skimmer not producing yuk????

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vwmoneypit

vwmoneypit

one larg lps
Joined
Dec 20, 2005
Messages
430
Location
spokane w.a
well it has come to my attn that my skimmer after many adj will not make alot of biproduct is this due to....
A.too big of skimmer
B.under sized pump on it
C.I am just too stupid to figure it out
D.Amount of water evap to mix of top off water not allowing enuff time?

Please those that shall hail the exprience let me know
Oh and for the nitrate ? it is not to diff than with a smaller skimmer
The product it is producing is white foam
I have six fish 3 clowns and three bastard damels aka 4 stripe and a couple of shrimp and as ruin everything urchin l.o.l. thank you in advance to all:lol:
 
well i'm not an expert but i'll give it a try :p .

what kind of skimmer are you talking about?
does it have a valve or something to calibrate it?

sometimes if the skimmer is new... you gotta give it sometime so it can start kicking butt :p... if it has some some sort of valve... make sure you got it adjust it to where there's not to much flow going in there otherwise i believe it'll make just waterish goo.
like i said i'm not the skimmer guru :D :p but just some ideas, i'm sure someone will give you a better advice dood :)
 
when I first installed the skimmer it went crazy for about a week then this started did it shimm it clean I feed way less now tooo himm maybe this is a good thing butt u know saltwater tanks next thing caboooom l.o.l.
 
i agee a pic would help dood :).
about pumps I'm not sure ...one person who's good at that it's skimmerwhisperer (Mark) dood.
 
well maybe tonight guys working on the auto top off for the pond out back today and finishing the rock structure and the power box had to redo it all due to dog and last winter
 
hey anyone want a sebernise sheperd was abused b4 I got him very loveable needs a single guy to love him and playwith him I dont have time for all things and him let me know if anyone is interested well back to subject
 
I have no experience with that particular skimmer but there are certain factors that should help any skimmer run optimally. in no particular order:

1) keep input water level consistent
different water levels will cause more or less pressure on the pump, causing the waterlevel inside to fluctuate away from optimal. a baffle in the sump can keep the height of the water constant. also check the manual to make sure you are running the skimmer at the right depth.

2) isolate input from output water
anthony calfo IIRC likes to put the skimmer in a bucket in the sump with the overflow from the tank draining into the bucket, and the skimmer output flowing outside the bucket into the sump. This has dual advantages in that the water level is kept constant (as above) but more importantly, you are always only skimming overflow water, rather than overflow AND already-skimmed water. Obviously to do this your skimmer has to have a slower flow-rate than the overflow, or else the bucket could run dry.

3) get junk to the skimmer
the most powerful skimmer in the world won't do much if the detritus and crud cannot get to it. lots of flow in the tank to get detritus in suspension, into the overflow, and straight into skimmer will always give the skimmer something to take out.

4) change one thing at a time and observe closely for a day or 3 to see results
This is really from experience. I found out I had been running my bakpak skimmer sub-optimally for months now because I expected immediate results. The way I was tuning it produced some skimmate immediately, but was very inconsistent & had to be adjusted constantly. after a lucky accident I tuned the skimmer exactly opposite of my usual method, and after a day it produced better, more consistent foam then ever before. the moral of this story is to make small, consistent changes and then wait awhile to let them take effect. sometimes you might be suprised.

hope this helps.
 
and keep your hands out of the tank. sometimes this will cause the skimmer to stop producing. also i would take the pump apart and clean the impeller and everything and make sure there isnt any salt or calcium build-up on the skimmer valve or injector if you can get to it. sometimes turning it off while you clean is enough to disolve salt build up.
 
wow will try all things but maybe I need to work on a auto top off rather than adding a gallon and a half a day of water hell with 14 plants two fish tanks in a 900 sqr ft house you would think It would use let but whatever thanks guy keep the ideas rolling
 
hey so the idea is to make a overflow box where the flo from the tank dumps into the area where the skimmer is than it overflows into the sump .that is a good idea, than the only water retrieved by the skimmer is from the tank not the fill or skimmed water, wow what a little time to think will do ,well I guess buy a 20 gal tank and sell the amarical system and get some glass cut for baffles ect like they say "never think youre done with it lol "
 
so, you never said which pump you are using on this skimmer...
i suspect it is underpowered, or mabye your beckett injector is clogged.

beckett skimmers must have high pressure pumps on them to perform properly, like an iwaki external pump.
 
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