My NEW A200-1260

[UCanDoIt]

Well, I just received my A200 on Monday afternoon and my aquarium tech brought it over the same day and a lot of modifications needed to done to get this baby inside my tank stand and within my sump area.

Picture #1
Plumbing was redone for gravity feed. About 10" of my custom shelving was trimmed away so we could get the skimmer to fit inside the tank stand. And as you can see from photo that after about 35 hours, I have really nice foaming and milky white in the chamber. My only problem was that the footprint was bigger than stated on the Fins Reef/H&S website, so the pump could not clear my sump wall. It just hung mid-water in the sump about 3" from the bottom.
<a href="http://usera.imagecave.com/winner/A200.jpg"><img src="http://usera.imagecave.com/winner/icth_A200.jpg.jpg"></a>

Picture #2
My aquarium tech built me a quick PVC stand to raise my A200 about 3", so it would clear my sump wall. Worked perfectly except now, to remove the collection cup it's too tight against the top of my tank stand. Not that I couldn't remove the collection cup, just very inconvenient.
<a href="http://usera.imagecave.com/winner/A200Stand.jpg"><img src="http://usera.imagecave.com/winner/icth_A200Stand.jpg.jpg"></a>

Picture #3
The PVC stand worked great and very stable too. Eheim clears my sump wall about 1/4". You can see from this closeup that there's at least 2" that the Eheim sticks out beyond the elbow. From exhaust to elbow is 17", but to the end of the Eheim is about 19". Fins Reef has since revised their footprint measurement after my dealer complained to them about this embarrashing situation where they delivered my system and wasn't even close to fitting my setup.
<a href="http://usera.imagecave.com/winner/A200Raise.jpg"><img src="http://usera.imagecave.com/winner/icth_A200Raise.jpg.jpg"></a>

Picture #4
Then big disappointment, the Eheim pump came damaged. We didn't notice when installing, but there were small pieces of plastic in the bubble wrap that the pump came in and this was why. Doesn't affect performance of the skimmer unless the pump is damaged inside, but just doesn't look nice when one pays $1,100 for a skimmer and expect cosmetically perfect.
<a href="http://usera.imagecave.com/winner/A200EheimDamaged.jpg"><img src="http://usera.imagecave.com/winner/icth_A200EheimDamaged.jpg.jpg"></a>

My aquarium technician still needs to fine tune the plumbing for the feed as the setup took so long that he didn't have time to finish it correctly. The water feeding is too slow even with the ball valve fully open at this point. Should be corrected by this weekend when he has time to buy the plumbing parts and come back to finish my setup.

I'm kind of struggling and trying to decide whether to keep this unit or not as the fit is not real good. I like everything to fit and look good. My aquarium tech says no problems with returning it if I'm really dissatisfied. BUT THIS IS SUCH A NICE UNIT!!! It's really awesome! Well, this weekend, I'll either be posting some performance photos or none because the unit is gone. :rollface:

[Treg]

Just Curisous, how does one become an Aquarium Technician?

Is there like an Aquarium Tech School?
The California Aquarium Technical University?






:lol:

[UCanDoIt]

What a fancy name for aquarium maintenace person! :D Who does water changes and custom installations. :rollface:

[Jim_S]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7119356#post7119356 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Treg
Just Curisous, how does one become an Aquarium Technician?

Is there like an Aquarium Tech School?
The California Aquarium Technical University?






:lol:

I was wondering this myself.

So you pay this guy to hook up your system for you? Thats like my favorite part of this hobby...:lol:.....

[UCanDoIt]

I'm female and don't like to work with my hands on stuff like plumbing, leave it to the experts. If anything happens, the aquarium maintainance company is fully insured.

[Treg]

Kinda takes the U outta UCanDoIt.
Unless by U you mean "Someone else" can do it... :lol: :D

Nice skimmer, you tech did a good job. :)
The broken pump cover might be replacable ?

[thedigitalimager]

That PVC stand is clever. I'm going to use that design in my own sump to create additional room for my heaters. Many thanks for posting the pics.

[UCanDoIt]

I decided to keep my A200 and KM Associates Int'l, who sold me this unit, is just absolutely great! They offered me a huge discount for the damage pump case, which they told me was strictly cosmetic and won't affect the performance of the pump AND Fins Reef will be providing a shorter collection cup at no cost to me. WHAT CUSTOMER SERVICE!!! After my plumbing is finished, I post some performance photos as soon as I have some to share. :rollface:

[AcroSteve]

Sweet!

Post some pics of your tank too.

[UCanDoIt]

Per Your Request. This is a fish only tank that I have on my new A200 on. I have a couple of medium size Angelfishes that are hiding.

<a href="http://usera.imagecave.com/winner/175gFOWLRClose.jpg"><img src="http://usera.imagecave.com/winner/icth_175gFOWLRClose.jpg.jpg"></a>

[Zoom]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7133305#post7133305 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by UCanDoIt
Per Your Request. This is a fish only tank that I have on my new A200 on. I have a couple of medium size Angelfishes that are hiding.

<a href="http://usera.imagecave.com/winner/175gFOWLRClose.jpg"><img src="http://usera.imagecave.com/winner/icth_175gFOWLRClose.jpg.jpg"></a>
That little Clown trigger is the same size when i got mine two years a go .
Feed it some raw clams it will get big very quickly.
My is 9" now very aggressive i can not put my hand in the tank to clean it any longer.

[exo]

Nice Skimmer
NIce tank
Good luck
Youll be glad you kept the unit.\

[UCanDoIt]

<IMG SRC="http://usera.imagecave.com/winner/A200Day2a.jpg">

<a href="http://usera.imagecave.com/winner/A200Day2b.jpg"><img src="http://usera.imagecave.com/winner/icth_A200Day2b.jpg.jpg"></a>

Well, it's been 24 hours from the time that my aquarium tech finished the plumbing on my setup as he needed to get some parts. Now the waterflow rate is correct. To complete the project from the gravity feed, he went with 1" T which feeds into 1" Ball Valve which connects to a short piece of 1" ID vinyl tubing, which finally adapts to a 3/4" x 1/2" PVC elbow, so the reduction to 1/2" is right at the skimmer. Earlier, he had a temporary hookup where the plumbing was reduced to 1/2" right after the ball valve and that slow the waterflow rate too slow and even with the ball valve wide open, most of the water was going out the other end of the T that was above the ball valve. It was temporary as he didn't have the parts that he needed as well as it took so long to get the oversized skimmer into my sump that is within my tank stand. He did a GREAT JOB and I'm totally happy with what I ended up with.

[UCanDoIt]

Any other A200 H&S club member are more than welcome to post their performance photos here to give potential new owners more information before they make an educated decision on which skimmer to invest in.

[UCanDoIt]

Just in time for cleaning. I like to skim wet, so the skim is more like a dark greenish brown tea color with a thick layer of dark brown gunt at the top edge of inside riser tube.

<a href="http://usera.imagecave.com/winner/A200Day5.jpg"><img src="http://usera.imagecave.com/winner/icth_A200Day5.jpg.jpg"></a>

[DirtySouth056]

Nice post! I wish other's would post pics of their A200's, and how they are setup. Thanks for the pm's I'm in contact w/ Ed.

[UCanDoIt]

In response to question by email about details on the gravity feed. If you are going to gravity feed from the tank's overflow box, you need the pressure to be constant going to the skimmer, so the greatest waterflow should be directed straight towards the skimmer and then tailored back by a ball or gate valve. You also need a T fitting before the ball or gate valve, so all the excess surging and gurgling that goes on with overflows empties out on the side of the T into the sump. Here's a sketch that my aquarium maintenance person did for me when he setup my tank. My gravity feed in an earlier photo is setup exactly like this.

<IMG SRC="http://usera.imagecave.com/winner/GravityFeedPlumbing.jpg">

[Reefrookie2006]

Here is the A200 1260 skimmer I just got today...I'm still waiting for a 190g LeeMar Starfire tank.

http://i69.photobucket.com/albums/i63/cyclereef/DSCN0173.jpg

[Reefrookie2006]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7130911#post7130911 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by UCanDoIt
I decided to keep my A200 and KM Associates Int'l, who sold me this unit, is just absolutely great! They offered me a huge discount for the damage pump case, which they told me was strictly cosmetic and won't affect the performance of the pump AND Fins Reef will be providing a shorter collection cup at no cost to me. WHAT CUSTOMER SERVICE!!! After my plumbing is finished, I post some performance photos as soon as I have some to share. :rollface:

Do you have a shorter collection cup picture? What's a purpose for this shorter collection cup.

[UCanDoIt]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7287843#post7287843 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Reefrookie2006
Do you have a shorter collection cup picture? What's a purpose for this shorter collection cup.

My shorter collection cup should be shipped this week, so I should be receiving next week. The reason why I'm getting a shorter cup on Finns Reef expense is because the footprint measurements on their website was incorrect and when I received my A200, even with extensive modifications to the tank stand and sump, we couldn't get it to fit as the Eheim was hanging against my sump wall. So, my aquarium tech built me a short PVC stand to raise the skimmer high enough so the pump clears the sump wall. Well, what ended up happenning was the collection cup is right up against the top of my tanks stand and very difficult to remove for cleaning. So, as part of their great customer service, they are swapping out my collection cup for one that is shorter for easy removal. Typically, this type of modification is a $50 customization charge.

[Reefrookie2006]

I got it. Thanks for the information.

[CloWn SpaWn]

UCanDoIt: where did you pick up the air valve at? trying to get my skimmer set, but i didn't a get you air valve. and what is the best way to tell how much flow you got going in to the skimmer? i set it up just like your pic.

[UCanDoIt]

My local dealer gave me that instead of the standard H&S air clamp, since I was one of his best customers. Not sure where he got it or maybe he booted it off one of his EuroReef or Deltecs. You should have received a air clamp with your skimmer which should work just as good. I just love the air valve, really easy to dial in and it looks cool. Below is a post of air meters.

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=835776

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7281919#post7281919 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Wombat_101
Brian or anyone...

Brian you recommended the:

As for the airflow meter, I use the Dwyer RMA-22. You can purchase them at
http://www.dwyer-inst.com/htdocs/flow/SeriesRMPrice.cfm
They are not 100% accurate, but close enough for our applications.

In another thread for the 200-1260, I have the 150-F2001 and wanted to know if I should get the same meter or a smaller one.

Also is the fitting the same as well,
A340
http://www.dwyer-inst.com/htdocs/misc/fittings-filters.cfm

Thanks,
Greg

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7282240#post7282240 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by FinsReef
That is correct, go with the RMA22, and the fitting.

