tunze 9410 overflowing

[mattzang]

i've had this skimmer for a couple months now and i usually love it, but when it overflows it seems to start repeating a cycle and today i can't get it to stop



that's an empty cup and turning it on right before i start the video

i've emptied like 2 gallons of water today just repeating the cycle of turning it on, it fills up, i empty the cup, turn back on, empty cup, etc. i just turned it off earlier today as i got tired of it, but i'm failing to see what the issue is

i have the air draw knob about 2 notches from the middle to the right which is mostly where i've had it the entire time i've had the skimmer so i don't think that'd be the problem.

thanks

 

[mattzang]

i guess i fixed it, just cranked the air draw way down. so weird how overnight it went from doing a nice wet skim with the knob at 2 o'clock, but now i'm at like 9 o'clock. dry skimming now i guess until i can work my way back up

 

[Water Dog]

Did you change to brand new filter socks or epoxy in any new frags recently?

 

[mattzang]

i did not. i turned it off last time i added some filter floss (i don't use filter socks) and no frags as of yet

idk i think i fixed it, i just don't get what happened. i liked my wet skim lol

 

[X-37B]

Is this a standard or dc?
I have both.
I never turn the dc off.
Change cup, sock, feed, work in tank, ect.
I can turn off the return pump and sump water level goes up and no overflow.
I run the air intake on the dial all the way to the left or 0-10% in 6.5 " of water.
Any higher on the dial and it will overflow or get very wet skim.
Non dc version I have to turn the return off or it will overflow when sump level rises.
I run the air screw wide open as closing it will cause a higher level in the cup leading to overflow.
Also check the air silencer every couple months.
I started to get some variation in skim height and it was cause by salt buildup in the silencer which reduced air flow.
I clean both skimmers every 6 months and when I put them back no adjustment is needed.
Been 15 months now.
Make sure your pump does not have any calcium buildup in the magnet area as that will cause issues too.

 

[rvitko]

The video is too dark for me to see what is happening, can I get a brighter video that shows the water depth and more details of how it is installed?

Be careful with reducing the air, as you close the air, water flow increases and this can cause the skimmer to become unstable. The 9410 tends to work best when submerged 5.5-6" and the air is closed as little as possible. Keep in mind depth is also an adjustment, also make sure the pipe is fully inserted and the basket is not above the pipe.

My suspicion is the filter floss. I can say conclusively you will not save money on economy floss. I would use Eheim or Tunze or some high end purpose made aquarium floss and here is why. First off, non aquarium specific floss or economy aquarium floss is not rinsed, it still contains phenols from manufacturing and causes an adverse reaction in the skimmer. Cheap floss is also not combed, this makes a huge difference, for example, a wad of Eheim or Tunze floss can be rinsed and reused over and over because the fibers are combed in one direction, it does not easily mat and clump and become too dense to work. I can say beyond a doubt that you will get more life and less headaches if you rinse and reuse from a $8 box of Ehfisynth or a bag of MacroWadding than you will get from a $2 bag of polyfil. The quality of well made filter floss is a night and day difference. It is possible to remove most of the phenols by a hot water rinse, but the real difference is in the way it is combed, good floss looks like a sheet and is folded up like an accordion in the package.

 

[mattzang]

i have the DC version

it's 6" deep and i've only had it for about 2 months so i doubt calcium buildup is an issue

the filter floss is aquamaxx if memory serves, but i really don't use it often. in this case it was in there awhile before the overflow issues

my suspicion is something got in the water that is making it angry as even turned way down last night the skimmer cup filled up and that's after 2~ gallons of cup emptying from yesterday, perhaps it was the filter floss perhaps something else. nothing in the tank seems upset, but i don't have corals right now so can't judge those