues and no surface scum.

Good external filters aren't expensive to buy or run these days. Really, there's little excuse...
 
I've always tended to have some of my Lily pipe out of the water as I like to pull O in as well as inject CO2. Like George I don't think the price of CO2 warrants being too worried about losing some.

Also like George I think surface agitation doesn't just stop a film from forming but also sems to improve the clarity by a huge amount down below. Unlike George I only have the 5x filtration so I assume it is mainly down to the surface movement rather than the extra media although that surely helps a little too.

Were I to lower the lily again I would bet the scum would form very quickly even though I am overdosing with low light and using an extra powerhead to boost the circulation.

Andy
 
I had done my water change and everything was fab. Scum removed and after a day it wasn't there.
Then I fed my fish, it returned within a few minutes and hasn't gone away.
So I'm wondering if it's the food?

I've increased my ferts but guess that'll take some time to take effect.

Just strange that the food caused the scum/film to come back.
 
It will take a couple weeks. There are no magic wands. Water changes just cleans out whats in the tank at the moment but it doesn't halt production.

Cheers,
 
Superman said:
I had done my water change and everything was fab. Scum removed and after a day it wasn't there.
Then I fed my fish, it returned within a few minutes and hasn't gone away.
So I'm wondering if it's the food?

I've increased my ferts but guess that'll take some time to take effect.

Just strange that the food caused the scum/film to come back.

Sorry if you've already said but do you have sand as a substrate?
 
This is slowly coming back, not as bad as before.
I had a good look at the large display aquariums at AquaJardin and notice they had some of the same as me. Although theirs gets pushed around more than mine. Mine gets clogged up at the front.
To try and combat it, I've added my Koralia (spel!) nano pump on one side, and aim to get a 2nd to go in the opposite corner.
 
I get it in my current 4 footer. I've learnt to live with it. It does no harm as far as I can tell.
 
I get it in my smaller tank but its only started after I started using Easycarbo and profita.
 
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