[UCanDoIt]

CloWn SpaWn, I see you bought a A150 from DRZL-sauras. Post some photos on Jim's A150 thread when you get it up & running.

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=788562

[CloWn SpaWn]

okay, i am to lazy to look. what a air meters for.
and i did buy his skimmer, but no air clamp with it. cant take pics right now cause my money is going in to my tank and i want a better camera then a kodak.

[UCanDoIt]

Air Meter measures airflow. Here's some photos from previous H&S skimmer posting.

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=5495536#post5495536 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by FinsReef
First Picture is the 200-1260 with air valve wide open
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b56/finsreef/248fc3c5.jpg

Second Picture is after closing the pinch valve down some.
Guage is in LPH so take the numbers and multiply by 60 to get LPH.
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b56/finsreef/54175421.jpg

[CloWn SpaWn]

closing it gets more air?

[UCanDoIt]

When your skimmer is up and running, see where the bubble bursting level is at as well as the size of the bubbles in the fully open, no restriction or no air clamp attached. Then close the clamp down a little bit at a time and watch the foaming changed as the bubbles can get a little bit finer and the bubble bursting level may increase and rise a little. At the highest point is usually the greatest airflow. To be absolutely sure, you can use a air meter to measure how many lph your pump is pulling through. So, in answer to your question, typically yes, when you close down the air clamp about 1/4 to 1/3 down, the airflow rate increases and the pump runs even more efficiently. Brian explains it really well in earlier posts, but I can't seem to find his posts right now.

Sent you a PM about your missing air clamp.

[CloWn SpaWn]

got it thanks

[UCanDoIt]

In response to several PMs about water level and bubble breaking level, I thought it best that I copy in a previous post that I did about the same subject. Sorry about the Deltec photo as I own both and this was readily available.

<IMG SRC="http://usera.imagecave.com/winner/DeltecBubbleBreakLevel.jpg">

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7300811#post7300811 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by UCanDoIt

I have spent many many hours talking to the my Aquarium tech (who maintains all my tanks) about plumbing and he's tried it all, made his share of mistakes, and the way he has my tank set up works great.

There are 3 controls on the skimmer:
1. Input controlled by gravity feed from overflow with ball valve "or" a feed pump with the correct rate
2. Output controlled by wedgepipe at skimmer's exhaust drain
3. Air flow controlled by air clamp

To set your skimmer correctly (as I am told):

1. first you must be sure the water flow through rate is matched to your skimmer. most of the time, for gravity feed, one would need to tailor the rate back by ball valve in control #1 as the water turnover rate on your system is usually much stronger than your skimmer can handle. if not tailored back to the correct flow through rate, there will be too much turbulance within the skimmer and performance will be greatly affected. or you can feed skimmer with a correctly rated pump or powerhead

2. next, with the water flow through rate adjusted correctly, the water level within the skimmer must be at the right level for the skimmer to perform optimally. water level should start right at the bottom edge of the bayonet connection between the collection cup and skimmer body. if the water level is too low, tailor back the outflow from the skimmer drain with the wedgepipe and it will raise the water level within the skimmer body. again, use the wedgepipe on the output, which is control #2, and be sure the drain does not terminate underwater in the sump. if the exhaust terminates underwater, the skimmer does not function well for H&S skimmers. on my setup, I have a 90 elbow that directs the water down into the sump, but the end of the pipe is about 1/2" above the sump water level. to quiet & reduce splashing, you can put a 45 elbow at the end of the drain pipe

3. tighten the air clamp for maximum foaming with control #3. on both my Deltec and H&S skimmers, it is tailored back approximately 1/4 - 1/3 which gives me the finest bubbles and good foaming head. on some skimmers, a fully open air tube could possibly be your best performance as every skimmer is different

once your skimmer is broken in and foaming, adjust wedgepipe to raise the water and bubble breaking level for wetter skimming and lower for drier skimming. HTH:rollface:

[CloWn SpaWn]

looking at your pic, i am less then half of that. i'll have to bring it up.

[CloWn SpaWn]

and how to check your water flow through rate?

[UCanDoIt]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6914139#post6914139 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by UCanDoIt
Filling a 1g milk jug from the T off the drain of your skimmer:

150gph takes approximately 24secs to fill 1g
175gph takes approximately 21secs to fill 1g
200gph takes approximately 18secs to fill 1g
225gph takes approximately 16secs to fill 1g
250gph takes approximately 14secs to fill 1g
275gph takes approximately 13secs to fill 1g
300gph takes approximately 12secs to fill 1g
325gph takes approximately 11secs to fill 1g
350gph takes approximately 10secs to fill 1g

HTH. When you measure off the drain pipe, use the ball valve that you installed before the skimmer to control and adjust waterflow through the skimmer and then to the 1g milk jug.

[UCanDoIt]

Oops! :eek: forgot to add that on the skimmer's exhaust, the wedgepipe must be in the wide open position where the 2 dots are lined up with each other! This way you get an accurate flow through rate through the skimmer. I usually adjust for max flow through the skimmer and it gets reduced slightly anyways when I close down the exhaust wedgepip a quarter turn to bring the water level up for the correct bubble breaking level. HTH :)

[CloWn SpaWn]

got it

[AcroSteve]

I have been running my level about an inch higher than your pic.

[UCanDoIt]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7305675#post7305675 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by AcroSteve
I have been running my level about an inch higher than your pic.

Currently, ME TOO on the A200-1260. On my Deltecs, they are running just like the photo. Might be the riser tube is smaller on the Deltecs, not really sure. Well, this is a good spot to start with and one can adjust the level up or down depending on preference of skimming wet or dry.

[UCanDoIt]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6807015#post6807015 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by djfrankie
I love to be first!

There are very little pics on this site regarding H&S skimmers, so I've decided to post a few for those that are contemplating buying this brand of skimmer.

I received this skimmer last week on Friday (2/10) from Brian (Finsreef) and have been playing with it for this past week. The skimmer is extemely well made. All welds are made using injection welding, which to my knowledge, is the best and strongest welding or bond one can achieve at this time.

As you can see from the pics there are braces everywhere that make this skimmer a lot stronger than most of the competition. Having had one too many skimmers in the past, this comes as a relief.

The extruded acrylic is indeed as good as the cast acrylic used here in the US. I cannot tell a difference.

The skimmer is extremely easy to adjust and the proper results are achieved very quickly after it breaks in. Mine took about a day to break in and has been pulling about 1-1/2" of crud every couple of days on a fairly low bioload.

I went ahead and ordered the Dwyer flowmeter (RMA-22) just because it makes it easier to see what the skimmer is pulling in terms of air consumption and it's easier to adjust. The skimmer does pull what is advertises to do (15 L/min or 900 L/Hour).

I love the twist off collection cup and once off it is very easy to clean the inside of the body when you need to.

The skimmer came in with a broker rear pump housing. This was quickly replaced by Brian (Finsreef) with no questions or any type of hassles. He also helped me adjust the skimmer the day that I installed it. Brian thanks for the great customer service!!!

Sorry about the lengthy post, but I'm sure it will help other people that are in the process of getting a skimmer. Feel free to check out the pics and let me know if you have any questions.

BTW, I'm not in any way affiliated with H&S or any other company for that matter.

HTH,
djfrankie

Pic 1 (http://reefcentral.com/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=155146)
Pic 2 (http://reefcentral.com/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=153973&papass=&sort=1&thecat=500)
Pic 3 (http://reefcentral.com/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=153974&papass=&sort=1&thecat=500)
Pic 4 (http://reefcentral.com/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=153972&papass=&sort=1&thecat=500)
Pic 5 (http://reefcentral.com/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=155141&papass=&sort=1&thecat=500)
Pic 6 (http://reefcentral.com/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=155142&papass=&sort=1&thecat=500)
djfrankie's photos is in his photo gallery

[UCanDoIt]

The first 2 weeks, the skimmer just pulled out all kind stuff from my tank, but after 2 weeks it's slow down quite a bit and settle into what you see now. I like to skim very wet, so I'm getting a ligh tea color with a little less than 1/2" daily collected in the cup.

Absolutely NO MICROBUBBLES is returning to the tank. Enjoy the photos!

<a href="http://usera.imagecave.com/winner/A200ShortCup.jpg"><img src="http://usera.imagecave.com/winner/icth_A200ShortCup.jpg.jpg"></a> <a href="http://usera.imagecave.com/winner/A200FullBody.jpg"><img src="http://usera.imagecave.com/winner/icth_A200FullBody.jpg.jpg"></a>
<a href="http://usera.imagecave.com/winner/A200Cup.jpg"><img src="http://usera.imagecave.com/winner/icth_A200Cup.jpg.jpg"></a> <a href="http://usera.imagecave.com/winner/A200Neck.jpg"><img src="http://usera.imagecave.com/winner/icth_A200Neck.jpg.jpg"></a> <a href="http://usera.imagecave.com/winner/A200Body.jpg"><img src="http://usera.imagecave.com/winner/icth_A200Body.jpg.jpg"></a>

[UCanDoIt]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7357823#post7357823 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by UCanDoIt
The first 2 weeks, the skimmer just pulled out all kind stuff from my tank, but after 2 weeks it's slow down quite a bit and settle into what you see now. I like to skim very wet, so I'm getting a ligh tea color with a little less than 1/2" daily collected in the cup.

I got a PM asking how my skimmer was really performing. Sorry for the misleading statement earlier and I can see how it could be misread. I have absolutely no problems with the A200, it is great, so no complaints here. I believe my earlier EuroReef, AquaC and then ASM skimmers that I had on my tank earlier just didn't do a great job and left a lot of waste in my tank water. So, the first week, this new skimmer just skimmed like mad and got all the junk out. Now, on a continuing basis, I don't have the buildup that I had earlier from poorer performing skimmers. Hopefully, this clarifies my above statement why the skimmer has settle back to what it's doing now. Again, this skimmer is on a 175g FOWLR tank, so it's not like I feed it 3x daily like I do with my reef tank. The A200 is probably an overkill for this tank, but I like overkill as it keeps my nitrates never above 40ppm along with monthly water changes.

The best part I like about H&S is ABSOLUTELY NO MICROBUBBLES returning to the tank, which could be bad for a FOWLR tank. I don't know if you can see the full skimmer body shot, but the bubbles within the chamber actually reaches down to the lower protective ring, even with the air valve fully open. It's looks great!

[UCanDoIt]

:dance: After 5 days with my custom 1/2" shorter collection cup (courtesy of Brian), I love it!!! Very easy for me to remove and clean my collection cup now.

:bounce2: Also, I just received my Dwyer RMA-22 Air Meter and was excited to get 1,000lph, my EuroReef, ASM & AquaC never pulled this kind of airflow or skim. I just couldn't believe how well my A200 has been foaming and skimming for the last 5 weeks.

