MarvinsReef 90g Clownfish & Anemone Tank...

[sf_ramsden]

Marv,

That is one of the most active fish I have seen! Love that video (nice background music too)...

Can't wait to see that tank full down the road!

 

[MarvinsReef]

Marv,

That is one of the most active fish I have seen! Love that video (nice background music too)...

Can't wait to see that tank full down the road!

Thanks Scott...

 

[THE BEAUT]

getting better by the day

 

[MarvinsReef]

getting better by the day

Thanks Marcel...

 

[MarvinsReef]

UPDATE: 07-24-09

I think I might've gotten a breakthrough on the MSX 200 skimmer... for about a month, I've been trying to get the maximum performance out of this skimmer but can't seem to get it to work right... with the help of some of the guys here and some trial and error, I might've gotten it to finally work... so here is the list of stuff I did to improve the performance... also did the first water change... I was only able to do about 16g though so I'm gonna follow up with another 15g-20g either this week or next week...

elevated the water height to about 11"; used to be around 8"...

turned the dial down very close to being CLOSED; used to be in the middle...

here's a quick pic...

here's a quick vid too...
[youtube]rasUXzesoeM[/youtube]

 

[sf_ramsden]

Looks like you got it skimming now Marv!

 

[Poseidon]

That should make a very wet skimmate at that depth, what does it look like today?

 

[MarvinsReef]

Looks like you got it skimming now Marv!

I hope so...

That should make a very wet skimmate at that depth, what does it look like today?

yeah, pretty wet as of now but I'm just glad it's doing something... is it bad that I'm skimming wet? I was gonna take pics but Evin got a hold of the camera while at the park yesterday... I think he dropped it on sand so now, the lens won't even close and focus...

 

[tewkes]

I was under the impression that the skimmer would perform better if the dial was wide open.? Mine is almost closed all the way too, and it skims great, but I was playing with the idea of making it to where the dial was pretty much opened all the way rather then closed.

 

[Poseidon]

No, not bad. You are processing less water per hour, but if that is what the skimmer wants to do, it should be just fine.

To bad on the camera, you can try a dry paintbrush, or minivac to free the debris, do NOT blow it further into the camera with compressed or canned air.

Tewkes, I think an open valve will allow more water to pass through, but I don't know if that is any better.

 

[Azurel]

I hope so...


yeah, pretty wet as of now but I'm just glad it's doing something... is it bad that I'm skimming wet? I was gonna take pics but Evin got a hold of the camera while at the park yesterday... I think he dropped it on sand so now, the lens won't even close and focus...

There is nothing wrong with skimming wet, it will pull more gunk out but at the same time it will pull more water and trace elements out to. From what I have read wet skimming will pull more stuff out then dry but when you compare the % of a full cup wet to dry the dry will be a higher percentage of junk because there will be less water.....Wet also contributes to having to top off more due to pulling water out of the tank......I have always skimmed semi-wet.

 

[MarvinsReef]

I was under the impression that the skimmer would perform better if the dial was wide open.? Mine is almost closed all the way too, and it skims great, but I was playing with the idea of making it to where the dial was pretty much opened all the way rather then closed.

yeah... I'm confused as well... but I guess that's how skimmers work... this is my first big skimmer so I don't really know what to expect... all I'm hoping is it'll do what it's suppose to...

 

[Azurel]

I upgraded to a bigger skimmer as well, aslong as you get dark stinky stuff it is doing its job....My new one pulls stuff that smells with a hint of rotten fish or shrimp almost....I don't have a dial on mine so it is wide open the only thing on mine I can control is the water level in the chamber....

 

[MarvinsReef]

There is nothing wrong with skimming wet, it will pull more gunk out but at the same time it will pull more water and trace elements out to. From what I have read wet skimming will pull more stuff out then dry but when you compare the % of a full cup wet to dry the dry will be a higher percentage of junk because there will be less water.....Wet also contributes to having to top off more due to pulling water out of the tank......I have always skimmed semi-wet.

I dunno if I just have the water level too high, that's why when I turn the dial towards the OPEN, the bubbles seem to lessen... this is really the best I've seen the skimmer perform the best and actually pulls something... before, it would collect the junk on the main body itself...

here's a pic of what I'm talking about.. this skimmate is 2 days worth from the day the tank was set up... I think it is the junk from the LR and sand... Mike (Poseidon) set it up all the way...

so I decided to clean it to get the junk out of the main body.. and here it is after a day... then, it'll just keep collecting on the body and I never see the bubbles go over the collection cup... I'm really confused with this so far, but I guess learning is half the fun..

