240/3

[Bryan]

Roger:

What should the height of the wet foam level of a proper running 240/3 skimmer be.

[rvitko]

I can't really answer that because I have never paid much attention to anything other than the skimmate. It should be tea colored, lighter than most other skimmers and this is generally accomplished by having the water level at the top line or maximum and setting the venturi to three full turns open with the pump at 100% power.

[Bryan]

Roger:

Sorry I should have exxplained myself a little better. If I pull off the cylinder and collection cup and with the recommended setting of 3 turns and greater the column of foam in the skimmer is only about 1- 1 1/2" in height. I am beginning to wonder if something is wrong as I am only getting a couple of tablespoons of skimmate a week. I have seen other pictures of Tunze skimmers and the whole cylinder seems to be filled with foam.

In my case 1-1 1/2" of wt foam with some dry foam in the top portion of the cylinder and cup.

-=Bryan-=

[rvitko]

It could be but so much depends on water chemistry that it is difficult to say. Any use of fatty/oily foods will seriously impede skimming. The presence of a lot of cellulose will boost skimming. You could check that all the parts are tight and correctly fitted and that the air intake system isn't choking on water. I know you are looking to get the new venturi and I should have these shortly. Otherwise, I can't really think of what could be defective, they are pretty much all made the same on a jig and their isn't much room for error, their aren't too many parts to them either.

[Bryan]

Thanks Roger. Probably being paranoid about it. My 125 gallon reef only has 1 purple tang, and I only feed a pinch of flaked food every day or so. The bio-load is low. the tunze has been back on the system for 3 weeks and the ORP hasn't dropped, so I guess the water quality is fine and the skimmer is doing the job. I am just used to seeing a wall of solid foam when I used the beckett skimmer.

Let me know when the venturi comes in.

-=Bryan=-

[Bryan]

Hi Roger:

Can you quote me a price for the

Holding device for cabinet 1281.32 page 6 of the skimmer manual

If you got a used one that would be even better.

Thanks

[rvitko]

This article was discontinued and I am sold out. You might check with come of the dealers in Canada. The only dealer in the US who is likely to have this item is MArine Depot.

[Bryan]

Roger:

Found a place locally that had them in stock. But I have a question(s)

The labelling stated for 240/2. I assume it will work with the 240/3

They appear to be made out of metal. I assume it must be some sort of stainless steel.

Does the stand have to be suctioned cupped against the sump wall or can I place it anywhere in the sump

[rvitko]

It will work, the parts are fiberglass and stainless. When submerged stainless does not corrode substantially. It is most stable against the sump wall.

[Bryan]

Thanks roger. One more quick question. Is the height of the stand adjustable at all. Didn't look like it to me as the side panel seemed to determine the height.

[rvitko]

You can adjust about one inch using the slots in the back of the skimmer as slides.

[Bryan]

Thanks Roger.

[Bryan]

Roger:

Strange, but since installing the stand the skimming has taken off. The riser tube is completely filled with foam. I am wondering if the installation of the side plate for the stand acted as a buffer against turbulent water from entering the skimmer.

[rvitko]

It could be, they really don't do well in extreme flow, in Europe the average sump turns the aquarium only 2-5 times an houre because the high expense of electricity makes large return pumps non sensical and most flow is from powerheads.

[Bryan]

Sometimes I wonder if the Europenans are ahead of the game. I often wonder why we try and pump 2000g/h through a sump. Makes more sense to try and move the water in the tank instead.

I guess if it's faster, costs more money and makes more noise it has to be better<g>

[Acropooper]

Roger,
I have my 240/3 in my sump on a DIY stand (ahem...1 gallon gatorade bottle with the neck cut off....) and while I have consistant foam production, the the area in which it located is experiencing probably close to 2500 gph of flow across an 18" width parallel to the skimmer (skimmer oriented the long way.) It's also in an area with a lot of microbubbles because it's before any baffle, do you think this sort of arrangement is significantly reducing the skimmer's performance? Should I modify myvery low budget stand to try to baffle the water flow? Also, is it pre-order time soon on one of the new skimmers, or is the demand not that high enough to warrant preordering?

[rvitko]

I have a preorder for a few skimmers from a couple local dealers and Premium Aquatics but nothing to great yet. The design was changed a little and what is really neat now is you can switch from plankton safe to high power open loop. Try this, place the skimmer in a 5gallon tank inside the sump and either use a small powerhead or divert a portion of the flow through the small tank inside the sump. This works great because it is automatic run dry protection. That was how we always did it at my shop.

[Acropooper]

I think I have a 5 gallon lying around somwhere, I'll give it a try. So far as pre ordering one of the new skimmers, which one should I go for? I'm running a 180 gal SPS w/ a 75 gal refugium, so I probably have close to 300 gal total water volume.

[rvitko]

I would get the big one 9015. It includes a blow off cup free attachment.

[Acropooper]

I'm going to pre order it then just incase. How does this skimmer compare to similarly rated Euro-Reefs, etc? Do you think Tunze is over rating their skimmers again? I'm curious because the new line is a decent bit cheaper than similarly rated skimmers from the competition. If they're accurate ratings then it says something about the "over pricing" of Tunze products because these new skimmers seem like quite a deal to me for that kind of performance. I like the sound of the open/closed loop adjustment, because I was a bit worried making that kind of switch from my close loop skimmer. I have so much microlife in my system and I'm not sure what kind of effect having a closed loop skimmer has in sustaining them, but at least I know now I can easily switch back if I notice changes I don't like. Will these new skimmers peform better in a low flow enviornment as well?

[Bryan]

Acropooper:

Try placing something like a acrylic or plastic sheet in the side of the skimmer by the pump. Basically try to mimic the side panel on the Tunze stand. As I mentioned in my post, it has made a big improvement in my skimmer performance.

[rvitko]

I need to research the ratings, I am on dial up and their is a long answer to that so hopefully tomorrow DSL will be back and I can get to it.

[rvitko]

OK, I found my notes. For the 9010 we have the rating of 500liter of stone coral with full open flow through, the 9015 is for 1000liter. These ratings assume a turnover of 2 times tank volume an hour through the skimmer to be ideal for SPS. For Soft coral and LPS the rating is doubled or the same as the present ratings of the equivalent models which were based on dutch style algae and soft coral reefs. In the future we will make a bigger skimmer but it is still in the planing phases at the time.

The 9000 series is fully upgradable through the range, the pumps are the same. What varies is the amount of air the venturi can take in and this influences the flow through rates. The skimmer cups vary in height to increase contact time as well. The 9005 is very short with a half height cup and delivered only for in tank use. This is designed to fit under canopies. The venturi is just barely cracked open. The 9010 is the standard cup we use now and can be used in sump or in tank. The 9015 is for both uses but has the tall cup of the 240 and includes a new foam extraction tower that can be used instead of the cup.