Skimmer problem

[jkelaghan]

Hi....so i have my new tank up and running. Been going for about 3 weeks, cycle is not quite finished but getting close. I do have two clown fish in the tank as i had thought the cycle was done but i was wrong. Tank is a Red Sea 525 (139gal)
My issue my Red Sea 300 skimmer will not stop overflowing.
The gate is wide open and i have tried raising the skimmer until its in only about 3 inches of water (recommended is 6-7)
I have the skimmer running with the drain hose open so that it just dumps back into the sump otherwise it just fills up in about 20 seconds.
I let the skimmer run for about 24 hours straight to see if maybe it would work itself out but this morning its just as bad as yesterday.
I also fear that IF it starts working i still have to lower the skimmer to the correct water depth and that will make it overflow all over again.
ANY advice will be awesome!
Thanks,
Jeff

 

[rapid]

put it back into the correct depth.....

you should be able to adjust the hight of the foam with the red nob?

 

[rapid]

close it a little and see where the top of the foam goes you want it probably in the center of the cup or just at the beggining of the cup.

 

[rapid]

is this it?

 

[rapid]

adjust till the foam top is under cup or in middle?

 

[Redfoxtang]

To be honest I would turn the skimmer offline until your tank is a little more mature than what it is now. New skimmers need a break in period as well. Adjusting the flow value should raise or lower your water level then adjust your air knob to get the bubbles you desire for a wet or dry skim.

 

[Glott3133]

I don't know this skimmer very well, but some skimmers take about a week to break in.

 

[William Robinson]

With the gate fully open and at only 3" submerged putting it at the recommended depth is only going to make it worse.
First I would make sure nothing you are putting in the water will cause excess foaming.
Are you using a "quick start"?
How long has the skimmer been running continually?
For the moment I agree with putting it at the proper depth, leaving the gate wide open (unless it's causing a micro Buble issue in the DT) and leaving the plug out for now on the cup until you find the culprit. I also would not recommend running the skimmer all the way up in the neck on a new system like the picture above (just my opinion) I would run it much lower allowing it to break in and not produce such a wet skim. Once broken in I personally adjust mine where I am emptying the cup once a week and even then it's only about half full.

 

[Reefnman2]

If this is a new skimmer I would set it at the recommended depth, let it run with the drain open back into your tank and check it like every morning until it starts to operate normally, mine took a couple of weeks until it broke in. Hope that helps.

 

[New&no clue]

My skimmer took about two weeks before it actually started to work and not overflow so I would give it some time. I would put it at its ideal height, open all the way, and let it run for a week with the plug out. With a new system there isn't much you will need to skim out anyways. Apart from being new there are other things that will make your skimmer overflow. I have found that mine will when I use epoxy putty, add anything new like carbon/GFO/phosguard, when water levels change slightly, when dosing, when I look at it funny.

 

[jkelaghan]

is this it?

Thanks but my skimmer is set up correctly and the gate (knob) is at its lowest setting but till having a crazy overflow

 

[jkelaghan]

My skimmer took about two weeks before it actually started to work and not overflow so I would give it some time. I would put it at its ideal height, open all the way, and let it run for a week with the plug out. With a new system there isn't much you will need to skim out anyways. Apart from being new there are other things that will make your skimmer overflow. I have found that mine will when I use epoxy putty, add anything new like carbon/GFO/phosguard, when water levels change slightly, when dosing, when I look at it funny.

Thanks..yea i'm going to just let it run as much as i can. It makes lots of micro bubbles in the display but need it to finish settling in!

 

[jkelaghan]

If this is a new skimmer I would set it at the recommended depth, let it run with the drain open back into your tank and check it like every morning until it starts to operate normally, mine took a couple of weeks until it broke in. Hope that helps.

I'll try

 

[jkelaghan]

With the gate fully open and at only 3" submerged putting it at the recommended depth is only going to make it worse.
First I would make sure nothing you are putting in the water will cause excess foaming.
Are you using a "quick start"?
How long has the skimmer been running continually?
For the moment I agree with putting it at the proper depth, leaving the gate wide open (unless it's causing a micro Buble issue in the DT) and leaving the plug out for now on the cup until you find the culprit. I also would not recommend running the skimmer all the way up in the neck on a new system like the picture above (just my opinion) I would run it much lower allowing it to break in and not produce such a wet skim. Once broken in I personally adjust mine where I am emptying the cup once a week and even then it's only about half full.

I put it back to the correct depth and have it running with the lowest water setting possible...still overflowing like crazy but i'll let it roll for a while. The Tank is a few weeks old and i'm not using anything at the moment...no water changes or chem at all. Might add some PH buff later today though. I do get lots of micro bubbles when the skimmer is running and overflowing but not too too bad.

 

[New&no clue]

It makes lots of micro bubbles in the display but need it to finish settling in!

You could put a bubble trap in-between your skimmer chamber and return chamber to cut down on them.

 

[jkelaghan]

You could put a bubble trap in-between your skimmer chamber and return chamber to cut down on them.

the sump came with a bubble trap..i'm sure its working but a bunch are still getting through....

 

[MBReefer]

skimmer ever break in?

 

[jkelaghan]

skimmer ever break in?

Yes finally started working last night....and it went from going crazy to being able to lower the skimmer to the bottom of the sump and still not overflowing. No clue why other than that i did change 30 gal (140 gal system)

 

[ClearLife]

In regards to bubble level in the cup inner riser. All the videos I've seen from the experts say to have the bubble level high up in the inner cup riser. As close to the top without overflow. Your not trying to collect any water in the cup. You trying to collect waste that sticks to the top of the cup when the bubbles pop and shoot the waste out onto the top of the cup and the sides of the riser.