Tunze DOC Skimmer Help

[Gonzo74]

I won a Tunze DOC Skimmer during the last R2R raffle. It has been working great in my system. 2 days ago, it started to produce way more foam than normal and no matter how low I turn the controller, it foams out the top and fills the cup within seconds.

Has anyone encountered this before? Recommendations?

 

[Gonzo74]

Also, would anyone have a number I can call to get tech assistance from Tunze. All I find is a German number.

 

[Javamahn]

so what changed 2 days ago beside the skimmer? you may have to set the skimmer up higher in the sump until it levels back out. I have a Bubble Magus that I have to take from setting 2.5 up to 3 whenever I change out my filter socks with clean ones. 30 minutes later I can set it back again

 

[Gonzo74]

I added a piece of rock to the sump 3 days ago but it was still working fine for a day until this started happening.

 

[Gonzo74]

Plus, I tried to raise it to the point where it is almost completely out of the water and it still does it

 

[Javamahn]

Live rock? Could there be die off? Possible the rock raised the level in the sump where the skimmer is. You may need to raise the skimmer up higher or adjust it until whatever is causing the excess foam stops. If it is brand new then there is always a skimmer break in period as well. While they are generally set and forget you will still occasionally have to tune skimmers because any changes in the tank may produce more or less foam. If the thing stopped producing any foam then I would be looking for issues.

 

[Gonzo74]

I even took the rock out over night to see if that helped. I raised it for a few hours and have it turned down all the way. Should I just leave it running?

 

[Javamahn]

Likely die off on the rock. Take it out take it apart and give it a good vinegar bath. I learned my lesson with chemiclean this way. my skimmer has a drain tube on the collection cup and I was draining 3-4 gallons when I used chemiclean. I would clean the skimmer and then juts keep draining until it gets back to normal. You could do a water change 1st and that might help too.

 

[Gonzo74]

Thanks! I will try all of the above

 

[Midrats]

Which skimmer did you win? Tunze has a forum here and Roger Vitko the US rep is very responsive.

 

[Gonzo74]

I am currently taking to Roger. We are trying to troubleshoot it.

 

[Blue Spot Octopus]

The skimmer is breaking in. Give it a while. I like to break my skimmers in inside an old tank and pour skimmate in there to teach it what to do.

 

[Softhammer]

My Tunze skimmers always do that after a cleaning. Just keep emptying it, it will settle down in a day or two. I’m running 2 presently for a total of experience with 6 of them. Had Tunze skimmers for at least 14 years now.

 

[Gonzo74]

The skimmer is breaking in. Give it a while. I like to break my skimmers in inside an old tank and pour skimmate in there to teach it what to do.

The skimmer has been in use for three months. It was already broken in before it started doing this.

 

[Softhammer]

It will do it throughout its lifetime. My 9012 is 3 years old and went nuts with a sump cleaning. New rock will absolutely do it as well. Patience.

 

[Gonzo74]

I did a 20% water change and it has slowed down a bit. Going to do another tomorrow and hope that sets it back to normal.

 

[Blue Spot Octopus]

Ok sorry which model do you have, as stated before the rock is causing you problems, can you remove the rock and put it in a QT tank so it can cycle and cause problems in your DT?

 

[Gonzo74]

9410.001 DC

 

[Nami]

I have the non DC version of the same skimmer. After adding in a couple of dry rocks, it overfoams like crazy.

After dumping out a few cups of the skimmed water, I gave up and turned it off. I put in fresh carbon to soak any excess organics/chemicals.

A few days later, I turn on the skimmer and its back to normal. Maybe you can give this a go.

 

[Blue Spot Octopus]

When I have a skimmer that is just going crazy I remove the lid and just run until it calms down.