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lrs183
01/12/2014, 10:21 PM
Hey everyone,

My skimmer has ran the same as always and today I noticed it's pushing a good amount of foam to the lid and into the cup. Not an excessive amount but enough to wonder. The fine bubbles are going maybe a quarter of the way or half the way up the next and then there's a space (where you'd see the collections start pushing up) then foam at the lid area. It has been collecting well even through foam stuff as the cup had a nice tea color product in it that didn't smell raunchy. Just the typical fishy smell. And there isn't foam inside the cup itself.

Another question, I've always had a pretty good amount of surface agitation but I noticed a very thin clear layer of skim on top. It seems for the most part to be avoiding the agitation. I did start using my first dosing of seachem aquavitro 8.4 PH product and the calcium product from their line as well. Could this be the cause of it? I did their very minimal dosing as to not shock or overdose. I also waited a period of time between both. But I did notice a correlation of the skim showing up... or maybe I just noticed it today :/ I have seen a number of tanks on YouTube using these products along with the fuel line that look beautiful. So I've decided its how I want to treat the tank.

All parameters are fine. 0A, 0Nit, 0-5 nitrates. I also performed a 20% water change water only (no sand shifting yet) 2 days ago. LFS water as my rodi hasn't shown up yet. Same water Ive used since the start.

lrs183
01/13/2014, 01:10 AM
No one?

lrs183
01/13/2014, 01:30 PM
Bump last time

Drae
01/13/2014, 02:42 PM
What exactly are you asking?

lrs183
01/13/2014, 03:07 PM
Is what the skimmer is doing a problem? And what the skim is and what to do with it. I make long posts to avoid a hundred detail questions but maybe that wasn't the way to do it

auburnreefer110
01/13/2014, 03:32 PM
Wow

lrs183
01/13/2014, 05:13 PM
Wow

If that was towards my reply it wasn't meant as a snap response. Its just an honest answer. I try to get the info people need so they don't have to wonder. I don't see the harm in that

lrs183
01/13/2014, 05:22 PM
But I apologize if I irked anyone. Was frustrated when I got home messing with a new RODI system that I didn't connect properly and water blasted across the kitchen lol

tkeracer619
01/13/2014, 05:33 PM
Clean the skimmer cup in the sink. Down the sink drain or toilet with the skimmate.

Skimmate doesn't stink, its the byproduct of bacteria that smells. Skimmate is made up of all kinds of bad things so don't try to use it as an energy drink (its far too salty tasting). Among proteins (which is what you see on the top layer of water) you can also find Herpies and Mycobacterium in skimmate. BTW if your skimmate stinks put a little bit of baking soda in the collection chamber. It will keep it from smelling.

What your skimmer sounds like it is doing is fine. As long as you are collecting and not dumping the waste back into the tank and you are removing waste then its all good. As time progresses you will learn to tune it for better results. I usually stick with the "one container per week rule" when trying to tune a skimmer.

Drae
01/13/2014, 05:36 PM
If the foam from the skimmer is making it to the collection cup then the skimmer is working properly. I still don't understand exactly what you're asking. What's the skimmer doing that concerns you?

lrs183
01/13/2014, 05:47 PM
Its hard to explain entirely. I took a picture before going to bed this morning. Maybe this will help with a visual. It just didn't make big bubbles like this for the first couple weeks. I've since lowered its air intake but it is still pretty much doing the same thing

And the surface skim.. do I need to do anything with it like a surface skimmer?

tkeracer619
01/13/2014, 05:52 PM
It was probably "breaking in". They start to produce a dryer foam after a little while.

The top sheen on the tank can be solved by increasing flow through the sump area. The rush of water flowing into the overflow area is supposed to draw in the surface proteins. If the water level inside the overflow is the same as the tank then the weirs (overflow teeth) won't be able to do their job.

You can also aim a pump at the surface if you cannot convince it to go down the overflow.

lrs183
01/13/2014, 05:57 PM
Perhaps I have some adjusting to do. Since opening the tank I've had the return pump grazing the water surface and the other power head aiming through the tank. Its being pretty stubborn. You can see the clear disturbed water and the film is just around the heavy disturbed water.

tkeracer619
01/13/2014, 06:04 PM
Can you raise the overflow teeth at all?

lrs183
01/13/2014, 06:05 PM
I have one at the top of the bracket and one down low. Should both be high?

tkeracer619
01/13/2014, 06:14 PM
Whatever will give you more water through the top set of weirs (teeth). I am not a fan of overflows with an opening at the bottom. I usually plug them...

You want the water to have a higher velocity on the top weirs. That is their principle purpose other then keeping things out of the overflow. The difference in height between the tank water and overflow water creates suction and that suction is what is supposed to pull in those proteins.

This is why most tanks with coast to coast overflows have problems with the surface slick and often the reefer has to put a pump there to push the slick over the edge.

lrs183
01/13/2014, 06:18 PM
I see. Well I definitely am thankful for the help. I will look into swappibg the other one to the top with the other. I had no idea.

Drae
01/13/2014, 06:24 PM
It was probably "breaking in". They start to produce a dryer foam after a little while.
.

This^^^

lrs183
01/13/2014, 06:30 PM
:beer:I guess I just didn't really understand what a dry foam was. So that's my fault. But thank you everyone for the help!

JB63
01/13/2014, 06:38 PM
Patience is one essential virtues in this hobby. No skimmer I've used produces foam as soon as you install it. Or at least, the foam does not start to raise up to the collection cup immediately. Whenever you clean the collection cup, you have two options:

1. Just pour the skimmate down the drain
2. Clean the cup thoroughly.

If you opt for #2, you'd have to go through a break-in period again. The skimmate, as it rises up the tube inside the collection cup, coats the inner walls with some proteins/gnk to make it stick and be able to climb higher the next time. If you want the skimmer not to break-in everytime you take it out, then it's simple: empty it, but do not wash it.

tkeracer619
01/13/2014, 06:59 PM
Skimmer break in is generally due to oils left on the plastic from manufacture.

Simply cleaning the skimmer cup in water will not make you have to break it in again.

If you used soap to clean it then yea I could see it needing another break in. I dump, rinse, wipe, rinse, reinstal Foam to the top within 15 minutes.

Of course every skimmer and every setup are different but simply rinsing the cup and wiping it down with a paper towel should not effect the skimmer at all. In fact it should perform better for the first 24 hours as waste is deposited on the clean plastic.

lrs183
01/13/2014, 07:02 PM
Yeah right now I only wipe it out with paper towels. Though I do always do thorough cleans with wiping it. After taking the cup off, do you clean down the neck of the skimmer where bubbles collect?

buffalo123
01/14/2014, 08:59 AM
The breaking of the foam in your skimmer i found cause by being new and second not enough flow in the skimmer or enough bubbles. I had the same issue but by increasing flow and bubbles that gave me solid foam going up the tube with less breakage in the colony of bubblies. When the skimmer is newish i need to get a layer on the riser tube that help the foam climb the riser.
The skim on the top have to go ;incrase surface agitation , increase amount of water flow heading down to the sump.

queball1
01/18/2014, 08:27 PM
I use a reef octopus and let it spill out the drain hole into a closed 5gal bucket. Put baking soda in it and I don't have to empty it for weeks and weeks...... Works great. Wash it all about every 8-6 months. Sounds like wet skimming vs dry skimming to me.

danderso
01/18/2014, 09:36 PM
Wow

wow