Bubble Blaster 10000 Pump issue

lapin · Dec 30, 2019

My Bubble Blaster 10000 Pump for my skimmer froze up yesterday. I took the impeller out and cleaned it. After placing it back in, it spun like normal without water. Add water and it freezes up again. It trys to spin but gets jittery then stops. The motor just hums loudly.
The magnet on the impeller does not look distorted.
While holding the magnet part of the impeller you can turn the bubble making part using some force.

Any clues on how I can make this work or what im looking for?

shafman1 · Feb 1, 2023

Did you get yours fixed? I have a Reef Octopus XP 8000 ext skimmer with that same skimmer pump. I've replaced the pump 4 times I believe and the impeller a few times as well. The pump would randomly stop. I'm to the point now of looking for a different skimmer/brand. The skimmer is constantly an issue. At one point, I thought it was the Apex causing the issue, but after replacing the pump, I was back in business, but only for a short time then the same issue. Very frustrating. I haven't been able to locate an alternative needle wheel pump either.

lapin · Feb 6, 2023

shafman1 said:
Did you get yours fixed? I have a Reef Octopus XP 8000 ext skimmer with that same skimmer pump. I've replaced the pump 4 times I believe and the impeller a few times as well. The pump would randomly stop. I'm to the point now of looking for a different skimmer/brand. The skimmer is constantly an issue. At one point, I thought it was the Apex causing the issue, but after replacing the pump, I was back in business, but only for a short time then the same issue. Very frustrating. I haven't been able to locate an alternative needle wheel pump either.

I purchased a new pump and spare impeller. The replacement pump works fine.

shafman1 · Feb 6, 2023

lapin said:
I purchased a new pump and spare impeller. The replacement pump works fine.

Did you purchase your pump directly from Coralvue or elsewhere? I'm wondering why I've had all the pump issues. The latest impeller is free spinning. I bought it for backup, but by the time I installed it, the warranty was over. Maybe I got old stock before the impeller issues were resolved? I ended up ordering a different skimmer since I believe I oversized the skimmer originally. I have several water blaster pumps that haven't had any issues. Only the skimmer pump has been a constant problem. Thanks!

lapin · Feb 7, 2023

shafman1 said:
Did you purchase your pump directly from Coralvue or elsewhere? I'm wondering why I've had all the pump issues. The latest impeller is free spinning. I bought it for backup, but by the time I installed it, the warranty was over. Maybe I got old stock before the impeller issues were resolved?

I got 2. One from Coralvue and 1 from an online store.Im not sure which one is currently running. Its been a while.

shafman1 · Feb 7, 2023

lapin said:
I got 2. One from Coralvue and 1 from an online store.Im not sure which one is currently running. Its been a while.

Ok thanks! I'm going to look in the skimmer when I switch to the new one. Maybe something has fallen inside and is getting sucked up in the pinwheel. I've looked before, but would make sense.

shafman1 · Feb 18, 2023

shafman1 said:
Ok thanks! I'm going to look in the skimmer when I switch to the new one. Maybe something has fallen inside and is getting sucked up in the pinwheel. I've looked before, but would make sense.

I dismantled the XP 8000 EXT skimmer. I found a thumb screw and washer inside the skimmer that one of my kids had dropped into the skimmer a long time ago apparently. The thumb screw are supposed to be holding the split bubble plate in place. I'm assuming either the washer or the thumb screw could've intermittently been drawn into the intake of the bubble blaster causing the pump to stop intermittently. I'll most likely be selling the skimmer, but the bubble blaster pump will need a new impeller. The skimmer was over-sized for my tank so I needed to replace it with a smaller skimmer anyway.

Jamie814 · Jun 4, 2023

I am having a issue as well with my bubble blaster 10000 on my XP 8000 EXT It draws about 175 watts normally but over several days to a week it draws more and more wattage up to over 250 watts. It produces less and less skimmate as the wattage draw increases as well. If I shut it off for a day and restart it's back down to 175 watts but just creeps up again. I've cleaned and taken it apart several times but see nothing wrong. It started doing this after about 2 years of running.

Jamie814 · Jun 4, 2023

lapin said:
I purchased a new pump and spare impeller. The replacement pump works fine.

Hey, can you help me out? I'm trying to diagnose my bubble blaster 10000 pump, what wattage does your apex say it is drawing. Mine normally runs right around 175 watts but slowly goes up over a weeks' time to over 250 watts until I shut it off for a day to "reset" the pump. Coralvue was giving me the run around and not worth my time since it is out of warranty anyway.
Thanks!

Nick Fish · Mar 25, 2024

Jamie814 said:
Hey, can you help me out? I'm trying to diagnose my bubble blaster 10000 pump, what wattage does your apex say it is drawing. Mine normally runs right around 175 watts but slowly goes up over a weeks' time to over 250 watts until I shut it off for a day to "reset" the pump. Coralvue was giving me the run around and not worth my time since it is out of warranty anyway.
Thanks!

I went throughI’m the same thing with mine a few years ago. I also worked with Coralvue and did not find a solution. They tested new pumps before sending them to me and still the same problem as you. Finally, I figured out and programmed my Apex to shut the skimmer pump down for 2 hours every day to reset it. Less time does not work. It must be about 2 hours minimum or the wattage will start climbing faster and in less time. I still run the same skimmer to this day and couldn’t be happier with it.