<IMG SRC="http://usera.imagecave.com/winner/DwyerRMA-22.jpg">

:lol2: On this tank, I started with EuroReef (3 years), then switched to AquaC EV (18 months) when I thought that was the latest and greatest. Then over to ASM (6 months) and now the H&S A200-1260. I almost think that the A200 is overkill for my 175g. :D

[Fliger]

Interesting. I wonder if H&S did something to increase the LPH. I used to get maybe between 875-925 on H&S Eheims when I owned the 2x1260 & 3x1260. But on my custom model I am also getting ~1,000LPH. I know there is less headpressure because my skimmer is shorter. I am using the same meter the whole way thru, and I also measured the AP702 with it, and got 900-950 if memory serves me right. It has less pressure than the H&S models because it was shorter.

So much for Deltec Eheims pulling in more than H&S.

Another thing I want to try - I know it probably won't make a huge difference ... but the outlet of the Eheim takes 1/2" pvc. I am going to insert a small piece with a 45 and angle it slightly downward, against the side of the acrylic and possible swirl it. It might not be possible since my 1x1260 is shorter - kind of like a 701, but maybe it would work for you? It might put microbubbles back into your tank though.

[UCanDoIt]

It was actually a pleasant surprise when I took the air valve off and measure the air intake without an restrictions. The foaming actually jump up to the edge of the riser tube in the middle of the collection cup. So, I'm getting 960-1,050lph on my new Dwyer RMA-22.

When I first had my A200 installed, I questioned my aquatech about pulling in a 45 on the input as i like the swirling effect as well as redirecting the input waterflow slightly downward at an angle. He said that there wasn't anything to grab onto. I believe if I was to install a 45 on the output of the Eheim, there won't be any problems with microbubbles as the output is about 5" from the bottom of the skimmer, so plenty of room to work with.

[MDboyz]

UCanDoIt...

Sorry for going off topic here... but where you get the air valve like that? I'm looking around for that too....

[UCanDoIt]

My local dealer buys them from EuroReef. These are the exact air valves on Deltec and EuroReef skimmers. He doesn't know where else to buy the air valves. He's looked around and cannot find them locally. I might be selling mine since my A200 now pulls in more air without any air valve or air clamp.

[jnb]

I have a couple of questions -

on your ehiem, when you clean it, do you find two metal washers on each end of the impellor under the rubber stay? I wonder if the replacement impellors come with these.

My dot is about 4:30 away from the fixed dot - is this somewhere in the range of where yours is -

this is my setup which shows my drain. I had water all over my floor when my halimedia (sp?) went sexual on me once - so I installed the drain - when the water in the cup gets higher and reaches the same level (marked in red) as the green y'd hose going to sump it starts dumping into the sump - I keep the other part of the y leading to the valve leading to the jug closed until I want to drain the cup.


http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/49068r_IMG_0411.jpg http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/49068r_IMG_0402.jpg

[FinsReef]

Nick,
Yes all the impellers come with two washers on each end. Replacement impellers come with them also.

Thanks Eric

[UCanDoIt]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7389047#post7389047 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by jnb

My dot is about 4:30 away from the fixed dot - is this somewhere in the range of where yours is -


Mine is set approximately 1/4 or 90 degrees turn away from where the 2 dots meet, maybe a little bit more.

[jnb]

U can

Here is a pic of where I am headed - do you think the T is properly placed - it is only taped there so its not too late - the hose is against the back wall and the end is about at the front of the sump - the run from the back to the front is like 2 feet - so the next question is how far should I run this 1.125 hose before adapting for the skimmer - based on previous questions I plan to put a ball valve right before I adapt down to the smaller hose and actually will putting a valve on in between the skimmer and adaptor. The hose marked in red going to the sump will be replaced by the T-off - for your info the other hose is a second standpipe safety with really no water going thru it unless the overflow regular feed to the sump gets blocked
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/49068IMG_0402-med.JPG

[UCanDoIt]

Looks like a good plan. You can always tailor down to 1" after the T to the ball valve, so you can use a standard 1" ball valve (less bulky & less expensive). After the ball valve, keep the PVC piping the same for a little bit, then tailor down with the adapter when close to the skimmer. HTH

[UCanDoIt]

JNB - When you have redone your plumbing, Post some new photos and I can ask my AquaTech to take a look at the setup. Also post some new performance photos once you've had it running a few days. Good luck!

[jnb]

okdoky - probably will convert tonight

[jnb]

I installed the gravity feed last night/this morning and it is not right - I believe because the T is installed lower than the skimmer highest level I do not have full control over setting the water level higher I think.

The red following the hoses is the new set up. Don't be confused as to the skimmer exhaust/return because it is hiding the last inches of the overflow off of the T running to the sump. I am getting all the flow I need to the skimmer but it becomes too low as I raise the level with the 2-dot adjustment - so I will rerun so the T is higher and hope for the best - the other issue is that the skimmer is making large disturbing bubbles (as well as the finer ones) when no bubbles are running thru the feed - but I think this is residue from the new hoses compromising nice fine bubbles.

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/49068IMG_0405.JPG

[jnb]

update - I reworked the T and I am getting the right flow, very adjustable, I am getting no bubbles thru the feed to speak of. The skimmer has shut down skimming - I think because of the new flex pvc residue - time will tell

I think this will work

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/49068IMG_04061.JPG

[QUOTE]<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7442091#post7442091 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by jnb
[B]I installed the gravity feed last night/this morning and it is not right - I believe because the T is installed lower than the skimmer highest level I do not have full control over setting the water level higher I think.

The red following the hoses is the new set up. Don't be confused as to the skimmer exhaust/return because it is hiding the last inches of the overflow off of the T running to the sump. I am getting all the flow I need to the skimmer but it becomes too low as I raise the level with the 2-dot adjustment - so I will rerun so the T is higher and hope for the best - the other issue is that the skimmer is making large disturbing bubbles (as well as the finer ones) when no bubbles are running thru the feed - but I think this is residue from the new hoses compromising nice fine bubbles.

[UCanDoIt]

Nick, IMO it looks great! You mentioned that the T fitting was lower earlier, yes that wouldn't be good as the water cannot get enough momentum towards the skimmer as it struggles to go through both sides of the T. The T higher up will create the natural gravity accelleration in the water to go straight through towards the skimmer and when you tailor back the waterflow with the ball valve the excess will empty out the other end of the T. Also you have the ball valve very far away from the T, so should be no surging or gurgling. Your rework looks great to me!

After your skimmer settles down, post some new perforance photos. You should have some nasty stuff soon.

[jnb]

Thanks - I agree it should work - except my skimmer never started to form the right kind of drier bubbles to build even though I could see no surge, no larger bubbles coming out - I thought it may be the new hose needing to slime a bit and it may be - but this AM it was no further along - so I vinegar'd the 1260 , otherwise cleaned it and made a bypass to feed the skimmer with a little ehiem minijet - probably about 150 gph which is where I have had success - I can easily switch back to the gravity feed with valves while I otherwise try to trouble shoot.

right below the T I have (when the gravity feed is turned on - the pic below I have it off for now) about 12 inches of water coming to the skimmer which has lots of bubbles but they pretty much just dance within that 12 inchs (before the ball valve) and hardly if at all do any go to the skimmer - you probably do too but just can't seem them cause you opaque pvc - I wa thinking these bubbles hurt the skimming process perhaps and you may not have them if your run from the T to the skimmer is more verticle than mine (mine is rather horizintal soon after the T - just thinking - we shall see if the temp feed helps - if it starts producing by tomorrow AM it is either the gravity feed or maybe the 1260 cleaning I gave.

One question, when your 1260 is off, where is the water level in the skimmer on yours - mine is half way between the bottom of the cup and the cup union

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/49068IMG_0407.JPG

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7452510#post7452510 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by UCanDoIt
Nick, IMO it looks great! You mentioned that the T fitting was lower earlier, yes that wouldn't be good as the water cannot get enough momentum towards the skimmer as it struggles to go through both sides of the T. The T higher up will create the natural gravity acceleration in the water to go straight through towards the skimmer and when you tailor back the waterflow with the ball valve the excess will empty out the other end of the T. Also you have the ball valve very far away from the T, so should be no surging or gurgling. Your rework looks great to me!

After your skimmer settles down, post some new performance photos. You should have some nasty stuff soon.

[UCanDoIt]

Sometimes it does take a little bit to get going again. After all the cleaning, just leave it alone a bit and it should startup again. Your bubble breaking level inside the riser tube looks perfect and looks like you have very fine bubbles. Should startup in a few days. Great photo of your gravity feed setup. :)

[UCanDoIt]

JNB-per your request, you asked where my bubble breaking level is for wet skimming. you can see how light color my skim is. of course, the amount of skim depends on how much you feed your tank.
<IMG SRC="http://usera.imagecave.com/winner/A200ShortCup.jpg">

[jnb]

Thanks - just so you know I am trying to make sure I understand what to expect - so I sent this email to Brian ( Finsreef) as he has been so good with me and other customers:

Hi Brian,

Well, I have had my A200 1260 for a year now - I am pretty happy that my tank seems clean enough and it pulls nicely - I have always been a tinkered and critic wanting to know that I am getting the most out of it -

I am attempting to use a gravity feed as others seems to set this up and like it even though at one point you threw out a caution that it is difficult to keep it from disturbing skimming. And after I installed it, the skimmer stopped producing - I attributed this to the new hose I used to set up the gravity feed because otherwise, the feed was not feeding any bubbles to speak of and the flow seemed consistent - you can see the thread here
http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=818119&perpage=25&pagenumber=3

I had to bypass the gravity feed to get the skimmer going and have a couple of questions before I give up (and after I make sure the new pipe is not the cause)

why do these impellors have the metal washers when no other impellor for Eheim does - the magnet should be held into proper place by the magnetic field - I want to know because I believe that the metal washers can slow things down - one of metal washers is actually cut wrong with hole to side - when I squeeze off air, my air pressure does not pick up - (at all) albeit it was at like 950 but I have heard others recently say they were getting more than 1000 . It has always been a question/concern


when the 1260 is turned off (but my feed is on) my water level is about at the union level - is this about right?

and then
when my 1260 is on, and I turn it off (feed still on) - I see the actual water level had been pushed lower (by all the froth) such that a second after turning it off when the bubbles quickly start to fade (1 second) that the water level had been about at the joint in the pvc where the 8 inch diameter started to go into a cone shape below the union 1.5 or so inches - does this seem ok?

