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View Full Version : Please help<Protein skimmer, new set up


mswalter
02/26/2011, 12:02 AM
I just started a 30gal tank. It is drilled in the corner for an overflow and return. The pipe is 3/4". It flows into a sump where the first chamber is the water from the tank, second is a protein skimmer, third will be a bed of algae, and the fourth is the return pump. I am not sure what the protein skimmer is. I bought it used from the aquarium store. The return is a Supreme Classic Utility pump pushing 350 gal an hour. I have a couple questions, my tank is loud. You can hear it draining. What can I do about this? Next, how do I adjust the protein skimmer to get it to filter correctly? Not sure what I am looking for with the water level on the inside? Thank you so much for any help!

mswalter
02/26/2011, 01:20 AM
the cup on the skimmer keeps filling with water. I have it turned down as far as I can yet it keeps filling up. From my understanding the foam that is supposed to form inside the cup is supposed to be dry. The water should never reach the cup. I am having big problems

lacosta28
02/26/2011, 01:32 AM
the cup on the skimmer keeps filling with water. I have it turned down as far as I can yet it keeps filling up. From my understanding the foam that is supposed to form inside the cup is supposed to be dry. The water should never reach the cup. I am having big problems

You may have the skimmer too deep in the water. Check the rec. water level for your skimmer and raise it up with eggcrate or styrofoam if needed.

webfinger
02/26/2011, 01:56 AM
Noise: It depends on how your return is set up. Here is a photo of my overflow setup. I added a second to get more flow in my tank. But basically I have a elbow that I rotated at an angle to get good flow and the upper edge is slightly above the water line with the lower edge slightly below. This creates more "skimming" action on the surface and is also almost silent. I messed around with various lengths of short sections of pipe on the elbow too in order to adjust the water height in the tank. The screw cap on the elbow allows for a vacuum break and a silencer, but it will reduce the flow if your elbow is all the way under the water. I found if my elbow was flat I got a lot of sucking noise. Some people put a little valve drilled into the top of the cap to provide even more control of the vac/flow - not necessary on my setup.

http://i1187.photobucket.com/albums/z395/webfinger/Overflow.jpg

As far as your skimmer goes here is a picture of my set-up. Larger than yours probably but the concept is the same. Per the manufacturer the optimum water depth to set my skimmer in was 7 inches. I found that my skimmer overflowed (just like yours is doing) when it was that deep. I built a platform out of PVC pipe to raise it up out of the water to keep it from overflowing. right now it runs in about 4.5 inches of water. I just stacked up layers of egg crate cut into squares until I found the right depth needed for the platform. It takes some patience because it takes my skimmer a few minutes to settle into a groove whenever the water level is changed slightly or I clean the cup. Hope this helps.

http://i1187.photobucket.com/albums/z395/webfinger/P2250526.jpg

mswalter
02/26/2011, 02:37 AM
my skimmer is in about 7 inches of water. It is just filling my tank full of bubbles. It looks like a huge cloud. I am getting a lot of sucking noise. In the left corner is my overflow box with just a straight pvc pipe going right into my sump. There is no elbow no anything to adjust. I will try to post pics of my sump tomorrow. I had it built. But i am noticing that a lot of peoples sumps go under the first baffle then over, mine isnt that way, it goes over to the second compartment, then an egg crate separates the middle compartment, then it goes through a foam piece before it goes into the return compartment which is also on the top.

webfinger
02/26/2011, 03:14 AM
I don't have a separator between the first and second compartment either and only the foam block right before the return pump. My advice: - raise your skimmer up this will help reduce the bubble creation and not overflow your skimmer, next modify the angle on your overflow pipe if it is a straight (flat) cut that will make the most noise. You either need to set up something like mine, or do a siphon system so you have an upside down "J" that is fully submerged in your overflow box. Lastly - make sure your overflow line running from your tank to your sump is fully submerged under water in your sump. Don't leave an air gap so the water splashes in your sump - that will create a lot of bubbles. It might not be possible depending on your sump configuration, but I just added 8 inch pieces of PVC pipe on the underside of of the fitting at the sump to create an extension.

