Lil help
- Thread starter Reo2140
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Mastiffsrule
Where ever you go, there you are, so be nice 2 you
Second this.
You use any cleaners. Maybe add something other than RO and salt? Decorations other than rock?
I can think of several things that might cause the foaming at the top of your sock. First, the depth of the hose going into the sock should be under the water deep enough not to agitate the surface or you can get bubbles forming. Second, if you have rock in the tank that is not cured or plastic items in the tank, it could cause the foaming. Third, if the socks were not soaked and washed before using for the first time, residue from manufacturing could cause foaming.
Mastiffsrule
Where ever you go, there you are, so be nice 2 you
Hi,
Normally bubbles like that are coming from 2 sources. One is the bubbles in a skimmer that are pulling proteins out. But your water is too clean for that. Shashka made a good point. New socks get a skimmer going crazy
Turn on the skimmer and let’s see what happens. It should settle down in a few days or you may have some cleaning agent in the water.
Normally bubbles like that are coming from 2 sources. One is the bubbles in a skimmer that are pulling proteins out. But your water is too clean for that. Shashka made a good point. New socks get a skimmer going crazy
Turn on the skimmer and let’s see what happens. It should settle down in a few days or you may have some cleaning agent in the water.
Bayareareefer18
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Agreed could be fresh sock. Also your skimmer is going to have a break in period where it is overskimming. do you have it running wide open?I had the skimmer on n this wat it was doin
I had the skimmer on n this wat it was doin
If you're not using RODI water, that could be the problem as well. The skimmer could be reacting to the water chemistry (chemically treated water) and/or naturally occurring organics in your tap water. In this case, it is likely that every time you do a water change your skimmer could over skim.
As mentioned already, the skimmer needs to break in (grow the necessary bacteria in the base) before it runs smoothly. It is not uncommon for a skimmer to over skim for weeks or even months in a new setup. Besides opening the skimmer up fully, you can physically move the skimmer up or down in the water to adjust for over skimming until the skimmer settles down. When I set up my 180 gal, it literally took me months to get the settings right. When I put a skimmer on my 29 gal, it was working correctly within a week.
If it were me, I would just wash any spare filter socks now so they are dry and ready to replace the one already in the tank. To wash dirty filter socks, I turn them inside out and throw them in the washing machine on sterilize (hot if you don't have a sterilize setting ) and add a little bleach (no detergent or other cleaners or softeners!). The socks come out sterile and pearly white. Just be sure the socks are completely dry before using them in the tank after washing with bleach. (Other members here have shared different methods of cleaning their filter socks if you are squeamish about putting them in the washing machine).
Don't panic. If the cause of over skimming is the sock, the water from the tank washing through it is cleaning the sock. Eventually your skimmer, water changes, and sock changes will take care of any problems introduced to the tank water itself. Run a bit of carbon in the sock in a media bag if you want to be sure. Carbon should go where water will move through it. Anyway, a tip that will make life easier is to keep several filter socks on hand (I have about 15 LOL) and as I remove a tank's dirty socks, I have clean ones dry and ready to put right back in the tank, and because I know I have enough spares on hand I don't worry if a sock wears out or blows a seam. I have enough to worry about without worrying about running out of clean socks for my tanks....just about finding mates for the socks I put on my own feet. I think my washing machine eats those. LOL
Great! That's one thing you can cross off the list as the cause of over skimming.
Yes. All new socks should be soaked and or washed before using them, letting them dry completely again before using in the tank. Make sure to dilute the bleach with water so you don't eat your socks. My filter socks last me for years.
My process is simple. When I see water rising to the top of the socks, I know I need to change them. I use a 5 gal bucket, fill it about 3/4 full and add a 1/2 cup of unscented bleach, turn the dirty socks inside out and let them soak in the bleach water for about a week. This helps dissolve most of the organics in the sock so when I wash them in the washer they are already fairly clean. When the next batch of dirty socks from the tanks are pulled for cleaning, I put the ones soaking in the pail into the washing machine with about 1/2 cup of bleach and put the new batch of dirty socks into the pail with new bleach water to soak. I hang the clean socks to dry after I pull them from the washing machine. That's my weekly routine for cleaning socks in a nutshell. I'm sure others here can offer other ways to accomplish the same task.