I have always been a little concerned that I have to maintain a bubble level which is so close to the top (where it dumps into the cup) that I am afraid of overflows when I want to skim wetter which never produces more than 1.5 inches of wet skim a day and dry skimming, for me has not ever really worked like I see on others tanks

I keep 3 pajama cardinals, 3 inch Kole tang, a couple of shrimp, target mandarin, a black alga eating blenny about 3 inches, and otherwise stocked about like this http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/49068tank_moveP3090088after.jpg - such that I am not heavily stocked IMO and not a heavy feeder -

Pls bear with me - I just want to get this tuned to the best it can be.







Originally posted</a> by UCanDoIt [/i]
[B]JNB-per your request, you asked where my bubble breaking level is for wet skimming. you can see how light color my skim is. of course, the amount of skim depends on how much you feed your tank.

[Fliger]

I can't answer many of the questions but I will try to recount my LPH readings. Please allow for a little error as its been a while. I have posted it before though long ago. The same Dwyer meter was used every time.

1260 from A200 2x1260 & A300 3x1260 = about 900LPH
1260 from Deltec AP702 = about 925LPH (with taps off)
1260 from AP702 with tap on at 12 o'clock = 800-850LPH (bounced a lot)
1260 from AP702 with tap at 2 o'clock, where Deltec recommeneds ~ 700LPH (also bounced)
1260 from current 1x1260 = 1,000LPH +

I'm pretty sure I posted on some of those heated threads about why Deltec Eheims were $500+ because the did something different to them. I only had the top two readings at the time. I did post that Deltec beat the H&S, but guessed that head pressure might affect the H&S, as they are taller than the AP702.

Then I got the AP702 back recently and ran it for a while, which is where I got the 3rd & 4th readings, and my custom H&S came in maybe a month ago. IMHO, it proves that there is no difference between the 1260's, its head pressure. It also kinda shows that you don't NEED all the air in every setup, lots of AP702 users report better performance at ~700LPH.

Anyway - I'm sure this doesn't really answer anything for you - but might explain the LPH results. ;-)

[jnb]

thanks - ucandoit is interested in any feedback that will help future H&S users - she told me that is the purpoise of this thread.



<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7465006#post7465006 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Fliger
I can't answer many of the questions but I will try to recount my LPH readings. Please allow for a little error as its been a while. I have posted it before though long ago. The same Dwyer meter was used every time.

1260 from A200 2x1260 & A300 3x1260 = about 900LPH
1260 from Deltec AP702 = about 925LPH (with taps off)
1260 from AP702 with tap on at 12 o'clock = 800-850LPH (bounced a lot)
1260 from AP702 with tap at 2 o'clock, where Deltec recommeneds ~ 700LPH (also bounced)
1260 from current 1x1260 = 1,000LPH +

I'm pretty sure I posted on some of those heated threads about why Deltec Eheims were $500+ because the did something different to them. I only had the top two readings at the time. I did post that Deltec beat the H&S, but guessed that head pressure might affect the H&S, as they are taller than the AP702.

Then I got the AP702 back recently and ran it for a while, which is where I got the 3rd & 4th readings, and my custom H&S came in maybe a month ago. IMHO, it proves that there is no difference between the 1260's, its head pressure. It also kinda shows that you don't NEED all the air in every setup, lots of AP702 users report better performance at ~700LPH.

Anyway - I'm sure this doesn't really answer anything for you - but might explain the LPH results. ;-)

[FinsReef]

Nick,
The metal washers are in the impeller for spacing. Different countries have different impellers and number of washers used. They will wear over time, and will need to be replaced when they get out of round.
Here is a picture of all the different version of Eheim Needlewheel impellers for all the different voltages of pumps.(sorry for the bad picture)
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b56/finsreef/DSC00322.jpg

As far as your airflow, on your skimmer anything between 850 to 900 is normal. The customers that generally have over 1000lph generally have a custom shorter skimmer.

The water level sounds about normal on set-up with and without the recirc pump being on.

As far as you not getting that much skimmate, you have a very small bioload on a oversized skimmer. There is only so much you can pull out. If you increase your fishload or feeding, your skimmer will pull alot more skimmate.
It is better to use your water parameters as a judge to how well a skimmer is working than what the skimmate looks like compared to the next person. If you nitrates are staying low, phosphates staying low, orp is good, and ph is stable, then generally you skimmer is doing the job it was designed for.
On my SPS tank at the shop I run the skimmer at a high level to skim wet, as when I skim dry, I get very little skimmate. The tank has been running on Zeovit for over 1.5 years and is very clean. There is just not much left for it to pull out, as I barely feed in that tank. Generally the skimmers you see with a real dry super nasty skimmate will clean up over time, and not produce the same amount of gunk as it use to.

Actually take your skimmate and pour into a measuring cup, you may be surprised how much actual volume you are pulling out.

I hope that answers you questions. In summery, you have a very light fishload, so you will not pull out as much as others. Airflow depends on height of skimmer chamber, your airflow is normal. Your waterlevels sounds about normal. The washers will wear over time, and are needed for proper spacing(per H&S Germany). And in order to ger more skimmate, you just have to create more proteins in you tank for the skimmer to remove. :)
HTH

[FinsReef]

JNB,
Also to add, it will take a few days to return to normal after adding new plumbing in a system. You way want to consider redoing your drain so that you do not neck down to 1" pvc anywhere. That is the most common cause of a skimmer being hard to adjust is by have the output terminate under the waterlevel, or necking down the output.
HTH

[jnb]

Thanks - as always Brian. It all makes sense. And I have renewed confidence. And - As I type this - my skimmer is picking up production again and using the newly installed gravity feed - I guess now that any new hose residues, etc are wearing off. Yippee, one less pump to run and feeding the skimmer directly with the dirtiest skimmer-ready water.....

Less heat, less electricity, less stuff in my sump, more effective skimming!!!!!

I can do it too.


<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7467790#post7467790 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by FinsReef
Nick,
The metal washers are in the impeller for spacing. Different countries have different impellers and number of washers used. They will wear over time, and will need to be replaced when they get out of round.
Here is a picture of all the different version of Eheim Needlewheel impellers for all the different voltages of pumps.(sorry for the bad picture)
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b56/finsreef/DSC00322.jpg

As far as your airflow, on your skimmer anything between 850 to 900 is normal. The customers that generally have over 1000lph generally have a custom shorter skimmer.

The water level sounds about normal on set-up with and without the recirc pump being on.

As far as you not getting that much skimmate, you have a very small bioload on a oversized skimmer. There is only so much you can pull out. If you increase your fishload or feeding, your skimmer will pull alot more skimmate.
It is better to use your water parameters as a judge to how well a skimmer is working than what the skimmate looks like compared to the next person. If you nitrates are staying low, phosphates staying low, orp is good, and ph is stable, then generally you skimmer is doing the job it was designed for.
On my SPS tank at the shop I run the skimmer at a high level to skim wet, as when I skim dry, I get very little skimmate. The tank has been running on Zeovit for over 1.5 years and is very clean. There is just not much left for it to pull out, as I barely feed in that tank. Generally the skimmers you see with a real dry super nasty skimmate will clean up over time, and not produce the same amount of gunk as it use to.



Actually take your skimmate and pour into a measuring cup, you may be surprised how much actual volume you are pulling out.

I hope that answers you questions. In summery, you have a very light fishload, so you will not pull out as much as others. Airflow depends on height of skimmer chamber, your airflow is normal. Your waterlevels sounds about normal. The washers will wear over time, and are needed for proper spacing(per H&S Germany). And in order to ger more skimmate, you just have to create more proteins in you tank for the skimmer to remove. :)
HTH

[jnb]

hmmm, not understanding where I necked down my drain - but it is defintely not terminting underwater, I made sure of that -

yes I had a brain fa.t not being patient on the new plumbing - it is picking up production already
thanks


<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7467808#post7467808 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by FinsReef
JNB,
Also to add, it will take a few days to return to normal after adding new plumbing in a system. You way want to consider redoing your drain so that you do not neck down to 1" pvc anywhere. That is the most common cause of a skimmer being hard to adjust is by have the output terminate under the waterlevel, or necking down the output.
HTH

[FinsReef]

As long as you are not having a surging issue, or water level is too high, then you are fine on your drain. Where it is necked down is You are going from the conversion piece to a threaded adapter to a barb fitting. Threaded fittings tend to have a smaller id than slip fittings. Also after the short end of flex you are using a small piece of 1" pvc to convert the flex to the ribbed hose. In your case it does not seem to be causing any issues.

[Fliger]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7467790#post7467790 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by FinsReef
Generally the skimmers you see with a real dry super nasty skimmate will clean up over time, and not produce the same amount of gunk as it use to.

Actually take your skimmate and pour into a measuring cup, you may be surprised how much actual volume you are pulling out.

These two things are SO true. Every high quality skimmer I've seen - from BK to H&S to Deltec to Barr, will slow down because they are staying ahead of your tank. You can't believe the crap I pulled out with BK/H&S/Deltec skimmers, but they all slow down over time. If you ever see a poster consistantly pulling out nasty crap - ask to see a pic of their tank. :lol: A skimmer is not SUPPOSED to pull out a bunch of nasty crap - cuz your tank isn't supposed to have nasty crap in it.

You need to add more fish. :lol: Thats why I like big German skimmers, so I can have lotsa little fishies to make my wife happy.

Cool picture BTW. That top right one is wild looking.

[UCanDoIt]

My experience with my A200 is the same as Fliger. When I switched over from the ASM G3x, the first week pulled out a lot. Performance was pretty consistent throughout the first 4 or 5 weeks. Now, I'm beginning to think my A200 is overskill since it's on a FOWLR tank and I feed the fishes very lightly. My feeling is the initial cleanup is because the ASM G3x didn't really ever do a good job. Now, it's consistent skimming still, but much less than the first month. My nitrates don't go over 30ppm with monthly water changes and the pH is pretty stable between 8.0-8.2. Since it's only a FOWLR tank, I keep the salinity around 1.020-1.021.

[jnb]

Well, my A200 1260 is back into production with its new gravity feed - notice the bubbles from the T which at first concerned me that it would disturb production, but I have not seen any bubbles entering the skimmer. But now that the new plumbing is slimed up, etc - this is production after 24 hrs after switching to the gravity feed - it must be playing catch up from several days of not skimming well (and after a good feeding yesterday AM - I am feeding about 100 gph

all is well.
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/49068P6010375.JPG

[Atlantis Aquariums]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7463904#post7463904 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by UCanDoIt
JNB-per your request, you asked where my bubble breaking level is for wet skimming. you can see how light color my skim is. of course, the amount of skim depends on how much you feed your tank.
<IMG SRC="http://usera.imagecave.com/winner/A200ShortCup.jpg">

UCanDoIt, No C clamp on the air intake? The air valve looks very familiar to me. Just learning a little more on H&S:D

Marvin

[jnb]

you made me do it - add two Japanese Swallowtail Angels

[QUOTE]<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7470292#post7470292 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Fliger
[
You need to add more fish. :lol: Thats why I like big German skimmers, so I can have lotsa little fishies to make my wife happy.

