green subtance on top of water

[withington]

hi I delt with this as soon as I saw it i have had the tank set up for age with the bubbles filter everything going and I am doing my change the 25% water evey 2 weeks as well. But this lad said if you turn ur bubbles of for 2 weeks your plants will grow quicker so I did. then I noctied there was a green subtance on top of the water i anged to get it off with out eptying the whole tank why did this happen and what was it ?

 

[Miss Dib Dabs]

Sounds like an algea growth. My plants grow just fine with bubbles going. In fact my 35 is like an overgrown forest that I have to hack back every now and then! I actually took out a big plant from it today during water changing to help with water flow. Happily I put the big thing in my bigger tank where the plants seem to grow slower. Probably due to the depth of it and the light being a bit dimmer.
If you want your plants to grow better you could either try using an aquarium fertiliser or up-ing the lighting for them. So long as it doesn't upset the fish of course.
Was it just green? I mean, was it a browny green or bluey green etc? That can often give a more accurate idea of what type of growth it is. Put the bubbles back on too. In turning them off the water has become stiller and the oxygen in the water will be less.
Hugs,
P.