Whats up with my skimmer?

[elvis]

I have a reef devil down draft skimmer on my 55. It never puts anything in the cup. The inside of the throat of the skimmer is caked with greenish brown slime. After I clean it, it looks like it is really gonna do something and then it just coats the inside of the throat again. I have adjusted the water level up and down to no avail. I'm using a mag 7 which is what the manual says will provide the best performance. Any thoughts?

Thanks

E

 

[NaH2O]

elvis - how long has the skimmer been running? Do you use any water additives or supplements at all?

 

[les]

You may also want to check the air inlet lines/fittings. If there is a kink or something blocking, it will not work right.

 

[Oscapus]

I have the exact same problem with my AquaC 180. It seems starved for air somehow but I have cleaned everything repeatedly. My little Prizm has been the best skimmer I've ever owned.

 

[les]

Another thing I thought of, is the vent hole in the top of the cup plugged or restricted in any way? Some skimmers have vent holes, most use the skimmate drain for venting. If there is any tubing added to the drain make sure it is not submerged and is unrestriced. This will also keep it from working properly.

 

[elvis]

Its been running for about 4 months. The tank is doing great. the tank is 7 months old. I do dose calcium, iodine, stront. and an alk buffer. All parameters are in check. The tank is full of life. The collection cup has a vent hole that is not clogged and I tapped the cup and install a fitting and hose to drain externally. I think I will tear it down and clean everything again tomorrow. Check for kinks in the inlet hose etc.

Thanks to everyone,

E

 

[big t]

It should skim, just close the gate valve more! If there are no clogs and lots of white foam inside it sounds to me like a matter of tuning it. I am not trying to insult anyones intelligence or anything like that. Can you post a pic of it fresh after cleaning?

 

[elvis]

I've tuned it as much as can be. I've gone from where the instructions sugest to all the way to the top of the throat.

 

[mungus]

beckett mod

Elvis
I Have had a ton of trouble with my reef devil deluxe. It worked well after its breakin period. (ton of dark stinky skimmate) I cleaned the skimmer and replaced the bio balls after 4 months of use. Since I cleaned it it has either overflowed or produced nothing. It seemed like the bubble size had increased and it was burping large bubbles. Common problem for these skimmers. I have tried lots of different things to get this thing going. Ex. Replacing small bio balls with large, putting an air valve on the air intake... Nothing has helped.

Last night I installed a beckett injector on the skimmer. (Instead of using the bio-balls). The mod cost $26.11 and took less than 15 min. I am currently waiting for it to breakin before I post any results. I can tell you that it looks very promising. Tons of very fine bubbles no burping of air. The foam in the riser tube has never looked better. Provided all goes well you may want to consider this mod.

Brian

 

[elvis]

Please keep me informed. Can you describe how to make the modification? This thing cost's way too much to work so poorly.

Thanks

E

 

[elvis]

Mungus,

Any results from the injector modification yet?

 

[mungus]

Elvis

I went back to the bio balls yesterday. I think the modification would work well if I had a larger pump. My current pump is a mag 7. The foam in the riser tube looked almost like milk when I had the injector installed. It just didn't seem like the pump had enought power to make it work effectively. I have also seen other simmilar mods to the one that I did. It seemed like the guy that had his working the best had his skimmer mounted above the water line in the sump. I should be getting a mag 12 shortly that I will try with the injector. I am not sure if it will work properly or not because my skimmer is currently in 6 1/2" of water and I don't have room under my tank to raise it above the water line with the injector installed. If your intrested in the injector assembly that I used here is a link http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=7700658445&category=46313&ssPageName=WDVW&rd=1 This is the same injector assembly that I saw on one that was working well with the mod. I will also post my results once I get the mag 12 installed.

Brian

 

[scottw]

Give the guys over at ETSS a call, tell them what you are doing and they will help. Let me know if you need there number.

scott

 

[mungus]

I called AETech today to find out if they had any idea as to why these skimmers are not working. You probably checked these things a million times. (like I have) but I will list them anyway.

1. check to make sure the air intake on the side of the injector is not clogged.
2. make sure there are no clogs or kinks in the line from the pump to the skimmer.
3. Make sure your pump/impeller is clean.
4. Make sure you have the correct number and style of bio balls.
5. If you have a deluxe make sure the drain line is clear.
6. Make sure you have no water in the riser tube.
7. If all else fails smash skimmer into bits and pieces and buy an MRC from Scott. (free shipping this month) :lol:

Ok maybe I made up number 7 but thats my plan.

 

[mungus]

I will still try the mod with the mag 12 and post my results.

 

[elvis]

They suggest using the mag 7 for best performance, so thats what I bought. I don't have room under my tank for anything any taller than the reef devil. I think I will call them as well.

By the way. I have checked all that stuff over and over and over........

Scott, Can I get the number from you?

Thanks

E