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Old 29-01-2010, 03:03 PM   #1
icemelt86
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Default Film of oil on top of aquarium

Hi guys,

Need some advise on the following matter -

My aquarium has a film of oil on top of the water, which i believe comes from the plants. I have a skimmer which is suppose to remove the oil. however, it is not working, the plastic which is supposed to be slightly submerged is always floating above.

I suspect that its either the skimmer is spoil (although it hardly seem to work the first time round) or my external filter is not strong enough (supposedly 1000L per hr)

Was wondering if any bro here has ever experienced similar problems, Advise needed. Thanks!
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Old 29-01-2010, 05:06 PM   #2
JadeIceGreen
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It is a common problem. How I solved it was to direct filter output near the water surface.

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Old 29-01-2010, 06:15 PM   #3
moscowblue
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use a skimmer to remove it
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Old 30-01-2010, 09:01 AM   #4
icemelt86
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Thanks guys.

JadeIceGreen: I am afraid I cant adopt your idea, i think all my shrimps will be sucked inside haha.

moscowblue: I already have a skimmer but it doesnt seem to work...
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Old 30-01-2010, 02:19 PM   #5
Shadow7
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Change the skimmer lah
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Old 31-01-2010, 10:41 AM   #6
cheetf
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Have you tried adjusting the skimmer? You can twist the top to adjust the amount of water that goes in. The reason why your skimmer is floating is probably because of not enough suction.
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Old 10-03-2010, 10:37 AM   #7
Newtank
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Quote:
Originally Posted by icemelt86 View Post
Hi guys,

Need some advise on the following matter -

My aquarium has a film of oil on top of the water, which i believe comes from the plants. I have a skimmer which is suppose to remove the oil. however, it is not working, the plastic which is supposed to be slightly submerged is always floating above.

I suspect that its either the skimmer is spoil (although it hardly seem to work the first time round) or my external filter is not strong enough (supposedly 1000L per hr)

Was wondering if any bro here has ever experienced similar problems, Advise needed. Thanks!
Are you using the Atman skimmer ( the Eheim look alike type)?
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Old 10-04-2010, 12:17 AM   #8
lenghan
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I had the same problem recently with my 1.5ft tank (using Eden 501). What I did was to use air pump and turn it to high with air-stone attached for a day and I noticed that the oil film are gone.
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Old 14-04-2010, 11:19 PM   #9
Johnc
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Quote:
Originally Posted by icemelt86 View Post
Hi guys,

Need some advise on the following matter -

My aquarium has a film of oil on top of the water, which i believe comes from the plants. I have a skimmer which is suppose to remove the oil. however, it is not working, the plastic which is supposed to be slightly submerged is always floating above.

I suspect that its either the skimmer is spoil (although it hardly seem to work the first time round) or my external filter is not strong enough (supposedly 1000L per hr)

Was wondering if any bro here has ever experienced similar problems, Advise needed. Thanks!
Its not really oil, but plant protein. Get a few nice mollies (any kind will do) and your problem will be solved instantly -- unless of course you are breeding shrimps, in which case you will definitely need a skimmer.

/John
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Old 28-04-2010, 08:15 AM   #10
Weiliang
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Lazy man method:

Use kitchen towel and soak up the protein layer. Might need a few tries.
I'm with the air pump method thou!

Cheers,
Weiliang
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