[UCanDoIt]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7488767#post7488767 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Atlantis Aquariums
UCanDoIt, No C clamp on the air intake? The air valve looks very familiar to me. Just learning a little more on H&S:D

Marvin

Hey Marvin,

What are you doing on the H&S forum? I should be back from my honeymoon Wednesday night. As for the air valve, Ed got it for me (off one of his EuroReef skimmers) and I think ER uses the same exact air valve as the Deltecs (not sure as I didn't compare them).

I found it really easy to adjust the air intake with the air valve and it really looks cool too, but before I left for my honeymoon, I took off the air valve completely as my H&S A200 was performing at its best without the air valve. It took a bit of time to buildup on removing the air valve for best permance as in the beginning, I tailored back the air a little bit, but over time the air valve was completely open and the skimmer worked well. But now, after a little bit more time, the skimmer works best without any air resistant as I am drawing over1,000 lph of air consistently without any air clamp or air valve.

[Atlantis Aquariums]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7499691#post7499691 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by UCanDoIt
Hey Marvin,

What are you doing on the H&S forum?

I figured I better watch this forum a little closer as I am waiting for more product to come in from Brian;)

Marvin

[jnb]

U Can Do It wanted me to update - My gravity feed is working nicely - this is some results 24 hrs after emptying the cup - it has to fill up my drain hoses a bit before it starts rising in the cup
I am happy with it - the skimming from day to day seems more consistent

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/49068DSC_1710.JPG http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/49068DSC_1652.JPG

[UCanDoIt]

Nice tank, Nick. Looks like gravity feed is giving you better skimming than pump feed. I should have taken a photo of my 3 weeks accumulation before I cleaned my collection cup out. Wasn't as much as I expected as it was only a little bit more than 1/2 full, the the smell was the nastiest I've ever had.

[UCanDoIt]

Are there anymore A200-1260s out there?

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7246332#post7246332 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by DirtySouth056
Nice post! I wish other's would post pics of their A200's, and how they are setup. Thanks for the pm's I'm in contact w/ Ed.
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7141479#post7141479 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by UCanDoIt
Any other A200 H&S club member are more than welcome to post their performance photos here to give potential new owners more information before they make an educated decision on which skimmer to invest in.

[jnb]

Thanks - still I have this red algae that is taking more of a stronghold and in addition to the H&S doing its thing, I am running a sulfur based denitrator, RowaPhos, Carbon, good water movement, use RODI and my tests are all at the desired point

challenges never end.

I dive frequently and our reefs have their share of algaes too - so maybe I should just chill.

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7539884#post7539884 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by UCanDoIt
Nice tank, Nick. Looks like gravity feed is giving you better skimming than pump feed. I should have taken a photo of my 3 weeks accumulation before I cleaned my collection cup out. Wasn't as much as I expected as it was only a little bit more than 1/2 full, the the smell was the nastiest I've ever had.

[UnlimitedReef]

Can I upgrade the Eheim pump from 1260 to 1265 for the H&S skimmer A200 1260? it's more stronger than 1260.

[Jar*Head]

never heard of eheim 1265. where do you get them from UnlimitedReef? I would love to get one myself.

[FinsReef]

Not quite sure about a 1265, but the 1262 does not give any more performance over teh 1260. The main differece in a 1260 and 1262 is the intake and output sizes, which are already optimized by H&S above standard.

[Jar*Head]

Brian, when will the aquabee 5000 available in U.S. I am looking forward to get couple of them as well.

[FinsReef]

I will receive the test units the first of July, and the consumer units should arrive end of July/Middle of August.

[Jar*Head]

Brian, I spoke with eric this morning. He said you don't have anymore of the 1260. I need 2, please let me know whenever you have it available. Thanks.

[Atlantis Aquariums]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7576080#post7576080 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by REEFER714
Brian, I spoke with eric this morning. He said you don't have anymore of the 1260. I need 2, please let me know whenever you have it available. Thanks.

Brian and Eric are great to work with. I am waiting on a dozen units also;) Interzoo does tend to slow things down for a few weeks.

Marvin

[Jar*Head]

Yeah they are such a great help.

[UCanDoIt]

After 2.5 months, the skimmer has slowed down from what it was getting earlier. I like to skim very wet, so I was getting this amount about every 3 days. Now, I'm getting darker, more smelly skimmate and below is 7 days from the last time I clean the collection cup and it's time to clean it again. Around this time, when someone walks by my tank, they're trying to figure out what's that smell. I've seen some people actually sniff their underarm to double check. :D

<IMG SRC="http://usera.imagecave.com/winner/A200-2.5mos.jpg">

[DirtySouth056]

Sounds like you need to clean that badboy more often:rollface:
Does anyone else have this skimmer that is pump fed, rather than gravity fed. I cant wait to recive my unit, wont be here till the end of July, but I cant wait.

[UCanDoIt]

I found these photos in the old H&S Club Thread. Before I setup my tank for gravity feed, I had a Hagen AquaClear 70 powerhead feeding my skimmer. Then we switched to gravity feed, but the size of the plumbing was too small as my AquaTech ran out of parts. But when the gravity was finally corrected, the skimmer worked great. My 175g is very light bioload as I really don't have much in the tank and only feed them once a day.

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7121894#post7121894 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by asnatlas

http://92gal.asnatlas.com/H&S%20beside%20box.JPG

http://92gal.asnatlas.com/H&S%20Eheim%20pump.JPG

http://92gal.asnatlas.com/H&S%20Skimmer.JPG

http://92gal.asnatlas.com/H&S%20Cup%201.JPG

http://92gal.asnatlas.com/H&S%20Cup%202.JPG

http://92gal.asnatlas.com/H&S%20Lid.JPG

http://92gal.asnatlas.com/H&S%20Cup%20Top%20View.JPG

http://92gal.asnatlas.com/H&S%20Cup%20caked%201.JPG

http://92gal.asnatlas.com/H&S%20Cup%20caked%202.JPG

[jnb]

now that my H&S is gravity fed (see above a few) I am still thinking about it.

I used clear flex pvc and I see coming from my overflow bubbles which fall down coming towoards my skimmer but they sort of float back up and never really go to the skimmer - the air ends up escaping to the sump thru the T to the sump along with excess water not diverted to the skimmer.

Since I believe it may be true that some of our proteins, etc that we are trying to skim stick to bubbles I wonder if I am getting the full benefit of my gravity feed.

Since most of my water movement is provided by the tunzes I am going to slow my main return so that all of the overflow is going to the skimmer and see how that works.

Any thoughts?

[FinsReef]

I do not think that the bubbles in the drain are of any concern. A slower sump should lead to better skimmate production in my opinion. Let us know how it is doing now.

[UCanDoIt]

JNB, it sounds like your setup is working an optimum and doing what it should be with any excess surging or gurgling going out on the other end of the T-fitting. If most of the waterflow from your gravity feed is still going straight to your skimmer with only the excess going back to the sump, Ed (my aquarium guy) says that is exactly what you want.

Now just the fine tuning on the wedgepipe and the air intake. Overtime, my best performance was a wide open air valve/clamp or not use one at all. As for the wedgepipe, mine ended up about 3 o'clock if you consider the 2 dots lining up to be 12noon.

[clkwrk]

I am using a buddies custom a200-1260 and I am very very impressed with every aspect of this skimmer . It blows both my skimmers 8-2 and g-3 out of the water and I was running them both on my 180 .


It was so easy to setup and started producing skimate in a matter of hour. It has been on my 180 for less than a week and I have now emptied the cup 3 times.

Know I know what my next skimmer will be :thumbsup:

[Fliger]

Hey Chris glad to hear it. Did you take out the PVC? I'm really surprised you get ANY skimmate, your tank is so clean. Its easily the "cleanest" tank I've ever seen - the sides and bottom always look like you just took a razor blade to it.

Man I tell ya, running without a skimmer sucks. My water is yellowish, I'm having algae that I've never seen before. I am waiting for a Tunze 9010 to test on my tank, I really hope it can clear the tank up FAST.

[clkwrk]

Thanks David ! I took the pvc out yesterday and it has done well pulling more out but of a less quality . That pvc piece really helps out IMO but you were right it does restrict the air draw on the pump . So I will go out and get the thinwall and try that.

LMK if that Skimmer doesn't come in I have more than enough to loan you what ever size you need.

[UCanDoIt]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7798192#post7798192 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by clkwrk
I am using a buddies custom a200-1260 and I am very very impressed with every aspect of this skimmer . It blows both my skimmers 8-2 and g-3 out of the water and I was running them both on my 180 .

It was so easy to setup and started producing skimate in a matter of hour. It has been on my 180 for less than a week and I have now emptied the cup 3 times.

Know I know what my next skimmer will be :thumbsup:

I know exactly what you mean. Unless someone has personally owned a quality German made skimmer, they just don't know. I went through EuroReef 6-2, then switched to AquaC EV180, then ASM G3X, and last to H&S A200 on my 175g and there is no comparison. And I think the A200 is overkill for my 175g while the others were just trying to keep up. I'm actually thinking of going back down to a A150.

Looks like the custom short A200 took out whatever was missed by your 8-2 and G3. Post some photos if you can. :D

[UCanDoIt]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7799587#post7799587 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by UCanDoIt
I know exactly what you mean. Unless someone has personally owned a quality German made skimmer, they just don't know. I went through EuroReef 6-2, then switched to AquaC EV180, then ASM G3X, and last to H&S A200 on my 175g and there is no comparison. And I think the A200 is overkill for my 175g while the others were just trying to keep up. I'm actually thinking of going back down to a A150.

Looks like the custom short A200 took out whatever was missed by your 8-2 and G3. Post some photos if you can. :D

Sorry for the earlier typo, I owned a used a ER 8-2, not a 6-2, so I've compared 4 different skimmers on the same tank with the same light bioload.

[clkwrk]

Here is a picture from a few mins ago.....

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/o2manytnks/180/handS.jpg

UCanDoIt if you sell PM me plz.

[FinsReef]

Clkwrk,
Is Fliger going to have to fight you to get it back? :)

[Fliger]

Brian, IYO - do you think the external A200 1x1260 is SUBSTANTIALLY better than the internal? Or just marginally? Or any at all?

[FinsReef]

On your size tank and running it oversized like you are, I do not thank that you will notice one bit of difference.

