Bubble Blaster HY1000S is RUSTING!

[abomb]

I bought a new Super Reef Octopus XP 1000SSS CONE Protein Skimmer a little over a month ago from aquacave (I just emailed them). It came with the new bubble blaster HY1000S pump and I just took it out of the tank to check it over and this is what I saw.

By the way, the skimmer and pump are working great. But this is still a little disconcerting...

http://drfeuer.com/adam/fishtank/rust1.JPG
http://drfeuer.com/adam/fishtank/rust2.JPG

[Texsun]

one of the screws on mine is rusting after only a month.

[714albert]

would replacing them with nylon screws work

[KrazyOnetime]

Yikes !!!!!!!!

[extreme5450]

surprise...... made in china

[karsseboom]

surprise...... made in china

the skimmer he has is one of the best skimmers on the market...

[chilwil84]

the skimmer he has is one of the best skimmers on the market...

thats your opinion, but low grade ss screws exposed to saltwater isnt good business practice.


i would bet they will replace the screws and maybe the volute. quality products do come from china but they dont make all the parts inhouse so having a supplier send they low grade ss screws can happen. the screws are probably made in taiwan

[SethTheWineGuy]

I just noticed the same problem today. What can be done to fix it? I don't want to put in after market screws that would get my warranty voided. I think Coral Vue/Reef Octopus needs to send out replacement parts.

[Jeremy@CoralVue]

I just noticed the same problem today. What can be done to fix it? I don't want to put in after market screws that would get my warranty voided. I think Coral Vue/Reef Octopus needs to send out replacement parts.

PM sent.

[wfgworks]

I'm in the process of setting up a new tank with two 7000 water blaster pumps. Is this a problem with all the bubble/water Blaster pumps with screws rusting?

[SethTheWineGuy]

PM sent.

I must apologize. Looking through the water it looked like the rust in the picture above. I didn't know what it was when I first looked at it but after seeing this post I assumed rust. I pulled the skimmer out of the water to take pictures to send to Jeremy and as turns out, it was just waste build up.

I must applaud the fact he saw my post and offered to replace what I thought were bad screws. I've been completely thrilled with my SRO 3000int thus far and seeing the on going customer support makes me feel even better!
Thanks Jeremy.

[abomb]

I'm sorry I didn't report back to this thread. Coral Vue sent me a PM right after my post and asked for my address. I had 3 brand new screws come in the mail within the week. They were fast and didn't ask any questions.

I haven't replaced the screws yet because I am still setting up my tank and I am using another skimmer until it is done. I'll follow up in a few months and let everyone know if the new screws rust or not.

-Adam

[Limpit]

I took a look at my 4 month old 1000S after reading this thread and have rust coming from the screws and also from the knurled pieces in the volute.
Really sucks because this skimmer works really well except for this rusting issue with the pump.

[reef67]

I just found I have exact same problem on my HY-1000s pump for my skimmer (5 months old only). Also, I found some cracks around the screw area one the white plastic cover. Is the rusting from screws or from the metal inside the white plastic cover?

[Limpit]

For me the rust was on two of the screws and two of the knurled inserts were also rusty around the outer part of the insert. I contacted Jeremy at Coral Vue and he requested some photos. He then sent out replacement parts as soon as I sent him the pics. Have not received the replacement parts yet as they were just shipped out but I am curious to see if the new volute will be of a different design than my old one as some have stated.

[r0ck0]

Wow this just sold me on not getting a reef octopus skimmer. Really, rusting screws? Come on.

[Jeremy@CoralVue]

Wow this just sold me on not getting a reef octopus skimmer. Really, rusting screws? Come on.

Sorry to hear of your disappointment. Like a car or any other product for that matter, we obtain parts from other manufacturers to make our skimmers. We do not make the screws ourselves so we have no control over the end result. It is evident that we have obtained a bad batch of stainless steel parts and have reported it to the company that is supplying them. However we have be replacing any parts with these issues.

[r0ck0]

Sorry to hear of your disappointment. Like a car or any other product for that matter, we obtain parts from other manufacturers to make our skimmers. We do not make the screws ourselves so we have no control over the end result. It is evident that we have obtained a bad batch of stainless steel parts and have reported it to the company that is supplying them. However we have be replacing any parts with these issues.

Why are you using stainless steel? Aren't titanium and gold the only safe and metals for saltwater use? Of course I don't expect gold plated screws but other manufactures use titanium. Sure, SS will last a while before rusting but it will rust. So maybe not a problem with your parts source but with the parts you are sourcing.

[abomb]

High quality stainless steel is reef safe. I guess it turns out that the batch of SS hardware on that pump wasn't such a high grade of stainless steel. Since Coral vue is so on the ball in replacing the hardware, I don't see a reason not to buy from them.

[n8rad]

wow glad i caught this thread. Wont be buying a cheap piece of crap like this anytime soon. I dont care if its a good skimmer as far as skimmate. Screws are 1st grade stuff. Something else probably got overlooked as well in the construction of this pump/skimmer.
One of the reasons why i stick with Deltec and Royal

[ziyaadb]

i experienced the same thing here in South africa. My BB2000S pump started rusting as well. got the screws changed out. lets see if the new screws are better

[NEK-ap24]

How does one go about getting new screws for thier bubble blaster?

I have a Reef Octopus 2000, and the screws are rusted like the pics in this thread. I am disappointed I didn't notice this sooner, but mine have gotten pretty bad.

[Jeremy@CoralVue]

Please email me with photos of the damage and the serial number off the back of your pump. Please also state when and where you purchased the skimmer? Thanks.

[NEK-ap24]

Thanks for getting back to me. I sent you an email through RC, but it would not let me attach photos. Here is a pic. of the rust. I am not sure you want me posting the pic with my serial number on it on this site, (if so just ask and I will do so)

I attempted to email these two photos plus the photo of the serial number on the back of the pump.

I tried to get your email off this site to email you directly from Yahoo...but your tag didn't have a .com at the end....so I added a .com in hopes it gets to you.

Hopefully one of these methods will have gotten to you.

Thanks again for the help

[boca rat]

It would be a lot easier if we knew the size and where to get them locally, assuming Home Depot etc sell good quality stainless of course. If they're magnetic, avoid.