greasy looking water

[newTOtheHOBBY]

when I look up to the surface of my tank water it looks greasy
what is causing this? and is it a big issue?

I have a 30gallon tank 7 weeks old
1 cleaner shrimp
1 domino damsel
2 snails
and 1 purple basslet that I haven't seen for 3 days now
a couple mushroom corals and a few (xenias?)

ammonia test says 0.25ppm
pH is at 7.8 ( tryin to raise it ) (any suggestions?)
nittrite is between 0 and 0.25ppm
nitrate is at 20ppm. :-o that's high right?

also I plan on upgrading to a 75 gallon tank and using the 30 for a sump
what should I do to sucessfully move life from 30 to 75?

 

[coolhandgoose]

Welcome to the site.
7.8 ph isn't bad.
your other parameters seem fine and are probably only show .25 because of just the way the test kit is.

How is the flow in the tank? What kind of filtration are you using?

 

[reeffreak]

The surface film is organic waste that rises to the surface.A powerhead or two rippling the surface may help some.The dirtiest part of the water is at the surface.Some type of surface skimmer attachment will help but I wouldn't bother since you are upgrading to a larger tank and sump system.

 

[newTOtheHOBBY]

well the guy I was to buy my larger tank from sold it to someone else
so I guess I'm gonna try to make this little one work

right now I'm using the whisper30 by "tetra" I believe
need to ugrade I've been told
thinking of canister type filter

also replacing the light that came in the kit with a double t5 unit
???

also I checked carbonate hardness today and it's way high, how can I bring it down?
also the nitrates are still around 20-40 ppm
everything else is good

I only have calcium, hardness and the API master kit for tests kits so far

 

[newTOtheHOBBY]

o and the "greasy" is gone

I have just the filter and one powerhead for flow
the powerhead is on the opposite end to the filter, it's halfway down the tank as well

 

[BL1]

well the guy I was to buy my larger tank from sold it to someone else
so I guess I'm gonna try to make this little one work

right now I'm using the whisper30 by "tetra" I believe
need to ugrade I've been told
thinking of canister type filter

also replacing the light that came in the kit with a double t5 unit
???

also I checked carbonate hardness today and it's way high, how can I bring it down?
also the nitrates are still around 20-40 ppm
everything else is good

I only have calcium, hardness and the API master kit for tests kits so far

Well, the reason your nitrates are so high is probably mostly due to you using a HOB filter. You should get rid of it, those and canister filters are really a fresh water technology. If you are not going to use a sump then you should get a HOB skimmer. Also, how often are you doing water changes? As far as your lights, in your tank you'll either need to go with a 4-6 T5 fixture with individual reflectors or a metal halide fixture if you want to keep corals.

o and the "greasy" is gone

I have just the filter and one powerhead for flow
the powerhead is on the opposite end to the filter, it's halfway down the tank as well

Like a said, get rid of the filter. And what the flow rate of your powerhead, chances are you need at least one more. I've got 4 powerheads running in my 75g

 

[newTOtheHOBBY]

I was told metal halides would be too much heat for my tank
and as for water changes, I've definately been shirking that duty
how often would you recommend?

 

[Bifferwine]

Halides wouldn't be too much light for your tank. Either MH or T5s will be fine.

You will definitely need more than than two T5 bulbs to keep corals though.

Brian is right about your water quality. HOB filters and canister filters are generally bad and lead to high nitrates. You should do 10 to 20% the volume of your tank every week for water changes.

 

[BL1]

Metal halides aren't too much at all. I'm running 2 250w MH and 4 54w T5s over my tank.

 

[Bifferwine]

Over a 30 gallon tank, you could use a 150 watt metal halide pendant. That would allow you to keep everything but high-light corals, clams and anemones. If you went with a 250 watt metal halide pendant, your light would be strong enough for you to keep anything you wanted.

 

[BL1]

Oops, I saw 75g in the sig