Skimmer Problem

[Sculpin]

Over the past week my protein skimmer has stopped producing bubbles, and I have no idea why. I bought it second hand and it's always just worked, producing lots of bubbles regardless what position I have the knobs set. I've tried adjusting the knobs and there are still no bubbles in the skimmer. One change in the system is the small white outlet (has the blue knob on top) has been spouting out water, which it's never done before.

Any ideas what I should adjust or fix to get my skimmer working again.

Thanks!!!

 

[DBM Reef]

This is a beckett right ?
Have you cleaned the beckett lately?
(maybe a dumb question but worth a try) LOL

 

[lvsuckerfish]

I am with DBM clean it up nice and good should start like new again. never dealt with a becket skimmer but had the same issue with a air hose clogged and cleaned it out walla started with bubbles again.

 

[Skimmy]

bekett injectors are infamous for getting things stuck in them...

you can take it out of the acrylic housing, take a ring off one end and the whole thing comes apart, bet it's full of crap...

 

[Sculpin]

If you are asking if the skimmer model is a Beckett, I’m really not sure. I got it second hand and it didn't come with instructions. I've been running it for over 2 years without any maintenance beyond cleaning out the skimmed gunk at the top. Sounds like cleaning is the answer, so is there anything specific I should be focusing on? It’s too big to pull out of the sump, so I’ll probably need to clean it in stages. I tried cleaning the intake section with the blue knob (top right in the picture), and it was relatively clean. The white outlet still sputters water, but there appears to be some bubbles starting to flow (maybe 1/20 the original bubble flow), but it happens in bursts with the rhythm of the pump pushing water into the skimmer.

 

[Freya]

I would really recommend against cleaning it inside of your tank. You have no idea how much nasty is built up inside of it, and I would not want that released into my tank!! I would do whatever it takes to take it out of the sump. It is going to be gross!

 

[hank187]

with the water filling the chamber were the air gets mixed in to the skimmer makes it sound like it might even be a problem with the outlet of the skimmer being backed up. have you changed the amount of water in your sump or lowered the skimmer deeper in to the water that would cause more back pressure in the skimmer. you might check out the valve on the outlet and see if it's opening and closing.

 

[DBM Reef]

If you are asking if the skimmer model is a Beckett, I’m really not sure. I got it second hand and it didn't come with instructions. I've been running it for over 2 years without any maintenance beyond cleaning out the skimmed gunk at the top. Sounds like cleaning is the answer, so is there anything specific I should be focusing on? It’s too big to pull out of the sump, so I’ll probably need to clean it in stages. I tried cleaning the intake section with the blue knob (top right in the picture), and it was relatively clean. The white outlet still sputters water, but there appears to be some bubbles starting to flow (maybe 1/20 the original bubble flow), but it happens in bursts with the rhythm of the pump pushing water into the skimmer.

I would focus on the injector itself its in the clear tube where tbe water goes in

 

[Skimmy]

you can take it out of the acrylic housing, take a ring off one end and the whole thing comes apart, bet it's full of crap...

just unscrew the 4 white screws on the black lid where the water goes into the skimmer, take that lid off and pull out the black injector from inside.
you'll notice the ring or sleeve on one end of the injector that comes off, then the injector comes apart.

 

[Sculpin]

Ugh, after taking apart the whole skimmer and being really confused because there was almost no debris to clean out, the skimmer still wasn't working properly. The strange thing was when I turned my pumps back on after cleaning the skimmer, I noticed a big surge of water in the skimmer, and for a few seconds it appeared to be working like normal. So I started playing around with the knobs that control the flow/rate of water through my tubes and noticed that the water flow seemed to be slow, so I started checking my pumps and finally found the problem. The pump that returns the water to the tank sits on a sponge to help dampen the sound, and the sponge had shifted and was covering the hole that sucks water out of the sump. The whole problem with the skimmer was it wasn't getting enough water flow to operate properly. After all that effort, the fix was so simple.

Thanks for all the help everyone, at least now I know my skimmer inside and out.

 

[DBM Reef]

Sweet glad its fixed. I think that you're supposed to clean that injector pretty regularly to keep the Skimmer working its best so at least now you know where it is and how easy it is.

 

[hank187]

cool, every one loves a good mystery. Im glad it turned out good, and sorry you had to take the hole thing apart before you found the problem. We have all been there before.

 

[vimal]

my skimmer create alot of buble from the water from the powerhead..but it doesnt create the soapy(white colour or foam) thing on the cup??? any idea..??
my tank still new..

 

[vimal]

help...

with the water filling the chamber were the air gets mixed in to the skimmer makes it sound like it might even be a problem with the outlet of the skimmer being backed up. have you changed the amount of water in your sump or lowered the skimmer deeper in to the water that would cause more back pressure in the skimmer. you might check out the valve on the outlet and see if it's opening and closing.

my skimmer create alot of buble from the water from the powerhead..but it doesnt create the soapy(white colour or foam) thing on the cup??? any idea..??
my tank still new..

 

[hank187]

what kind of skimmer do you have? New skimmers have a break in period, the skimmer needs to develop a skim cote on the inside, that might take a week or so.there is a lot to it its hard to say with out more info. are you using ro/di water or are you adding any thing to the tank like water conditioner's. How long has you tank been set up are you still in a cycle period?

 

[vimal]

what kind of skimmer do you have? New skimmers have a break in period, the skimmer needs to develop a skim cote on the inside, that might take a week or so.there is a lot to it its hard to say with out more info. are you using ro/di water or are you adding any thing to the tank like water conditioner's. How long has you tank been set up are you still in a cycle period?

im using the kind of skimmer(hang on type with powerhead in the main tank)..i use water tap water..with water conditioner..4 weeks ad..

 

[hank187]

What kind of adjustments can you make to your skimmer? With my hang on skimmer I had to adjust the air input. if i had to much air it wouldn't work right because the water would not be high enough in the skimmer, and if i cut the air back to much i would not get the bubbles I needed. I know the water conditioner will cause the skimmer to not produce foam. I found that out the hard way. do you add the conditioner to the fresh water you add to the tank every day if so I thank that might be the problem. My skimmer was so touchy it would stop making foam just adding ro/di fresh water, I never had any luck with the hang on.

 

[Sculpin]

Also possible that the tank is so new that you just don't have enough protein in the tank for the skimmer to produce the foam. I had a similar concern when I first started my tank, thought I didn't set up the skimmer properly, but it just took a couple months before the skimmer was always making foam. Even now after a water change, they water is clean enough that it doesn’t produce foam for a day.

 

[vimal]

What kind of adjustments can you make to your skimmer? With my hang on skimmer I had to adjust the air input. if i had to much air it wouldn't work right because the water would not be high enough in the skimmer, and if i cut the air back to much i would not get the bubbles I needed. I know the water conditioner will cause the skimmer to not produce foam. I found that out the hard way. do you add the conditioner to the fresh water you add to the tank every day if so I thank that might be the problem. My skimmer was so touchy it would stop making foam just adding ro/di fresh water, I never had any luck with the hang on.

the adjustment i got is to control the releasing of water frm the skimmer..
if there is no fish in the tank,,it=r doesnt produce foam..??
no..i only use water conditioner when i adding water to the tank..
so what should i do..?