THE DIRTY SKIMMER "CUP" - lets all play along

How often do you clean your skimmer cup

  • every few days

    Votes: 56 21.2%
  • weekly

    Votes: 130 49.2%
  • bi-weekly

    Votes: 51 19.3%
  • monthly

    Votes: 12 4.5%
  • hardly ever

    Votes: 3 1.1%
  • automated drain/self cleaning

    Votes: 12 4.5%

  • Total voters
    264

maroun.c

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Day 4 looks like Skimmate production is picking up and going back to what I'm used to. not sure if the problems I had with the return pump on Monday affected production on the first 2 days. It s a massive Skimmer cup!!!

4Days.jpg
 

tigerdragon

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tigerdragon this things are dialed in as well! Holy crap - pun intended.

What is the deal with the drainage tap on the first skimmer? Is it closed permanently, closed for this exercise, or does it have valve that you open to clean it? Looks like the rubber tubing in the pic just goes a couple inches the stops?
i just remove cup and clean dont run an external collection this way i dont get lazy and not keep an eye on things. The one you see the hose on is an omega 150 took me a bit when i first got it to get it adjusted right once i did i marked the plate where the water level adj is so when i turn it down to clean i can bring back to right spot
 

rayn

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Day 4, did a side view of the aqua c this time to show better what it is doing.
 

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ReeferIX

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Day 4:
72hrs after clean

"24 hrs after biweekly 20% water change last night."

ImageUploadedByREEF2REEF1418344224.666444.jpg
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Again only about 1/4" more of skimmate in the last 24hrs.


Bubble King Mini 180
90 gal mixed Reef
30 gal Sump w/ Refugium
No GFO No Carbon
6 Clownfish, 4 Firefish Gobys, 3 Tangs, 1 Mandarin Dragonet, 1 Leopard Wrasse
1 cube of Rods Food mixed with Reef-Roids & Reef Chili & Amino's every other day.
 

Browner20

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Day 4, similar to day 3, dry foam steady as she goes
ImageUploadedByREEF2REEF1418346287.145136.jpg


Tried to get a picture of my red planet frag because it is really starting to encrust and grow sprouts but camera phone doesn't do it justice
ImageUploadedByREEF2REEF1418346394.600960.jpg
 

Saltgator

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Thursday pic
 

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tyler1503

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Day 4. This is what I like to see! Darker skimmate AND a bit more quantity. This thing is slowly tuning in!
ImageUploadedByREEF2REEF1418349968.492133.jpg


This pic was taken within half an hour of the above pic. I had my hand in the tank for a few minutes and the result is this
ImageUploadedByREEF2REEF1418350048.860287.jpg
 

Kyuss414

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The glopity-glop on the neck is starting to get thick!
That looks like crap! :thumb:

My next skimmer will be an MRC or LifeReef, and I have a feeling that may not be so long. If you look at my clean skimmer pic you can see the amount of "crazing" on my SRO, and that's just a bit over a year it's been in operation. Works great as long as I tear the pump apart every month or two to clean the little orifice hole in the volute where the air gets sucked in, and the cracks in the neck haven't seemed to affect it yet.. but there's getting to be a ridiculous amount of them and can't imagine what another year will do to it, if it lasts that long. :(
 

Rjramos

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That looks like crap! :thumb:

My next skimmer will be an MRC or LifeReef, and I have a feeling that may not be so long. If you look at my clean skimmer pic you can see the amount of "crazing" on my SRO, and that's just a bit over a year it's been in operation. Works great as long as I tear the pump apart every month or two to clean the little orifice hole in the volute where the air gets sucked in, and the cracks in the neck haven't seemed to affect it yet.. but there's getting to be a ridiculous amount of them and can't imagine what another year will do to it, if it lasts that long. :(

I like my MRC! The Beckett air induction works great and it doesn't require a lot of maintenance.
 

archaic37

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Mine always slows down and stops getting the good foam after a couple days. But still produces pretty wet.

Day 4
 

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Reef Junky150

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And now on day 5 you can start to see the slow down in production. Usually by now I would take my scrubber brush to the inside of yhe neck for the mid week tune up but I'm running with it until tomorrow at least. It's down to an extremely dry skim right now.
 

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Wiz

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Day 5 still wet. Cups almost full.
 

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Aquatic acrobat in your aquarium: Have you ever kept an eel?

  • I currently keep an eel in my tank.

    Votes: 25 14.1%
  • I have kept an eel in my tank in the past.

    Votes: 30 16.9%
  • I have not kept an eel in my tank, but I hope to in the future.

    Votes: 27 15.3%
  • I have no plans to keep an eel.

    Votes: 92 52.0%
  • Other.

    Votes: 3 1.7%
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