# Washing Turface Pro and "oily" substrate



## Yasha (Dec 17, 2009)

Hi,

After washing Turface Pro "thoroughly" in a 5 gallon bucket of water and filling my tank, there appears to be an "oily" residue that floats on top of the water. Will my canister filter remove this or should I do it myself? And if it isn't removed, will it be harmful to fish and plants?


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## Seattle_Aquarist (Mar 7, 2008)

Hi Yasha,

I don't wash Turface. I just put it in dry, do a rough contour, add plants (mist as necessary), and add water. A good canister filter removes the cloudiness in about 4 hours.

The surface of my aquarium has a dust-like residue as well. The tank has been set up about 3 weeks now and the amount has decreased. I suspect it will eventually leave on its own, it doesn't bother my fish or plants....they are doing great!


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## Diana K (Dec 20, 2007)

Ditto Roy.
I only washed the first batch (actually SMS) and never again! 

New tank set up is cloudy only a little bit and the filter clears it (or it settles) within 24 hours. 

Oily film does not sound like anything I have seen from either Turface or SMS, and I do have several tanks with each. 

Can you pick it up by floating a paper towel on the water surface? 
Otherwise, some amount of surface agitation will keep it mixed with the water, and eventually the filter will remove it. If you have no surface movement then it will collect proteins and other wastes, and block the necessary gas exchange. In this way, even if it is non toxic in itself, it can contribute to an unhealthy tank.


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## Yasha (Dec 17, 2009)

Thanks!


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## Sugar Cone (Jan 2, 2010)

If you have a powerhead, Ive read that aiming it slightly upward until you get a small ripple helps with the oily layer. Im not 100% that was in regard to Turface, bu it might be worth a shot.


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## Yasha (Dec 17, 2009)

@sugar cone: thanks--actually, I did something similar and positioned the water outlet above the waterline to create ripples. It was able to keep the oily film from collecting on the sides and as Seattle Aquarist and Diana K said, most of it is gone now.


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## ucdchan (May 9, 2009)

I'm seeing the same thing with my new bag of turface. Got it in San Jose. Ca. 
This is different than the turface I bought in the past. This one looks darker. Almost black

i put some cherry shrimps in to test the water. Let me know how your fish behave in your new tanks.


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