UUGH! Surface Skim in RR?

[dakota9]

I just new when I went with a tank that had a built in overflow that my surface film days were over.....

THIS is not the case.

After a month of the tank being set up, I looked up through the side of the tank to the surface, and little brown islands has started to form because the surface film is so bad.

What can I do to adjust the system to where the surface slime/film/sewage/crap/refuse/snot/chunks goes down the overflow?

Anybody else got this problem?

For now I'm going to put the Aqua-C HOB w/surface skimmer on the display to help the situation. (The surface skimmer is going to Maplredda if I can ever get to the post office in time, but glad I still have it for this emergency)

Thanks

 

[blind1993]

my freind had this problem and we removed the durso for a day or two and it was gone. but it still came back so he takes the durso of a day or two every month.

 

[reeftankjunkie]

Try pointing a powerhead at the surface of the water. I will break it up and allow it to be skimmed. I have my return line pointed so it causes ripples on the surface.

 

[dakota9]

I'll try both in the future, right now I probably just need to get this sludge out of the system.....

Any other ideas?

Obviously the slits in the overflow extend too far into the surface of the water, I was thinking perhaps I could cover up half the slit across the overflow and this would force the surface to pour into the overflow, rather than the water beneath the surface to feed the overflow....

Anyone try that?


Thanks

 

[george]

Sounds like you have 2 problems. Insufficient surface agitation (which will also promote better oxygen exchange, but also increase evaporation if you don't have a hood) and possibly eddies/dead spots in your surface water movement. The latter might be caused by flows colliding in your tank. When that happens, it's possible to have pockets of water that actually have little movement, even though you may have a mountain of water flow pumps in the tank.

 

[dakota9]

I'm surprised at what little evaporation I'm having actually. My sumpless 30g long went through 1g a day reliably, now the 65g DT, 10g fuge and 10g sump is still only evaporating 1g a day, even though it is a hoodless setup. I attribute this to weather changes.

If anything, I'm guilty of all my flow pointed in the same direction, theres no convergent flow in my tank. The return and Tunze are both pointed in the same direction, creating a whirlpool effect. You can see the crap traveling in a clockwise circle on the surface. I know alot of folks go for convergent flow/ wave maker effect, but how much convergent flow do tank raised softies really need? If I had an sps specific tank, I'd certainly consider it.

After I get the surface cleaned a bit, I'll point the Tunze upwards a bit, hopefully thats all thats needed.....

Thanks

 

[dannybradley]

Drag a plastic bag across the surface. It will all cling to it. Saran wrap may also work.

 

[dakota9]

Big D (I've always thought your name to be a bit suggestive, but maybe thats just me.


I all ready have a 3 inch water fall in my overflow, yet to no avail.

I originally scoffed a DB's tip to wipe the surface with plastic sheeting, but that trick REALLY works!

I think I'll do a huge water change tonight and diatom with (what other than) the trusty Magnum....

Thanks guys!

 

[dannybradley]

Dakota, I wouldn't reccomend anything that hasn't worked well for me in the past. Glad it worked!

 

[cdub]

i had the same problem only not with brown islands, just areas that had a little film. i moved some of my powerheads around and that seemed to take care of it. also like big d said you can just lower your stand pipe so it only pulls the very top of the water into the overflow.

 

[roland jacques]

DannyBradley;92430 wrote: Drag a plastic bag across the surface. It will all cling to it. Saran wrap may also work.

Danny
I try-ed this today and did not see very good results. Any kind of bag in particular you use?

I usually use copy paper, but i have to turn off the water pumps and lay them all across the entire surface. Your method sounds like it would be faster.

 

[skriz]

it sounds like maybe the water is not draining fast enough also. Maybe you need a bigger return?

but, surface agitation is #1.

 

[cameron]

I run my return nozzles above the water line into the corners of the tank. This keeps back flow when the return is off to a minimum and brings flow into otherwise low flow areas of my tank. The second thing is to point some of your pumps up toward the surface (not too crazy). Pushing water at the surface aggitates the water which helps cure this problem, causes better gas exchange and increases flow. Water is simply easier to push at the top and this translates into greater flow thanks to gravity.

One note about something you said earlier. The whirlpool effect in most tanks is not a very good flow pattern. As the water swirls downward it crashes into the rock surface slowing down. Think of your rock work like aerodynamic setup (in this case hydrodynamic). The less the water crashes into things the faster it moves. Moving the flow from left to right in most tanks will improve the turnover in the tank.