 

[Paintguru]

As long as it works out in the end that is all I would care about. However, I'm not a big fan of skimmers that take that much tweeking. When you say skimmate was in the body, do you mean neck or actual body? My skimmer in my larger tank has a lot of build up in the neck that I need to stay on top of (but usually don't). Unfortunately, if I dial it up a bit more I'll get VERY watery skimmate, which I don't like either.

 

[MarvinsReef]

I upgraded to a bigger skimmer as well, aslong as you get dark stinky stuff it is doing its job....My new one pulls stuff that smells with a hint of rotten fish or shrimp almost....I don't have a dial on mine so it is wide open the only thing on mine I can control is the water level in the chamber....

I haven't tried to smell the junk yet but I guess I'll try... ewwww!!! I've read that most skimmers do well on 8" - 10" of water... I tried 8" and 9" and the same thing happen with the collection on the main body / neck... once I figure it out, I'm sure it'll be smooth sailing...

As long as it works out in the end that is all I would care about. However, I'm not a big fan of skimmers that take that much tweeking. When you say skimmate was in the body, do you mean neck or actual body? My skimmer in my larger tank has a lot of build up in the neck that I need to stay on top of (but usually don't). Unfortunately, if I dial it up a bit more I'll get VERY watery skimmate, which I don't like either.

main body or neck, I guess... it's the junk you see on the first pic (set up)... I don't really mind the wet skimming for now since the Osmolator takes care of that and I can go for a week without filling out the 20g+ holding tank... I might slowly try to open it in a few days...

Thanks for all the feedback.. I really really appreciate it...

 

[Azurel]

Honestly Marv I don't think you have the water volume high enough in the chamber the foam is to low in the main body chamber and the foam isn't carrying the deposits into the cup so it is lining the sides of the walls with it.....It is skimming for sure but it should be dropping it off in the cup....I personally would increase the water level in the chamber to right around the edge where the cone starts, this way the foam that is created is pushed and forced up the neck and into the cup.....

 

[Azurel]

How do you control the water level in your skimmer? In the video it looks like the water level was higher then in the pics you showed..... Marvin with a new tank and old used live rock you might not get that much skim right now anyway......With the water volume you have and the lack of rock and bio-load you might not get a whole lot of skim coming from it yet......

 

[tewkes]

Honestly Marv I don't think you have the water volume high enough in the chamber the foam is to low in the main body chamber and the foam isn't carrying the deposits into the cup so it is lining the sides of the walls with it.....It is skimming for sure but it should be dropping it off in the cup....I personally would increase the water level in the chamber to right around the edge where the cone starts, this way the foam that is created is pushed and forced up the neck and into the cup.....

That also struck me as too low. I have the msx250 and I keep my level pretty much at the point where the neck meets the cup. I get about 1/2-3/4 full cup every week or so. I consider my skimming to be dry. I alos don't have a ATO setup yet so my skimming isn't as consistent as I would like it to be. I really have to get that ato setup soon. I'm having to top off at least gallon or more a day right now with the dehumidifier and a fan blowing on the sump to cool it down.

 

[MarvinsReef]

Honestly Marv I don't think you have the water volume high enough in the chamber the foam is to low in the main body chamber and the foam isn't carrying the deposits into the cup so it is lining the sides of the walls with it.....It is skimming for sure but it should be dropping it off in the cup....I personally would increase the water level in the chamber to right around the edge where the cone starts, this way the foam that is created is pushed and forced up the neck and into the cup.....

yeah, the first few pics, the water level is only about 8"... but I since increased it to about 11"... now the junk is being pushed to the collection cup, which I'm very happy about...

How do you control the water level in your skimmer? In the video it looks like the water level was higher then in the pics you showed..... Marvin with a new tank and old used live rock you might not get that much skim right now anyway......With the water volume you have and the lack of rock and bio-load you might not get a whole lot of skim coming from it yet......

atm, my bioload fishwise is:

- HI Flame wrasse pair
- Male Rhomboid wrasse
- Snowcasso clownfish pair
- Helfrich's firefish

what kind of bioload would you say I have? light, medium, heavy?

That also struck me as too low. I have the msx250 and I keep my level pretty much at the point where the neck meets the cup. I get about 1/2-3/4 full cup every week or so. I consider my skimming to be dry. I alos don't have a ATO setup yet so my skimming isn't as consistent as I would like it to be. I really have to get that ato setup soon. I'm having to top off at least gallon or more a day right now with the dehumidifier and a fan blowing on the sump to cool it down.

yeah, having the ATO definitely helps out a lot... do you have a pic of where you have the water in your set up? it's been a day and it's still looks like it's kickin' butt...