Let's Discuss the IceCap K1 Nano Protein Skimmer

[nautical_nathaniel]

Just installed one on my IM nuvo 10. Seems to not be doing much except pumping massive amounts of microbubbles into the tank. Adjusted like the coral vue video isntructed but theres not really any pea sized bubbles at the top. Its mainly really small bubbles. The videos ive seen it produced much larger bubbles.

Will the microbubbles decrease as it breaks in? Any advice would be greatly appreciated

Yes, the microbubbles were a problem when I first fired mine up, but now they really aren't a problem. It does take a few days to a week to break in.

 

[tmabry]

Yes, the microbubbles were a problem when I first fired mine up, but now they really aren't a problem. It does take a few days to a week to break in.

Thanks! Ill just let it keep running then. Did you set yours against the bottom of the baffle or raise it up?

 

[nautical_nathaniel]

Thanks! Ill just let it keep running then. Did you set yours against the bottom of the baffle or raise it up?

Mine rests on the bottom of the chamber in my IM Nuvo 20. The water level in that chamber is around 1 inch or so below the area the base of the collect cup sits. I keep the water level in the skimmer at or around the base of the cup, right before it tapers towards the collection overflow inside the cup.

 

[tmabry]

Mine rests on the bottom of the chamber in my IM Nuvo 20. The water level in that chamber is around 1 inch or so below the area the base of the collect cup sits. I keep the water level in the skimmer at or around the base of the cup, right before it tapers towards the collection overflow inside the cup.

Thanks so much! Appreciate the advice and quick response!

I think I found part of the issue as well, on the air intake silencer only the center hole was drilled out. The perimeter holes were all still filled in. Guessing this restricted the air flow into the skimmer

 

[JBKReef]

Just installed one on my IM nuvo 10.

Your clown looks terrified of the bubbles. Still havent decided which rout to go for my IM 25 lagoon, Skimmer/reactor/refugium for the supplemental filtration.

 

[tmabry]

Your clown looks terrified of the bubbles. Still havent decided which rout to go for my IM 25 lagoon, Skimmer/reactor/refugium for the supplemental filtration.

They both didnt like it at all, neither did my duncan. But after a few hours they've all started to come around.

I originally had the reefglass skimmer which was nice but a little finicky to tune plus if the skimmate was too dry it would clog the tubing. Looking forward to getting this thing broken in to see how it compares.

 

[lmarlowe]

Just installed one on my IM nuvo 10. Seems to not be doing much except pumping massive amounts of microbubbles into the tank. Adjusted like the coral vue video isntructed but theres not really any pea sized bubbles at the top. Its mainly really small bubbles. The videos ive seen it produced much larger bubbles.

Will the microbubbles decrease as it breaks in? Any advice would be greatly appreciated

Mine rests on the bottom of the chamber in my IM Nuvo 20. The water level in that chamber is around 1 inch or so below the area the base of the collect cup sits. I keep the water level in the skimmer at or around the base of the cup, right before it tapers towards the collection overflow inside the cup.

I keep mine so that initial water/air level stays at or preferably slightly below white support ring. If I have the water near the collection cup it would be over flowing in less than 2 minutes. I have never had micro-bubbles in tank as water has to go through wet-dry chamber before returning to tank. Mine rests on the top plate of wet-dry changer. Probably a good 4-5 inches off bottom.

 

[baslewprime]

After a few months, how are you liking your skimmer?

 

[nautical_nathaniel]

After a few months, how are you liking your skimmer?

I'm still liking it, it does what it is supposed to do with little fuss most of the time. My only gripe at this point is that is very difficult to take the pump apart for cleaning, so hard that I have pretty much gave up on trying to get the impeller out in fear of breaking the outside cover. In the mean time I have been taking a syringe and squirting pressurized water through the outflow hole on the pump in an attempt to get any gunk out that might be in there.