[clkwrk]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7807635#post7807635 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by FinsReef
Clkwrk,
Is Fliger going to have to fight you to get it back? :)

YUP :D .......



na not really he is being nice enough to loan it to me long enough so I have time dump 3 er skimmers to help recoup some of the cost of a new or used one . I just bought a car so I have to wait a month now.

[Fliger]

LOL, you can keep it for a couple months - I won't need it til I get settled into the new house. Just remember me when you frag my favorite yellow coral with purple polyps. ;-)

[clkwrk]

:D

[UCanDoIt]

<IMG SRC="http://usera.imagecave.com/winner/A200FullBody.jpg">
<big><b>
this unit going to clkwrk soon. downgrading to A150 for a better fit in my sump. you're going to love it, best skimmer i've ever own for my 175g! :)</b></big>

[prodman]

Whats shorter about the collection cup.?

[UCanDoIt]

It was custom trimmed 1/2". Eric & Brian did this as a courtesy, normally a $50 customization fee.

[prodman]

Did that change performance or just height?

[UCanDoIt]

Didn't affect performance in anyway and the fit within my tank stand was so much better as I could easily take the collection cup off now. On my collection cup, only the outside acrylic of the collection cup was trimmed 1/2", the inside riser tube was not touched. So, I don't think that it can affect the performance in anyway.

[CW from the OC]

If it is in this thread, I missed it.

Anyone know the optimal GPH to feed this skimmer when using a pump?

Setting up my skimmer, I notice that the T fitting (that the wedge pipe fits into) is very loose on the lower section of PVC that goes to the bottom of the skimmer. Should this be glued with PVC cement once it is placed where I want it?

Thanks!

C Dub

[clkwrk]

I am feeding this a200-1260 with a maxi jet 1000 ( I know odd huh its from italy) Anyways my guess is that its 150-200gph.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/o2manytnks/180/hs-c.jpg

[UCanDoIt]

If it is in this thread, I missed it.

Anyone know the optimal GPH to feed this skimmer when using a pump?

Setting up my skimmer, I notice that the T fitting (that the wedge pipe fits into) is very loose on the lower section of PVC that goes to the bottom of the skimmer. Should this be glued with PVC cement once it is placed where I want it?

Thanks!

C Dub

my aquarium technician, who helped me setup my skimmer, told me that 1x-1.5x your tank's volume, but not more than 350gph. when we first setup without gravity feed to test, he used a maxijet1200, rated 295gph. i would be surprised if it was even 250gph because of the backpressure.

as for the loose T, if you want a permanent plumb, then glue it. but if you think you have change the direction in the future or you don't want a permanent plumbing, then wrap several layers of teflon tape and then the T will be quite snug. what would be perfect is there was a union somewhere on the pipe below the T, so that if we glued the T permanently, still can readjust the direction. wishful thinking, but the union is no in the works. :D

[CW from the OC]

Heya UCan,

Thanks for the info, that is just what I needed. A follow up question, I happen to have a couple of new MJ1200's laying around, were you and your Tech happy with how it ran being fed with the MJ?

[UCanDoIt]

The MJ1200 was just used for testing since we had every intention of redoing the plumbing for gravity. The flow through rate looked fine to me, just that I never had it on the skimmer long enough to have the skimmate start.

I just asked my aquarium tech what he thought was a good flow through rate for this skimmer and he recommended 250-300gph.

One thing I know for sure, if the flow through is too strong, it will be too turbulent and the bubble foaming doesn't form well. Also, the other extreme is true, when we didn't have the correct plumbing parts, the flow through rate was too slow, foaming was really good but not enough turnover of the tank was happening, so didn't get very much skimmate. You need to also understand that my 175g is very light bioload and I like to skim wet to see the complete picture.

[CW from the OC]

Thanks clkwrk and UCan!

The MJ1200 has a 1/2" outlet pipe. The barbed fitting on the skimmer is ~3/4". Either of you have a suggestion on something that will make the transition from 1/2 to 3/4?

I was going to head down to HomeDepot and see what I could build, but thought I might not have to reinvent the wheel....

[UCanDoIt]

We used a 5/8" silicone tubing and it was a stretch on the 3/4" side, but on the pump side, we just put a tie strap on it. It was only temporary anyways, just for testing. You are better getting the correct conversion barb fittings. If not available, you put together something with PVC and hose barb fittings.

[ahenson]

A 1/2" tube will fit into the bigger tubing to make an adapter at the pump. You can then use a electical tie to tighten it up until you have the right fittings permanently.

[servicky]

Looks to be a great skimmer i have always used a beckett type skimmer i am setting up a 150 gallon and i am thinking about a 200 external or internal not sure.. you guy know more about these needle wheel skimmers is it really worth it to go H&S or stick with the beckett type??? help convince me i need to switch over.... :)


Thanks

[UCanDoIt]

beckett skimmer are great performers. if you don't have any problems with high electricity usage, heat transfer & noisy pumps, then no switch needed. what i like about my H&S and Deltec skimmers is that they are quiet and hardly uses any electricity and less electricity means less heat transfer back into the tank water. i don't need a chiller on my tank and i have mh lighting.

[servicky]

awesome thanx for the info... Think ill try a a200 see if i like it....

[ncny21802]

I am lucky enough to live close to Fins Reef store. I picked up an H&S 200A-1260 for my 125 Reef not to long ago. It replaced and ASM G-3 which you can't compare to this skimmer. This is by far the BEST skimmer I have ever owned. I have a euro-reef on my other tank and it doesn't come close to the H&S. I am using a maxijet 1200 to feed the skimmer. Brian and Eric at Fins plumbed the maxijet for me so that it'll fit right into the input of the skimmer. All I had to do was get PVC from Lowes to plumb the return. I am amazed at how dark the skimmate is. After 1 full week of work I removed the collection cup to clean it and it was disgusting. That's the way you want it. If you have the room and the money get this skimmer. When I upgrade I will only buy H&S from now on.

[UCanDoIt]

Any photos to share? :) Maybe some closeups of the input plumbing connection for pump feeding?

[ncny21802]

As requested. here are some photos of the skimmer before and right after installation. Later in the week I will take some close ups of the plumbing. All I can say is that thing rocks. By far the BEST skimmer I've ever seen or used.

http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j161/ncny21802/DSCF0440.jpg

http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j161/ncny21802/DSCF0441.jpg

http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j161/ncny21802/DSCF0442.jpg

[clkwrk]

Okay Christine I finally got all my plumbing together now I am just waiting for my parts to dry and I will be ready to switch out skimmers. I followed your gravity feed drawing so I will see how that works out.

[jnb]

good luck with your gravity feed - I have never looked back after getting mine tuned

[clkwrk]

All done .

Here is a comparison between the loaner custom and my unit Sorry its so dirty D I will get it clean :D

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/o2manytnks/180/custom-h-and-s--plus-mine.jpg
Here is the gravity feed setup

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/o2manytnks/180/gravity-feed.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/o2manytnks/180/gravity-feed-1.jpg

[clkwrk]

So far so good no surging but I do feel the flow rate is too slow .Reason being I have to turn to wedge pipe to 3 o'clock or 45degrees to get the water level up 1/2 way in the riser.

[UCanDoIt]

clkwrk, only one way to find out... measure the outflow. :D that's going to be fun. you want about 300gph going through the skimmer. 3 o'clock position is about right because the skimmer body looks like it's at least 3" taller than the one you have on loan from fliger. great photos!!! can't wait to see the skimmer in action.

also, when the vinyl tubing comes off the T-fitting towards the skimmer, make sure it doesn't dip. would be better if you can get your ball valve to face upward or at least about 2 or 10 o'clock position to get the full speed w/o backpressure of the flowthrough.

[Zoom]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8355639#post8355639 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by clkwrk
So far so good no surging but I do feel the flow rate is too slow .Reason being I have to turn to wedge pipe to 3 o'clock or 45degrees to get the water level up 1/2 way in the riser.
I have the same problem with my skimmer the inlet is to small to push enough water in the skimmer from the overflow .
i run about 150 -200 GPH in to my max but the tank is only a 90 Gallons 1 1/2 times turnover per hour not bad for that tank.

[clkwrk]

I will try that and measuring the out flow is easy :D I spaced that.

[clkwrk]

I can alwasy resort to ball valving the drain to the sump to get more pressure. I have 2 large drains which I only need 1 of them to operate comfortable so I can dial one back .

[UCanDoIt]

Just saw Zoom's post. If you reduce the plumbing too early, that would slow down the flow dramatically. What works best is keep the plumbing at the overflow size all the way until you reach the input on the skimmer. My suggestion would be to keep it large until you hit the ball valve and then reduce from ball valve to 1/2". HTH

Putting a ball valve on the drain to sump plumbing won't help that as much as if you use as large as possible plumbing until you reach the skimmer, and then reduce down to 1/2". Reason why it won't help as much, is that the water will back up towards your overflow if the skimmer still isn't allowing the full flow to pass through to it. Hope this isn't too confusing. :D <b>I had the same problem when my aquarium tech ran out of the correct PVC fittings and pipe, so it was reduced too early to 1/2" and the flow was about 1/2 what it could be. </b> Here's the detail of my input plumbing. Are we having fun yet? :D

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7137153#post7137153 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by UCanDoIt
<IMG SRC="http://usera.imagecave.com/winner/A200Day2a.jpg">

<a href="http://usera.imagecave.com/winner/A200Day2b.jpg"><img src="http://usera.imagecave.com/winner/icth_A200Day2b.jpg.jpg"></a>

Well, it's been 24 hours from the time that my aquarium tech finished the plumbing on my setup as he needed to get some parts. Now the waterflow rate is correct. To complete the project from the gravity feed, he went with 1" T which feeds into 1" Ball Valve which connects to a short piece of 1" ID vinyl tubing, which finally adapts to a 3/4" x 1/2" PVC elbow, so the reduction to 1/2" is right at the skimmer. Earlier, he had a temporary hookup where the plumbing was reduced to 1/2" right after the ball valve and that slow the waterflow rate too slow and even with the ball valve wide open, most of the water was going out the other end of the T that was above the ball valve. It was temporary as he didn't have the parts that he needed as well as it took so long to get the oversized skimmer into my sump that is within my tank stand. He did a GREAT JOB and I'm totally happy with what I ended up with.
Also, do you see the dot in the photo, I had it around the 9 o'clock position to get the bubble breaking level as high in the neck as seen in the photo. Flow through rate was between 300-325gph with this setup. So, basically, I used 1" all the way to the final elbow that turns into the skimmer's input. That last elbow is 3/4" threaded by 1/2". With the 3/4" threaded side, I used a barb that was 1" barb x 3/4" mpt. HTH :D

[clkwrk]

Then I just need to shorten my hose and rotate my line so there is no extra line . It will go from the nipple on the overflow line into ballvalve then into skimmer.

