Fluval EVO 13.5 return pump chamber level

[Frederick Edwards]

I purchased and added the Intank media basket. The basket and the surface skimmer are down as far as I can get them, but the level in the return chamber and the 2ND chamber are only about 1/2 filled and I'm worried that the heater is not being covered with enough water. Suggestions please? Or am I good?

 

[TheEngineer]

There are generally two things that cause low water levels in the return chamber on any tank: not enough water and not enough drain flow.

You say you’ve lowered the surface skimmer. Has the water level in the tank come down to this new level or is it still sitting where it was? If it came down, I suspect you need to add more water to your tank. If it stayed the same, you have a flow restriction somewhere in your rear chambers. Easiest way to check that is to remove whatever you can from back there and see if t helps.