Film on top of water.

Question
I have a new 55 gal tank with 35lbs of cured live rock and about 1in. of live sand.  It has been set up for about two weeks.  I have noticed what appers to be a salty film on the top of the water and also a lot of salt deposits on the tubes from the filter.  Is this normal and what can I do to keep this in check?  Also there seems to be a brownish deposit on the live sand.   Thank You......

Answer
HI Shean. The film you are seeing on the top of the water is normal when you first set up a saltwater tank. This is usually cased from the dusts in the sand or gravel( especially live sand). It will usually have a slight white or milky appearance and should go away in a few weeks. Salt deposits are a normal part of owning a saltwater tank. Anywhere the water moves and meets the air will eventually be over run with salt deposits. This happens when the water splashes or adheres to an area and then evaporates. Since salt doesn't evaporate it gets left behind and causes what is known as salt creep. This can just be removed by hand or cleaned off with a wet rag depending on where it is. This is a part of the normal maintenance of a saltwater tank! The brownish deposits on the live sand are just diatoms. These bloom in a newly set up tank. This is a normal part of the start up period and just one of the algae that you will encounter along the way. The diatom bloom can eventually cover every surface in your tank but the good news is that it will clear up on its own just as quickly as it appeared. There is nothing you need to do to get rid of it, just leave it alone and it will go away. If it gets really bad and ugly you can fan it off the rocks or gravel, but it will come back and it can get pretty bad before it subsides.