Odd film on water

My adult male C. orientalis who left the water nearly 2 months ago and hasn't been eating well was moved a couple of weeks ago to his own tank. Last night, I realized that I never put his filter in the new tank and when I went to do so, saw a white film over parts of the water. The water chemistry is fine. I've never used the filter full time in his old tank, just a few hours several times per week.

Anyway, I was wondering if this film could be from the calcium powder when I tried to feed him crickets. Otherwise, I'm not sure what it is and if I should change the water or not. I guess I'd have to recycle the tank if that was indicated????

Dana

I had a similar thing with my axolotl tank. I used to scoop it off the top with a net once a day and do a partial water change. I repeated this for a couple of days (3/4) and I found that it eventually sorted itself out. It could be due to excess protein in the water caused by left over food etc. but as I said I found that after a few days doing the above it cleared up. Hope this helps.

The film on the surface is caused by the accumulation of proteic derivates from bacteria processed organic matter in the water. You can get rid of most of it by placing a paper towel on the surface and taking it out fast. It will absorb the layer. Long term, the way to avoid this is to make sure that you maintain an excellent cleaning routine.
Why were you using a filter just for a few hours a week? The function of a filter is to provide a media for optimal bacterial growth, so that they can process the waste. The bacteria are aerobic, so the filter constantly runs water through the colony making sure it´s well oxygenated. If you stop the current for periods longer than half an hour or so, you risk asphyxiating the whole colony since the oxygen levels will drop drastically. If this happens, the colonization of the filter media needs to happen again. Basically what you are elft with is a thing that creates unwanted current and heat...and has no benefits.
If you choose to use a filter, run it constantly so that it can fulfill its function. Otherwise don´t use a filter at all, there´s no point.

Don´t worry about the layer on the surface, just keep doing partial water changes, cleaning regularly, and if it accumulates, use the paper towels.

Azhael said:

If you stop the current for periods longer than half an hour or so, you risk asphyxiating the whole colony since the oxygen levels will drop drastically.

Click to expand...

Eeeeeeeeeeek! My power apparently went off for about 2 hours yesterday. Need to whip out the test kit when I get home. Now I'm going to worry for the next few hours. I've got 3 filters running on my 55 gallon.

Thanks, guys.

Azhael, I was using the filter sparingly because I worry about heat being generated (it's hot as can be here year round) and he was in the tank that was divided and I worried that in that 1/2 tank that housed the filter, the current would be uncomfortable. I have that filter breaking onto the turtle dock, so I guess it's fine. The one in the new tank is a turtle filter and the current is even lower. When I realized it wasn't ever placed, I put it on last night and forgot to turn it off - I will now just let it run, though I do worry about increasing the temperature. Is that a legitimate concern?

Thanks,
Dana

Well, it can be depending on the model and your current temps and the volume of water.
I would suggest live plants as an alternative to filters. This species really loves still water, and deep masses of plants, so it´s a win-win situation xD