[Zoom]

That Looks promising UCanDoIt i will change it same as the picture today think it will work i don't know why they don't make the fitting larger not only H&S but Deltec thus the same thing..

[clkwrk]

I actually think I got it right . I didn't get the skimmer running until 3am . I was finishing cleaning up in the stand . I once had everything in order and clean but after removing 2 skimmers and adding another it did a number on my wiring . Anyways I have the wedge pipe @ 3 o'clock and I am getting nice skimate so far. Also with the ehiem off the water level is right at the bayonet this is with my ball valve wide open . I think that is a good water level but I haven't checked my flow thru yet.

Here are a few pics.

Here is 30min after I started it up last night after gettingmy sump area in order.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/o2manytnks/180/sump-redone-3.jpg

This is what has come out thus far.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/o2manytnks/180/a200-3.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/o2manytnks/180/a200-2.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/o2manytnks/180/a200-1.jpg

[UCanDoIt]

OK, at the end of 3 weeks. Let us know if Fliger's A200 short or my A200 standard gives better control over skimming! :D :lol: Boy, you have lots of cr@p in your tank! :lol:

BTW, I see you're using 1" vinyl tubing, is that working better for the flow rate? Great photos! :thumbsup:

[clkwrk]

Thanks ! I will report back . So far it seems as if the body has more air that the shorty. With mine the bubble reach past the first ring . On the shorty it was above the ring . We'll see how it goes.

[Reefologist]

We reef heads sniff our skimmate as wine lovers sniff the cork. Nice pics clkwrk....

[TrojanScott]

Well, I just finished getting my new H&S A200 in and rolling. Took me a few hours, and shouldn't have, but I'll explain why, and here are some pics as well.

First, here's this monster... quite a shock for me considering I was running an Aqua C 150 for years... (Corona bottle to give you an idea of the size, and hey, I'm on vacation this week!) :)

http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y90/TrojanScott/DSC00999.jpg




Here's where it's going. It took some tetris action to get in between my doors and in, but I did it.

http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y90/TrojanScott/DSC00998.jpg


And here it is... in there.

http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y90/TrojanScott/DSC01000.jpg


Here's the collection cup, and here was my first problem. I couldn't get it in there, with the top on, it wouldn't clear. Maybe a quarter of an inch off. Now, this is the CUT version of the skimmer. Ed, the guy I bought it from at KM Assosiates Intl, had me measure inside the stand before I bought it, and I thought I had plenty of room. So, I called Ed, and he tells me he can get me another collection cup and cut off half an inch for about $50. Fair, no doubt, but damn, I just spent a grip, and sure wanted to get this in and over with. Well, the acrylic is pretty thick, I can't break it right? Right. I spent about an hour sanding it down a few millimeters. Washed it out and bingo...we're rolling.
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y90/TrojanScott/DSC01001.jpg


Oh ya, here's the Eheim 1260 that recirculates the water in the chamber.

http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y90/TrojanScott/DSC00996.jpg


The return pipe.... duh, of course I didn't think ahead of time, but it made quite the noise pouring out. Off to Home Depot I go. Cut some PVC, (who doesn't own cutters in this hobby?) little plumbers tape to snug it into the elbow and whalah..

http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y90/TrojanScott/DSC01002.jpg


And... here she is, rockin' and rollin....

http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y90/TrojanScott/DSC01003.jpg





I have an Eheim 1250 feeding the skimmer. As you can see from the picture above, I can't really use my intake to sump water to feed the skimmer. I mean, I'm sure I could, but no thank you, I really don't wanna replumb everything and then have to mess with the flow rate. I asked Ed what to use, he recommended the 1250 and a quick online shop at marinedepot and I was set.

Haven't tweaked with it a whole lot yet, air flow, water flow, etc. Just seems to be running well so far, and want to give it a couple days to see what happens. So far, it looks like it's really going well.

Ed over at KM was friggin awesome. He answered all my questions and was always available. Packaged the skimmer like it was fine china! I highly recommend him and his company for anything he sells, that's for sure. I'll come back and let everyone know how I like the skimmer, but so far, I'm impressed. Easy to get going, even for a limited DIY guy like me.

I was so happy with the job I did, I let my dog know all about it. He gave me this look, so I doubt he cared much.



http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y90/TrojanScott/DSC00993.jpg[IMG][IMG]

[clkwrk]

Here is day 2 Christine :D

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/o2manytnks/180/my-hands-day-2.jpg

Yummy ;)

[Fliger]

Holy crap bro, what did you do to my skimmer?!?! :lol:

j/k man, I'm sure it will come clean.

[UCanDoIt]

Just in case you needed more details on adjusting the wedgepipe and air clamp. I'm sure that Ed went over this with you already. I had Ed replace my air clamp with a EuroReef air valve and I started it at the 2 o'clock position, the same way Deltecs start their air valves. Eventually, I worked it up to 12 o'clock position and later on completely remove it and sold it. I just looked at your photo again, you have a air valve as well. :D HTH and thanks for the photos, definitely looking to see some performance photos. :)

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7303604#post7303604 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by UCanDoIt
In response to several PMs about water level and bubble breaking level, I thought it best that I copy in a previous post that I did about the same subject. Sorry about the Deltec photo as I own both and this was readily available.

<IMG SRC="http://usera.imagecave.com/winner/DeltecBubbleBreakLevel.jpg">

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7300811#post7300811 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by UCanDoIt

I have spent many many hours talking to the my Aquarium tech (who maintains all my tanks) about plumbing and he's tried it all, made his share of mistakes, and the way he has my tank set up works great.

There are 3 controls on the skimmer:
1. Input controlled by gravity feed from overflow with ball valve "or" a feed pump with the correct rate
2. Output controlled by wedgepipe at skimmer's exhaust drain
3. Air flow controlled by air clamp

To set your skimmer correctly (as I am told):

1. first you must be sure the water flow through rate is matched to your skimmer. most of the time, for gravity feed, one would need to tailor the rate back by ball valve in control #1 as the water turnover rate on your system is usually much stronger than your skimmer can handle. if not tailored back to the correct flow through rate, there will be too much turbulance within the skimmer and performance will be greatly affected. or you can feed skimmer with a correctly rated pump or powerhead

2. next, with the water flow through rate adjusted correctly, the water level within the skimmer must be at the right level for the skimmer to perform optimally. water level should start right at the bottom edge of the bayonet connection between the collection cup and skimmer body. if the water level is too low, tailor back the outflow from the skimmer drain with the wedgepipe and it will raise the water level within the skimmer body. again, use the wedgepipe on the output, which is control #2, and be sure the drain does not terminate underwater in the sump. if the exhaust terminates underwater, the skimmer does not function well for H&S skimmers. on my setup, I have a 90 elbow that directs the water down into the sump, but the end of the pipe is about 1/2" above the sump water level. to quiet & reduce splashing, you can put a 45 elbow at the end of the drain pipe

3. tighten the air clamp for maximum foaming with control #3. on both my Deltec and H&S skimmers, it is tailored back approximately 1/4 - 1/3 which gives me the finest bubbles and good foaming head. on some skimmers, a fully open air tube could possibly be your best performance as every skimmer is different

once your skimmer is broken in and foaming, adjust wedgepipe to raise the water and bubble breaking level for wetter skimming and lower for drier skimming. HTH:rollface:

[UCanDoIt]

Chris, You got some serious stuff brewing here! :D Definitely is performing better than when I had it, then of course, my bioload is no where like yours.

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8370380#post8370380 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by clkwrk
Here is day 2 Christine :D

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/o2manytnks/180/my-hands-day-2.jpg

Yummy ;)

[clkwrk]

Yeah I am happy thus far and its hard to tell which skimmer does better. I kinda wanna say I have more contact time with this skimmer vs. the short.

Here was a day 2 with the shorty .

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/o2manytnks/180/hsd.jpg

[UCanDoIt]

It's a close race! It looks like you like to skim wet as the darkness of both cups look pretty close. What Ed has told me is that the short A200 skims wet and the standard A200 skims wet through dry and the user has better control over their skimming.

After I had mine for 4 months, I was getting as much you get in 2 days, but that took me 7 days. My tank was really a light bioload. Almost looks like by day 7, your skimmer cup will be full. Good thing you have extra height in your collection cup to catch all that fish cr@p, oops, I mean fish poop. :D

[TrojanScott]

Christine,

Why does it matter if the exhaust terminates under water? Does it have to do with the pressure in the skimmer? Mine currently does, so I'm wondering if I should cut some of the PVC to see if there's a difference.

After 4 days with my new skimmer, it's really pulling out some filthy crap, but nothing compared to some of the pics above. Wondering if this might have something to do with it?

[clkwrk]

Yes it does matter . Everytime I kill my return pump I have to kill the skimmer. Why because water rises above my output putting back pressure on the output causing the water level in the skimmer to rise.

[UCanDoIt]

TS - I know that for a lot of other skimmers out there, it may not make a difference, but for H&S with the wedgpipe design, it does. I remembered when Ed first received his first H&S skimmer and was testing. They had the exhaust terminated underwater and never got anything serious in terms of skimmate. They thought it was just too much fussing around to get the type of skimmate that they were getting with the Deltecs that had already tested earlier. Wasn't until he did research here on RC that he discovered that H&S skimmers' exhaust cannot terminate underwater or the backpressure will affect its performance. I noticed when my A200 exhaust was underwater when we first setup, the waterlevel and foam within the skimmer body was not consistent... it would drop and rise about 1"-2". We thought is was surging coming from the input, but since our initial setup was pump fed, the input waterflow was consistent. Then we discovered the backpressure and slight surging was coming from terminating the exhaust underwater. I would suggest you redo your plumbing, it would certainly help. Maynot be as great performing as Chris's A200 because he feeds his tank a LOT, heavy bioload. He got some serious stuff skimming out of his tank. :D

<big><a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6965911#post6965911 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by FinsReef </big>
OK, Sorry for the delay, but here is a few pictures, LMK if you need some more examples
1. This way is wrong, and will cause surging and backpressure
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b56/finsreef/DSC00099.jpg

2. These ways are good.
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b56/finsreef/DSC00093.jpg
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b56/finsreef/DSC00179.jpg
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b56/finsreef/DSC00097.jpg

3. This will work, but make sure the length to the sump is not over 2 foot.
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b56/finsreef/A150probs.jpg

Also make sure that you down not neck down the skimmer output size. If it comes with a 1 1/4" ouput, use 1 1/4" or larger pvc to run the return.