 

[lmarlowe]

I like it. I never could figure out how to to get the pump apart. I just put it in a coffee cup filled with vinegar and let it run while I clean the rest. Otherwise no complaints.

 

[Whisnantrider]

After reading this thread I figured I'd give this skimmer a try. 3 weeks in now. My observations are as follows:

It is cheaply constructed; but I feel like the tunze skimmers are cheaply constructed and people seem to love them so idk.

It is much louder than my Aquamaxx NF-1 and Tunze 9004.

The pump does not appear to come apart for cleaning.

All that said:

It is very small.

The magnet is strong, much stronger than the Aquamaxx NF-1(This is the only issue I ever had with the NF-1)

It seems to skim pretty well once broken in.

I do not have any issues with micro bubbles.

Not sure where to rate this one because in my set up all 3 of these skimmers have had some sort of issue.

I will probably be trying the Eshoppes Nano skimmer next.

 

[nautical_nathaniel]

After reading this thread I figured I'd give this skimmer a try. 3 weeks in now. My observations are as follows:

It is cheaply constructed; but I feel like the tunze skimmers are cheaply constructed and people seem to love them so idk.

It is much louder than my Aquamaxx NF-1 and Tunze 9004.

The pump does not appear to come apart for cleaning.

All that said:

It is very small.

The magnet is strong, much stronger than the Aquamaxx NF-1(This is the only issue I ever had with the NF-1)

It seems to skim pretty well once broken in.

I do not have any issues with micro bubbles.

Not sure where to rate this one because in my set up all 3 of these skimmers have had some sort of issue.

I will probably be trying the Eshoppes Nano skimmer next.

Thanks for your feedback, the more folks we have giving out their perspective, the stronger this thread will be

 

[tmabry]

After a week and a half with the skimmer I couldnt be happier. Fits perfectly in the back of my nuvo 10. Microbubbles disappeared within a few days and the skimmate has progressively darker. It is a little louder than the airpump I had attached to the reefglass skimmer before but not terrible. I did modify the included silencer a bit and that has brought down the noise a good amount. Will put up pictures here shortly.

 

[baslewprime]

After a week and a half with the skimmer I couldnt be happier. Fits perfectly in the back of my nuvo 10. Microbubbles disappeared within a few days and the skimmate has progressively darker. It is a little louder than the airpump I had attached to the reefglass skimmer before but not terrible. I did modify the included silencer a bit and that has brought down the noise a good amount. Will put up pictures here shortly.

how loud it is?

 

[tmabry]

how loud it is?

I won’t be home till Sunday but I’ll take a video and try to show. The tank is right beside the couch and it’s not distracting at all.

 

[Whisnantrider]

Its not distractingly loud and it is worth trying. I am extremely picky on things and while I don't care for this skimmer it is no better or worse, to me, than any other nano skimmer I have seen or tried It does have a better price point then most though. I just haven't been happy with any of the nano skimmers so far.

 

[JBKReef]

So torn with skimmer options, I'm not worried about budget I just want whats best for the tank (and relatively quiet) right now the thing is dang near silent and I want to keep it that way.

Has anyone out there did a comparison with the K1 to the Eshops nano?

 

[Phamousreef]

Any updates

 

[nautical_nathaniel]

Any updates

I'm still using it and it is still working as intended. Definitely not the quietest thing out there, especially after you clean it.

Speaking of cleaning, everything but the pump is super easy to take apart and clean, the only issue is the plastic screws can be worrisome in the way they tend to not want to turn, making me think I'm stripping the threads. The pump also does not allow you to easily get to the propeller. There is a thin plastic cover over the propeller that I believe is meant to come off, but the one on mine is so tight that I'm worried I'll tear it off and damage it before it comes off as intended.

Other than that and the noise, I don't have any other complaints about the skimmer.

 

[Whisnantrider]

Unfortunately I took the tank down for an upgrade and haven't used the skimmer much at all. It sits on the shelf in my closet well though. If anyone is interested I will probably list it for sale soon.