I need to upgrade the pump on my skimmer

[wieselsport]

I have a octopus nw 150 skimmer. I have been getting almost no air flow lately. I'm assuming I need a new pump. What pump can I upgrade with? It sounds like the bubble blaster pumps are the way to go but which one?

Thank you

[doonan75]

Have you cleaned it? If it's still pumping water then it's probably clogged. I've had mine for years and if it stops pulling air it's usually just dirty. take the impeller out and clean it.

[sirreal63]

Make sure the venturi isn't clogged as well, they can get calcified easily and get smaller. I have to run a drill bit through mine every year.

[doonan75]

I drilled my venturi big enough to pass air line tubing through and I just cut the end of the tubing off when it gets clogged.

[wieselsport]

That's all good info. It is still pumping water. I just thoroughly cleaned it about 2 months ago. Hmmm. I guess i'll take it out and see what I find. Thanks

[wieselsport]

I drilled out the intake. It was chalk full of build up. It's running great now. Thanks

[sirreal63]

Great news...I am about due to service mine as well. It isn't just salt creep that accumulates over time and I have never seen a manual tell people to open up the venturi, but after having found it happening on mine, I learned quick. :-)