Gunk on top of water?

[walle]

There's a lot of gunk floating on top of my tank's water. I use gallon jugs to store water for changes, half have Stress Coat and half have Prime, so my tank is half and half. I don't have the filter on because I forgot once again to pick up an aquarium sponge with which to baffle it. I just got my new betta, Gustav, yesterday, and he has no stress stripes and seems to be loving his new home. I acclimated him for an hour and a half. What could be causing this gunk on top of the water?

[Oldfishlady]

What kind of substrate are you using.....and how many days has the tank been setup....

[iloveengl]

That film is typical of a water surface that isn't disturbed in a fish tank. A filter or air stone will disturb the surface and keep that film from building up during water changes.

[HatsuneMiku]

that does not look like the typical protein film you see in betta tanks ..

is it clear/irredescant looking ? take a non-lotioned tissue .. and dab the surface with it .. and touch it ... see if it's kinda slimey?

[walle]

I'm using standard PetCo gravel, it's blue/green in color. The water had been running in it for several days prior to getting Gustav with the filter on. The film is clear-white, not rainbowy or oily looking. The only tissues I have are the lotioned kind. :-/

[Leeniex]

I get the same film, but only in my acrylic tank. Both my glass and acrylic have the same gravel. Weird. I just figured it was "fish scum".

[walle]

My tank is acrylic too! Weird!

[Oldfishlady]

Did you rinse the gravel and decorations really good before you filled the tank up....I agree it doesn't look like a protein/organic scum that is often normal in an unfiltered tank......I would make a couple of water changes and you can use a paper towel and lay over the stuff to help remove it too....it looks like gravel/sand or household dust...

[walle]

I rinsed everything twice with scalding hot tap water, I even burnt my hands a little bit.

I'll do a water change after dinner and let you know how it goes.

[walle]

Ok, so I did a 25% water change, and the top of the water is much clearer now! Some pieces of the film stuck to the side of the tank and I wiped them off with a paper towel and they were slightly yellow. I also wiped a few off with my finger and as I rubbed my fingers together, it felt powdery and soft, not slimy. What could it be?