DC Skimmer Help

[pledosophy]

I am fairly new to adjustable pump DC skimmers.

I currently have a DC adjustable pump cone style skimmer. The skimmer is a bit to big for my system I am thinking. Right now I have the skimmer in 9" of water in the sump. The pump is turned all the way up. I am not able to get enough foam head for it to push over into the collection cup. I have the amount of air intake set at max.

Would I need to turn down the pump so to decrease the amount of water through the skimmer to raise the foam head? Or should I just get a different skimmer.

My system is a 50g cube with 20g of water in the sump. The skimmer is rated for 60g at a high bio load.

I have nitrates of 25 and phosphate of .5 so I know there is stuff in there it could be skimming.

Thank you!

Thank you!

 

[P-Dub]

I am fairly new to adjustable pump DC skimmers.

I currently have a DC adjustable pump cone style skimmer. The skimmer is a bit to big for my system I am thinking. Right now I have the skimmer in 9" of water in the sump. The pump is turned all the way up. I am not able to get enough foam head for it to push over into the collection cup. I have the amount of air intake set at max.

Would I need to turn down the pump so to decrease the amount of water through the skimmer to raise the foam head? Or should I just get a different skimmer.

My system is a 50g cube with 20g of water in the sump. The skimmer is rated for 60g at a high bio load.

I have nitrates of 25 and phosphate of .5 so I know there is stuff in there it could be skimming.

Thank you!

Thank you!

Well, that depends. First off, we need to know the skimmer that you have.

 

[Greg P]

i don't think your skimmer is too big, as you've stated. My personal experience tells me anything less than $500 can be rated @ 1/2 it's factory stated measurements.
The LPM/LPH air intake is your most important rating.
My $500.00 skimmer is rated @ 540LPH and 360 gallons. I use it on a 115g system and have it running at 420LPH.
If it were a $1200.00 model I'd trust it to be capable of it's factory ratings.

Your model must have a valve of some sort to adjust the water height inside the cone ...

Post your model info ...

 

[pledosophy]

i don't think your skimmer is too big, as you've stated. My personal experience tells me anything less than $500 can be rated @ 1/2 it's factory stated measurements.
The LPM/LPH air intake is your most important rating.
My $500.00 skimmer is rated @ 540LPH and 360 gallons. I use it on a 115g system and have it running at 420LPH.
If it were a $1200.00 model I'd trust it to be capable of it's factory ratings.

Your model must have a valve of some sort to adjust the water height inside the cone ...

Post your model info ...

Simplicity 120.

My experience is the same, which is why I thought this would be perfect for a 50g. But I just can't seem to get any head on the foam. There is foam, but it stays about 4" below the rim of the cup.

I also tried raising the water level to 10" in the sump last night. No more foam this morning.

I do have a TUNZE 9410 I am considering switching it out for, but that is also way over rated.

 

[X-37B]

Simplicity 120.

My experience is the same, which is why I thought this would be perfect for a 50g. But I just can't seem to get any head on the foam. There is foam, but it stays about 4" below the rim of the cup.

I also tried raising the water level to 10" in the sump last night. No more foam this morning.

I do have a TUNZE 9410 I am considering switching it out for, but that is also way over rated.

Not really. I have a 9410 dc on my 120. I am putting a 9410 non dc on my 45 frag with 40 breeder sump.
I thing a 9410 dc would be awesome for that size tank. There is a thread somewhere with a 9410 dc on a 60 gal. Google 9410 dc review.
These skimmers are set and forget as they come.
I have mine in 6.5" of water.

 

[Silver14SS]

Can you increase the water height in the skimmer with the adjustment knob? What is the water level inside the skimmer? Pics are always helpful.

 

[pecan2phat]

Do you have the water level knob indicator arrow at where the manufacturer suggested placement is for break in (notch indicator on holder ring)?
If so then that's why the water level is too low internally in the skimmer. I have the 240 and my wedge tube is 60% closed.

 

[madweazl]

How old is the skimmer? What you're experiencing is pretty normal for a new skimmer.

 

[pledosophy]

Can you increase the water height in the skimmer with the adjustment knob? What is the water level inside the skimmer? Pics are always helpful.

The water level in the body of the skimmer is about 2.5-2.75 inches higher than the water level in the sump.

There is a nice thick foam that goes up the neck of the skimmer, but it is not making it up the neck of the collection cup, let alone over flowing into the collection cup.

 

[pledosophy]

How old is the skimmer? What you're experiencing is pretty normal for a new skimmer.

Skimmer is over a year old. It worked amazingly well on my 90g before (6 months or so). It has been running on my current tank for about 3 months.

 

[pledosophy]

Do you have the water level knob indicator arrow at where the manufacturer suggested placement is for break in (notch indicator on holder ring)?
If so then that's why the water level is too low internally in the skimmer. I have the 240 and my wedge tube is 60% closed.

I do. I have tried moving it all around and not seeing much of a difference, but I will try that again.

Thank you!

 

[pecan2phat]

This is how closed I have the wedge pipe

 

[pledosophy]

This is how closed I have the wedge pipe

Oh I am no where close to that. I have mine down from the notch even with the white plastic indicator there. I will try that.

Really appreciate it.

 

[pledosophy]

This is how closed I have the wedge pipe

Ya man, that was it.

I was able to bring the water in the skimmer up, which then allowed me to really fine tune that bubble size down to the milky color I like. It's only been ten minutes and the foam rising up the neck has a nasty brown layer on it. I might have to creep the water level up a bit more, but I am going to make small adjustments day by day at this point.

I really appreciate the help. The picture really helped me to realize what I was doing wrong there. Appreciate the effort.

Thank you.

 

[P-Dub]

Happy you figured it out. Another note is to dial down the bubbles to raise the height of the skimmate and adjust bubble size. I know it seems counterintuitive to ramp down the airflow to increase skimmate but it helps in tuning. Air flow, water flow, and pump speed all work in concert with one another when tuning this and other skimmers.