Skimmer Q&A Thread

Yanos

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Hi guys,

I’ve got Aqua Medic Evo 3000 protein skimmer for my 200G tank

I have had it connected as external skimmer.
Now to save some space in cabinet, as I need room for my calcium reactor installation, I installed it inside the sump.
Since I’ve done it, the skimmer, produces very little bubbles. Not enough to build up the foam.
What am I doing wrong?
Can anyone help me with this plz
 

reeftivo

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is the body of the skimmer milked out like usual?

have you played with the valve/lever on the top to see if the internal level rises or lowers?

most importantly, have you cleaned it and checked that the air intake venturi is clear of salts or carbonate build up?

if there was significant carbonate build up or salts in that venturi then letting it dry out a bit while you were transferring to in-sump may have plugged it more.

try taking the air line off the pump and just let the water pull through the intake nipple and the pump for a half hour or so (give or take). Then re-attach the air line and see if there is improvement.

I'm not that familiar with that skimmer so i can only suggest the things i mentioned. It looks like a newer version of the old turbofloater which i used to have. My Turbofloater never performed well for me unfortunately.

report back and good luck
 

Lonny

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This might have been asked before. Has anyone ever fed the effluent from a calcium reactor into the water intake on a skimmer before? Is so did it help bring the ph of the effluent up, did the skimmer go nuts and overflow? Is there a chance it could skim out some of calc and alk?
 

reeftivo

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in my opinion it would be best to run it into the sock/drain area. it will get aerated and some of the effluent will end up getting to the skimmer. If you plumb direct to the skimmer intake, it will be near impossible to guage the effluent rate since the skimmer intake creates considerable suction. Also, if you plumb direct to the skimmer intake you run the risk of that high alk and calcium water precipitating onto the pump impeller. People have tried that before.

if your really dead set on trying it then maybe the injector assembly from pax bellum could be configured. it is for their algae reactors so they can use the CO2 for growth.
https://uniquecorals.com/collection...ctor-and-feed-assembly?variant=19061380841526
 

Lonny

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in my opinion it would be best to run it into the sock/drain area. it will get aerated and some of the effluent will end up getting to the skimmer. If you plumb direct to the skimmer intake, it will be near impossible to guage the effluent rate since the skimmer intake creates considerable suction. Also, if you plumb direct to the skimmer intake you run the risk of that high alk and calcium water precipitating onto the pump impeller. People have tried that before.

if your really dead set on trying it then maybe the injector assembly from pax bellum could be configured. it is for their algae reactors so they can use the CO2 for growth.
https://uniquecorals.com/collection...ctor-and-feed-assembly?variant=19061380841526
in my opinion it would be best to run it into the sock/drain area. it will get aerated and some of the effluent will end up getting to the skimmer. If you plumb direct to the skimmer intake, it will be near impossible to guage the effluent rate since the skimmer intake creates considerable suction. Also, if you plumb direct to the skimmer intake you run the risk of that high alk and calcium water precipitating onto the pump impeller. People have tried that before.

if your really dead set on trying it then maybe the injector assembly from pax bellum could be configured. it is for their algae reactors so they can use the CO2 for growth.
https://uniquecorals.com/collection...ctor-and-feed-assembly?variant=19061380841526
Thanks! Didn't think about the pump getting calcified. That's a great idea! I could plumb it to the overflow on the back of the tank. Thinking that's what I'll do. Thanks again for the info!
 

reeftivo

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10-4.

lots of aeration going on in those overflows :). That's where i run mine. without my CO2 scrubber my pH holds pretty steady at 8.1-8.2.

with my CO2 scrubber off the skimmer i get into the 8.3 to 8.4 range. Still, 8.1-8.2 is fine. I was just looking for more growth by increasing pH a bit ;)
 

Blooming123

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Hi Mojo!
Wanting to upgrade the skimmer for a 120 gallon with 55 gallon sump. I currently have a 10 year old Remora pro HOB from a 75 gallon that was transferred over so I would have time to decide what to purchase. That was almost a year ago... light on fish, so it’s been good so far. Now wanting to add some more fish but afraid it won’t keep up. Unfortunately when we set up the sump there wasn’t much room between the two tanks(8.5 inches) so likely need a new HOB or and inline skimmer. Any recommendations? Was trying to keep it around $300-400.
RB
 

DarrenCar

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Building a 65 gallon display with 20 gallon sump. Going to have rock, fish and some soft corals down the line. Will a Reef Octo sss 110 be a sufficient skimmer for this setup?
 

Blaque Kuchel

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I have a quick question about the Bubble Magus Curve 5 and Curve 5 Elite. There is about a $90.00 price difference in the skimmers. Can anyone tell me if the differnce truly justified in spending the extra money?
 

Bob Escher

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This is the official R2R Skimmer Q&A Thread where the answers to your questions are as concentrated as skimmate!

