protein skimmer

[libra2178]

I just set up my protein skimmer will the bubbles in my tank from the setup go away?

 

[PeterC99]

I just set up my protein skimmer will the bubbles in my tank from the setup go away?

Eventually - give it time to break in. Just take off skimmer cup and let overflow into sump. May take a couple of weeks.

 

[MaxTremors]

A lot of skimmers will do this for a few hours to a few weeks when you first turn them on. They’ll usually break in and this will stop. But there are some skimmers that are just notorious for having continuous micro bubbles. I don’t know what kind of skimmer you have or where you have it, but if you can make the water after the skimmer go through some sort of filter sock or filter pad or go over a baffle it can minimize the amount of bubbles that get into the DT. If it’s a HOB skimmer, the only thing you can really do is have the return run through a sponge (make sure to clean fairly often), or only run it at night, the bubbles won’t hurt anything, they’re just aesthetically unappealing and distracting.

 

[libra2178]

A lot of skimmers will do this for a few hours to a few weeks when you first turn them on. They’ll usually break in and this will stop. But there are some skimmers that are just notorious for having continuous micro bubbles. I don’t know what kind of skimmer you have or where you have it, but if you can make the water after the skimmer go through some sort of filter sock or filter pad or go over a baffle it can minimize the amount of bubbles that get into the DT. If it’s a HOB skimmer, the only thing you can really do is have the return run through a sponge (make sure to clean fairly often), or only run it at night, the bubbles won’t hurt anything, they’re just aesthetically unappealing and distracting.

I have a xyclone protein skimmer, it's also hanging on my 75gal. i don't have a sump.

 

[Jekyl]

A foam ring around the inlet will stop bubbles.

 

[libra2178]

A foam ring around the inlet will stop bubbles.

i don't know exactly what that is or where its located it's my first time having a skimmer

 

[Jekyl]

i don't know exactly what that is or where its located it's my first time having a skimmer

The place where the water goes back into the tank. Should be same place the bubbles are coming from.

 

[Jekyl]

Here's a pic of my HoB. You can see the foam ring(s) around it. These trap the bubbles before they get back into the water.

 

[vetteguy53081]

To break in a protein skimmer you simply run the skimmer in your system to manufacturer suggestions and make tuning adjustments to dial it in across time. Tuning adjustments include adjusting the air coming into the skimmer, adjusting the water level height the skimmer is sitting in, and adjusting where the skimmer is located in your sump.
adjust to make is usually the water level within the skimmer. This is usually done by adjusting a valve on the skimmer itself. A high-quality skimmer will have a high-quality valve such as a gate valve that allows you to make small adjustments that raise and lower the water level inside the skimmer body. I’ll make adjustments to the water level by turning the valve and aiming for the top of the microbubbles to be about the mid-length between the bottom of the collection cup and top of the tube where the skimmate overflows into the collection cup. You’ll want to make small adjustment and recheck the level each time. Making a quarter turn and waiting 5 minutes is usually good practice to see the final result of an adjustment.
The next adjustment that can be made is to the air coming into the skimmer. This will vary by skimmer but there is usually a knob or an airline hose valve that can be adjusted to increase or decrease air coming into the skimmer.
If after a couple of days the skimmer still isn’t performing to expectations, it may be time to look at adjusting the level of water that the skimmer is sitting in.