Trapped Oxygen?

[paulz01]

Okay so this has been happening for awhile now and I am now very curious on whats going on. I have a lot of bubbles stuck on my surface but they're not popping? Are they trapped Oxygen? Will they suffocate my plants? Also, there's always this layer of scum on the surface of the water. Please help I want to get rid of this or just help me by telling me what it is.

 

[Rockbass6]

How long has it been setup? Scum could be sand particles.

 

[paulz01]

Been set up for almost 3 years now

 

[Rockbass6]

Well thats not it enless you stirred up the sandy substrate recently maybe from a possible waterchange, sand tends to do that. There is a chemical that you could pick up at a walmart that clears up cloudy water. Doesn't harm your fish, I had to use it when I put in the florite in my planted tank. (what a mess.) Its in a small bottle, can't think of the name. Should say on it clear water conditioner or something. I wouldn't be worried about it. Does it look like an oily, sandy look? or just bubbles, its kind of hard to see from the picture. I used that chemical and within hours tank cleared up real nice!

 

[velanarris]

Iron bacteria.

It'll cause both surface bubbles and the planaria outbreak you have going there.

Question, if you break the scum with your figer or a paper towel does it merge back together very quickly or does it stay separated like soap bubbles?

 

[paulz01]

Iron bacteria.

It'll cause both surface bubbles and the planaria outbreak you have going there.

Question, if you break the scum with your figer or a paper towel does it merge back together very quickly or does it stay separated like soap bubbles?

they just break apart.

Also, yeah i did a full waterchange and changed the aquascape and stirred the sand yesterday. however, it stays there even after many days after the water change.

 

[swede]

what do you have for filtration?

 

[paulz01]

what do you have for filtration?

2 xp3

 

[tcarswell]

2 xp3

Do they break the surface much ? How much surface agitation do you have?

 

[Toby_H]

As oils are lighter than water, they float... I've had many tanks with little surface agitation have what appears to be oil collect at the surface. I can only speculate what caused it, but ove many years it has been a common thing to find and has I've never associated any problems with it...

Surface agitation should prevent oils from building up at the surface... and the oils at the surface are likely what is preventing the bubbles from disipating into the air... in other words, surface agitation will solve both problems...