We will do our best as a community to answer questions you have concerning protein skimmers so ask away!

Thank you!
I have a quick question about the Bubble Magus Curve 5 and Curve 5 Elite. There is about a $90.00 price difference in the skimmers. Can anyone tell me if the differnce truly justified in spending the extra money?
i had the older version of the five. I have the new elite version now. To be honest with you I don’t see any difference
But unless there is a specification difference I can’t see any. Save your money
 

Blaque Kuchel

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I have a 20g Long sump that I am building for my 90G tank. I was looking at a Curve A5 and Curve 5 Elite. I know the A5 has 24w DC pump and a smaller footprint and the Elite has a 18w and Sicce 200 pump.....is there a big differnce here in the $5 price change and what do you think would be better for my new fuge?
 

reeftivo

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I have a 20g Long sump that I am building for my 90G tank. I was looking at a Curve A5 and Curve 5 Elite. I know the A5 has 24w DC pump and a smaller footprint and the Elite has a 18w and Sicce 200 pump.....is there a big differnce here in the $5 price change and what do you think would be better for my new fuge?
tough call. not familiar with the A5 pump, but sicces are solid performers. the sk200 can be had for like 70 bucks online if you ever need a replacement which is doubtful.

the DC pumps are nice though, and IME are much quieter than AC pumps in general. Their extra control is nice too.
 

stanleo

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Had a 55 gallon 4 years ago that had to break down. Started a 120 gallon reef tank a couple weeks ago and just finished the cycling. The skimmer I ordered was way to too tall to fit with the tank hood so I used my old skimmer for the 55. The bubbles coming out of it are crazy. Will this dissipate over time or should I buy a new one? Is there something I can do for it? I don’t know what kind of skimmer it is. I know it’s from Instant Ocean and has a 3 inch diameter main chamber and about 18 inches tall.
 

reeftivo

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Had a 55 gallon 4 years ago that had to break down. Started a 120 gallon reef tank a couple weeks ago and just finished the cycling. The skimmer I ordered was way to too tall to fit with the tank hood so I used my old skimmer for the 55. The bubbles coming out of it are crazy. Will this dissipate over time or should I buy a new one? Is there something I can do for it? I don’t know what kind of skimmer it is. I know it’s from Instant Ocean and has a 3 inch diameter main chamber and about 18 inches tall.
is this in sump or hang on? you mentioned the new skimmer was too tall for the hood. sorry for my confusion.

micros usually will go away after a day or so after the skimmer developes a slime coating. was the old skimmer cleaned up? if so, it will need to slime up again before micros subside.
 

reeftivo

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if the old skimmer is an instant ocean sea clone skimmer then you're better off with a different skimmer. many of us refer to sea clones as "sea clowns". many of us bought them waaay back when and were bummed with the lack of performance.

no sump?
 

stanleo

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if the old skimmer is an instant ocean sea clone skimmer then you're better off with a different skimmer. many of us refer to sea clones as "sea clowns". many of us bought them waaay back when and were bummed with the lack of performance.

no sump?

Sea clone sounds familiar. And thanks for the slime coat advise. Hopefully it will calm down in a few days. I remember the thing I hated about it was the difficulty in setting it just right. But I thought that was typical of all skimmers. Is that not the case? And no, no sump. It’s a hang on the back.
 

reeftivo

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Sea clone sounds familiar. And thanks for the slime coat advise. Hopefully it will calm down in a few days. I remember the thing I hated about it was the difficulty in setting it just right. But I thought that was typical of all skimmers. Is that not the case? And no, no sump. It’s a hang on the back.
RE: difficulty tuning skimmers!

Most are not difficult to tune but there are some exceptions (poor design/ air to water imbalance etc..) . I prime all my new skimmers after 24hrs with a few drops of skim taken from my old skimmer before it's removed. I usually will only give a new skimmer a wet wipe down and not run them in vinegar over night, since I've seen no measurable difference in speeding up breakin'.

I always start my skimmers with the effluent (output pipe) adjusted wide open so the internal skimmer water level is at it's lowest point. I'll let it run like that for at least 24 hours then adjust the water level to where the foam breaks about an inch below the collar where the cup attaches to the body. Shortly afterwards i almost always will see an air/water line (separation of turbulent bubbles below and a line where calmer bubbles start traveling uniformly upwards). That's when i seed it and the skimmer will drastically change from a struggling foam head, to a calmer, pillowy foam head. After that i monitor it, but do not adjust. Usually a day after that, i can then slowly raise the internal skimmer level in small increments (monitor for around an hour between adjustments) until a get the foam head where i want it.

Note! Remember never to adjust a skimmer (especially a Hang On Back) so it produces wet skimmate right away. The skimmer isn't broken in yet and when it starts to break in, it will usually overflow and dump a mess all over the floor behind the tank. Sump skimmers are more forgiving but overflows can create breakin' delays and messes as well.
 
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