So I just got my Aquamaxx HOB 1.5 skimmer yesterday in the mail and currently am putting it together but the instructions aren’t very helpful. I also tried looking up videos but It was half and half with people having the airline on the long hose on the air silencer instead of short and vice versa. I’m just not sure which one to attach it to if anyone has one and can help me out! Thankyou!
Aqua max HOB air line placement help!
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JustDewwit
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No worries ,either one will work. I agree there should be some better directions overall,but once it starts to work you will forget the hiccup. The AquaMaxx HOB 1.5 works hard and flawless
@JustDewwit thankyou! I also noticed too there is a lot of micro bubbles escaping from main chamber into outflow through the side of the panel. It’s hard to see in the video, but when I put pressure on the collection cup against that panel, it seems to stop or at least lessen but the cup slides back a little when I let go. Does this happen with yours
JustDewwit
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Very common Aquamaxx has a fix for it. I just disconnected the extended return pipe. The downside is the water noise otherwise the aquamaxx bubble stopper is best option.
JustDewwit
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My mistake I just viewed the video. The bubbles are normal as the skimmer adjust during first start within a few hours they should stay within chamber
Arsenix2001
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Place the airline on the shorter tube for the greatest muffling effect, also will prevent water siphoning once it leaches in the chamber. I reccomend the bubble filter as well. They will get better over time but never totally go away
rob taft
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I've had this HOB running for about 1 and 1/2 weeks on a just cycled 50 gallon corner tank. I'm not a fan so far. It spews tons of micro bubbles, overflows or over bubbles the collection container resulting in water on the floor and wall. Aquamaxx should have included not only the bubble stopper but also a valve for the airline you are discussing. In addition, they should have lengthened the return from the cup so that one could raise the cup higher. I restricted the airflow using a couple of binder clips until my valve arrives. Thank god, I shielded the wall before installing this tank.
I can live with the noise but the overflowing or overbubbling the cup is a problem.
I can live with the noise but the overflowing or overbubbling the cup is a problem.
Arsenix2001
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How high did you raise your cup? I had mine set originally so that the drain tube was almost 3/4" above the top plate. It is very sensitive to hieght. 1/8" up or down can mean the difference between dry and overly wet skimming
Chefwheredyougo
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The bubbles will calm down immensely soon. As far as overflowing, raise your cup and try to tune it a bit more. Some advice, when breaking in this skimmers, run it in water with 10% vinegar for about 2 hours before putting it on the tank. Your break in will be very close to done if not done already.
rob taft
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Thanks, the bubbles are diminishing. As far as the drain hose goes, I added and extension to it so I could raise the cup without water dripping onto the plastic piece i.e. if the drain hole gets misaligned. higher. I'm adding a 1/4" valve in the hose and the bubble stopper. Should have them later this week. I didn't know about using vinegar until I searched for ways to minimize the overflowing/bubbling. Live and learn.
Chefwheredyougo
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Hey no worries. Mine went ape doodoo for awhile. Had some leaks straight from the factory. I ended up giving up on it for about 3 months then decided to seal the entire thing again a few weeks ago. I ran it in the vinegar bath just to help clean it up afterwards, noticed all the bubbles. Let it run and the next thing I knew they were gone a few hours later. Slapped it on the tank and it got straight to work. Pretty good skimmer imo
rob taft
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Chef, I'm happy with the skimmer's ability to remove waste but I wish Aquamaxx spent a bit more time on after start up instructions. Some changes I would make would be to include the bubble stopper, add a air valve to tune it in the intial period and make a tighter o-ring on the cup. One thing I found when starting this up was the cup would fill up with water and the weight of the water in the cup would push the cup lower in the unit which increased the bubbling.
I was just frustrated when I wrote my first post on this skimmer. I was sautéing onions in a frying pan when I heard the water from the skimmer dripping on the floor. In the process of slowing down the bubble factory and cleaning up the water, I burned the onions. My fault for sure, but I was ticked off at Aquamaxx. One wonders why in this hobby, one spends hundreds of dollars for a piece of equipment, yet when it comes to the assembly and use instructions, it looks like the manufacturers spent all of 10 minutes on the manual. I'm looking at you Reef Octopus.
I was just frustrated when I wrote my first post on this skimmer. I was sautéing onions in a frying pan when I heard the water from the skimmer dripping on the floor. In the process of slowing down the bubble factory and cleaning up the water, I burned the onions. My fault for sure, but I was ticked off at Aquamaxx. One wonders why in this hobby, one spends hundreds of dollars for a piece of equipment, yet when it comes to the assembly and use instructions, it looks like the manufacturers spent all of 10 minutes on the manual. I'm looking at you Reef Octopus.
Chefwheredyougo
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You are 100% right on that. The instructions on this and a few other manufacturers items I have, is absolute garbage.
I'm disappointed in you burning the onions though.. unforgivable.
I'm disappointed in you burning the onions though.. unforgivable.
Brassmonkey
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I know this is a super old post but I just bought a 1.5 and was looking at some pointers. Regardless of the instructions. That's why we have awesome people to help us out when crappy manufacturers don't.
Thanks for the post and replies to it you guys just helped me out.
