Water level risers/surface skimming--confused

[JoJosReef]

Hi all,

The new IM Nuvo Fusion 2 has a High Tide Water Riser (), which I just called IM and found it won't fit my Fusion 1 10g.

So, I found another one:

EZ Water Level Adjuster (Single – Desktop) – EZ Reefing Solutions.

ez-dose.com

What I don't understand is why you need this thing. Can you not raise the water level simply by adding more water? Does the water need to be very close to the bottom edge of the grates (overflow?) for some reason? I don't see how sliding this piece of plastic up or down lets you have more water. There is also the "surface skimming" component of this, which I only understand to the extent that certain oils/organics collect at the water surface, but will flow through the grates in an AIO and down through the filtration system (which wouldn't happen if you were sucking water from the bottom. Does the water level need to be only a few mm above the bottom of the grates for this to happen?

Thanks for answering my newb questions!

 

[Waters]

The water level is always going to be as high as the bottom of the slots in the piece of plastic that is being moved up and down. Water will keep rising in the DT until it can exit back into the sump...which in this case would be through those slots. Strictly adding more water to the DT will just, in the long run, give you more water in your sump with your DT levels never changing.

 

[Buckster]

"Waters" is correct. I would think that the piece would fit into a slot inside the tank to allow the water to rise to the higher level. My sump has an adjustable piece with two plastic screws for easy adjustment.