mswalter
02/26/2011, 03:26 AM
the pvc pipe is completely submerged in the sump. The noise is coming from the overflow box. The box is about 3 inches by 5 inches inside my tank covered up with black acrylic. my drain pipe and my return are right next to each other. There isnt much room for modifications. All there is inside my tank is live sand and 10lbs of live rock. Should I turn my skimmer and return pumps off and just let my water settle overnight and see what it looks like in the morning. If it is clear turn my skimmer and pump back on and see how long it takes for it to become cloudy again? Inside the skimmer, the tube is filled all the way up to the cup and sometimes goes about a third of the way up to the top without filling the cup with water.

lacosta28
02/26/2011, 10:31 AM
Sometimes skimmer's will produce lots of microbubbles while they break in for the first 3-4 days. After that if you are still getting microbubbles it is most likely from the water splashing from the return off the skimmer. You can use pvc to fix this.

webfinger
02/26/2011, 12:02 PM
Before you turn your system off - do you have an extra filter sock? If so try placing the filter sock under the output of your skimmer with the top of the sock above the water line if possible.

It could also be your plumbing configuration that is causing the micro-bubbles. Do a search on "micro bubbles" in the forum. I've seen several posts where that has been and issue.

I'm afraid that unless you can modify your overflow pipe you might be stuck with the noise. You might try putting a valve on the output side of your return pump and reducing the flow a little. That might raise the water level in your overflow pipe and help reduce some of the noise.

mswalter
02/26/2011, 03:26 PM
My protein skimmer is a marineland in sump 100. Is it possible I just havent let it run long enough to even function correctly? It was a used skimmer so it should have already been "broke in"

mswalter
02/26/2011, 04:11 PM
Ive been looking into something that will silence the gurgling noise? ne suggestions on how i would make something? And i am talking real simple!

lacosta28
02/26/2011, 04:16 PM
Is the loud noise coming from your overflow box?

mswalter
02/26/2011, 04:27 PM
yes! you can just stand back and hear it sucking. I want it to be as quiet as possible

Sk8r
02/26/2011, 04:35 PM
Galloping, sort of? That can have to do with water level, or hose size, a number of factos. First, be sure your sump AND display water are at a good safe height when the power is cut off. That assures you will never flood. Then we set about trying to quieten it a bit.

No question marine tanks are noisy: I have my entire sump/pump thing downstairs and it still sounds like a waterfall in the living room. But a galloping gurgle is not pleasant, and we can help you fix that. You may need to cut the 'up' line in some safe place and insert a valve that will let you adjust the pump rate to your drain capacity.

mswalter
02/26/2011, 04:54 PM
Yes it is galloping. Then every couple of minutes it burps. The pvc pipe is 3/4" just straight down to the first compartment of the sump. the water level in the overflow box is about 2" from the top of the tank, and about an inch over the top of the pvc pipe. I have several inches before my sump would ever over flow.

mswalter
02/26/2011, 06:33 PM
the pvc pip is actually 1". I didn't build it. A guy from the LFS built it for me.

lacosta28
02/26/2011, 06:49 PM
I think the issue is it goes straight down and that creates the noise you hear. I didn't have this problem but my friend did and he solved it by using a pvc elbow right under the overflow box. He did this so the water did rush straight down and it silenced his.

mswalter
02/26/2011, 07:54 PM
I will go to my local home depot tomorrow and see if i can buy a fitting to create and elbow in the pipe. I hope that this fixes it or we may have to get way more creative in the design on the lower tubing. I cant find my camera anywhere or I would have posted pictures today. I will also go and buy something to sit my protein skimmer more up out of the water and hopefully this will clear up some of the bubbles. It will be a work in progress.

lacosta28
02/26/2011, 07:57 PM
This stuff will work if you want to put it under your skimmer. You can also stack them after you cut it of course. http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.collins-consulting.org/orchids/eggCrate.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.thereeftank.com/forums/f6/lids-or-no-lids-104943.html&h=818&w=656&sz=138&tbnid=-ixnqmnlj-R6hM:&tbnh=144&tbnw=115&prev=/images%3Fq%3Degg%2Bcrate&zoom=1&q=egg+crate&usg=__DcK_kuLPwvdpeZgfUXMC5Tajy3E=&sa=X&ei=-q5pTdfKO5L2swONn-2mBA&ved=0CD8Q9QEwAQ

you can find it at lowes in the lighting section.

mswalter
02/26/2011, 08:17 PM
Do you think I could cover the egg crate with perhaps a filter sock or something to cut down on the bubbles? also my drain pipe is causing alot of bigger bubbles as well. I am also afraid that since on my skimmer the water in sucked up through the bottom and also put out on the bottom that it may get clogged easily