It is better to use 45 degree elbows than 90 elbows.

HTH

[TrojanScott]

Well, I cut the PVC so it drains above my water line in the sump. Kinda loud, gotta work on quieting it a bit. Haven't noticed a difference in skimming though. I guess I should relax and let it go for a couple weeks! :)

My nitrates are hovering around 40, and I was hoping that this huge skimmer, (rated 300 gallons, my tank is 180) would really make a huge difference. What do you think is fair to wait, a month? (to see a difference?)

[UCanDoIt]

My experience with nitrates is that a skimmer doesn't remove nitrates, only a system setup to eliminate nitrates like a refugium with macro algae or a nitrate reactor will remove nitrates. Of course regular water changes will remove nitrates. If nitrates in a tank is already at a certain level, a good skimmer will slow down the process of accumulating nitrates. So, in order to keep nitrates, let's say below 10ppm, you need to start with a tank that is practically 0ppm nitrates and use a good skimmer on that tank to keep it low. So, my experience is a skimmer is not a nitrate removing type of equipment, but it there to help maintain lower nitrates by removing the waste before it goes through the cycle and become nitrates.

Looks like the new H&S Nitrate Reactor 110SR is very promising. I can't wait until my local guy puts one on his display tank. With a good skimmer and monthly 30% water changes, he already has his nitrates at 30ppm in a FOWLR tank, but like to see if the 110SR will get it down below 5ppm like what others are experiencing. :D

Any updated photos of how much gunk is being removed from your tank? Is it still pulling out more stuff than your old AquaC? As for noise, I don't let the water drop staight into the sump, but have it angle in like the photos. Since my sump level changes within an inch in water height, I put a cylinder sponge around the end of the 45 degree fitting I use and just clean it weekly along with my collection cup cleaning. HTH :)

[TrojanScott]

I'll probably try the sponge deal. I have it hitting the side of the sump, so it deadens the noise a little bit.

I'm at a loss as to why my nitrates are high. My circulation is good, (two 6100's Tunzes) and I do have a 10 gallon fuge where chaeto is growing like nuts. To be honest, before the fuge went in, my nitrates were LOWER! I don't get it.

Oh well, I'll keep trying. Normally, I never cared. Fish and softies do okay with these levels, but now that I'm getting into SPS, I just don't think I can get maximum growth and color with my nitrates that high. I'll post some pics over the weekend, and thanks for the sponge idea.

[UCanDoIt]

This is not on my return, but I found this photo that I had saved. I would think that the closer the end of the output plumbing is horizontal and right at the surface of the sump waterlevel, the quieter it will be, since there is minimal splashing from the exhaust. Looks like it just flows right onto the surface water without any splashing at all.
<IMG SRC="http://usera.imagecave.com/winner/AngledReturn.jpg">

[TrojanScott]

I'll try to post a pic this weekend, but don't wanna take it apart. Thanks to Ed for this brilliant idea, and here's what I did.

Where my PVC on the return is, where I'd added the 45 degree elbow, I replaced that with a 90 degree. I then added about 3 inches of PVC, (now going horizontal with my sump water) and drilled about 15 holes in it with a 1 1/4 drill bit. I made 5 rows of three holes. These holes face down, towards the water. The 45 degree elbow then goes at the end. Most of the water falls through the holes before getting to the end of the elbow, so it really deadened the noise, I can now barely hear it.
GREAT IDEA.
If that was hard to understand, again, I'll post some pics, but man, did this help.
I also opened the air valve fully on the pump, and it seems to be foaming even more now. Still tinkering!

[UCanDoIt]

<IMG SRC="http://usera.imagecave.com/winner/WorthlessThreadNOPics.gif">

Thanks for any updates when you get a chance!!! ;)

[jnb]

are you talking to me?

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8451523#post8451523 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by UCanDoIt
<IMG SRC="http://usera.imagecave.com/winner/WorthlessThreadNOPics.gif">

Thanks for any updates when you get a chance!!! :D

[UCanDoIt]

No one specifically. But TS had a silencer on the exhaust that sounded interesting. Nice to get a photo of it.

[jnb]

yea, that would be nice - I made one but it did not muffle much, but took the edge off the slurp and does make the air pass thru carbon







<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8451609#post8451609 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by UCanDoIt
No one specifically. But TS had a silencer on the exhaust that sounded interesting. Nice to get a photo of it.

[clkwrk]

Okay more updated pics.

Still kicking butt

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/o2manytnks/180/3-day-skimmerb.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/o2manytnks/180/3-day-skimmera.jpg

[ridetheducati]

I am waiting for the shipment to arrive, wish I could say patiently. I am temped to pickup the AP851, but I know that would be a mistake.

<< Do not give in to the madness, stay the course >>

[clkwrk]

Yes don't give in "good things come to those who wait " :D

[UCanDoIt]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8556558#post8556558 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by clkwrk
Okay more updated pics.

Still kicking butt
clkwrk, i know that your bioload and feedings are much heavier than when i was using the skimmer, how long does it take for you to fill the collection cup? I never filled the collection cup and after 3 months, I was getting about 3" of skimmate weekly on that BIG collection with my light bioload FOWLR tank.

[clkwrk]

I get a full cup every 3-4 days with Davids and mine fills ever 4-5 days.

My bioload is down to 2 cardinals ,PBT,unicorn,bi color anthias, ruby head wrasse ,3 shrimps and 7 lubbucks wrasses. Feedings at the moment are 1/2 sheet nori ,2 cubes formula one and 1/4x1/2x1/2 piece of mysiss.

Here it is today .

Taken with flash

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/o2manytnks/skim.jpg

[GlouBou]

Hello,

I thik your water level is too high in the main pipe. You may lower it to get dryest foam. You can get something like that (take with flash too) :

http://www.coraline.net/modules/ppm/Albums_Photos/GlouBou/11_2006/AQUA_11_2006%20018.jpg

Normaly, water level may just rise too the bayonet.

Kind regards.

GlouBou

[UCanDoIt]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8599442#post8599442 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by GlouBou
Hello,

I thik your water level is too high in the main pipe. You may lower it to get dryest foam. You can get something like that (take with flash too) :

http://www.coraline.net/modules/ppm/Albums_Photos/GlouBou/11_2006/AQUA_11_2006%20018.jpg

Normaly, water level may just rise too the bayonet.

Kind regards.

GlouBou
Awesome skimmate! Wow, don't ever empty this near a coffeemaker! :lol:

I believe there's 2 schools of thought on skimmate. When one skims on the wet side, less waste collects in the neck of the skimmer, so easier to clean and the skimmer continues to work longer without slowing down. Also, wet skimming seems to strip out the phosphates from the water quicker, which translates to less brown algae buildup. This is just what I picked up from reading on RC.

[clkwrk]

I agree .......I know what I like ;) and I don't wanna wait 2 weeks for a ful cup of skim

[Zoom]

I have to add one cup of salt mix to my tank every week for wet skimmate half a cup when is set dry .
I saw no difference between the two.
I agreed with UCDI it prolong the time I have to clean the skimmer when is set wet . But I also have to be carful when I run wet , what I feed the tank it can push some water out really quickly if I feed some of the frozen foods. I like just in between not to dry not to wet.

[UCanDoIt]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8600258#post8600258 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Zoom
..... But I also have to be carful when I run wet , what I feed the tank it can push some water out really quickly if I feed some of the frozen foods.....

You know, I've never experiece this once with either of my H&S skimmers that I've owned. BUT, I have seen this happen with both my Deltecs that I've owned and used. Also with both the Bubblemasters that my local dealer is currently testing, I've seen it happen too. It doesn't mean that it can't happen to an H&S skimmer, but I've fed frozen mysids, formula 1, formula 2, angelfish formula, prime reef, etc. etc. and it's never happen to me.

[Zoom]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8600932#post8600932 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by UCanDoIt
You know, I've never experiece this once with either of my H&S skimmers that I've owned. BUT, I have seen this happen with both my Deltecs that I've owned and used. Also with both the Bubblemasters that my local dealer is currently testing, I've seen it happen too. It doesn't mean that it can't happen to an H&S skimmer, but I've fed frozen mysids, formula 1, formula 2, angelfish formula, prime reef, etc. etc. and it's never happen to me.
I don,t know how much frozen food you are adding/feeding your tank . I add 5 cubes at a time .
And some times more i have some very large fish in the tank now four large tangs a large Emperor and about 10 smaller fish, feeding two times a day i just turn the eheims off for two three hours this way i have no problem .
I never have any problems with overflows with flakes or pellets.

[UCanDoIt]

I only feed frozen foods twice a week and I never turn off my skimmer, it runs 24/7 except during collection cup cleaning. I usually feed about 5 variety cubes and a 3/4" square of frozen mysids.

I notice on my reef, that the skimmer overflows if I even feed a 1/2" square of frozen mysids only, so I need to turn down the air to 2 o'clock position and once the excessive foaming goes down (a few hours), I turn the air valve back up to 12:30 or 1 o'clock position. My reef has a Deltec APF600 and it runs 24/7 except during collection cup cleaning.

[GlouBou]

Awesome skimmate! Wow, don't ever empty this near a coffeemaker!

Never !!! :lol: :D :p

I agree .......I know what I like ;) and I don't wanna wait 2 weeks for a ful cup of skim

Hello,

Full or empty, I clean my cup every week ;) :D

Kind Regards

GlouBou

[thing2do]

hey clkwrk how is your skimmer being few. with a pump or gravity.?

[clkwrk]

Gravity fed. But I was running the shorty of a fed pump.

[jnb]

The ehiem needlevalve impeller has some washers - you may find 2 or three on bottom and two on the top - they are metal

I cleaned my skimmer, turned it back on and it sounded funny, I emptied some water out of the skimmer, took the ehiem off and found that the washers had worn to the point of breaking and scratching the magnet (no harm this time I guess) so be warned that you should check your washers from time to time I replaced my washers
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/49068IMG_0430.JPG

[ridetheducati]

Good catch.

I wonder why the washers are wearing in one area.

[jnb]

I seem to remember one of my washer's hole was off center to begin with and I never replaced it and it may have worn it and the next one as the result shows - but still I suspect and I think Brian confirmed this - that they wear and should be checked.

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8776349#post8776349 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by ridetheducati
Good catch.

I wonder why the washers are wearing in one area.

[FinsReef]

Yes this is not uncommon as they wear out and often one has more wear than the other. They should be checked when you clean your pump and can be replaced with a stainless steel washer you get at the hardware store as long as they are the same diameter.

Eric

[jnb]

do you mean the holesdiameter or the outside diameter - the ones I replaced it with were smaller outside diameter but larger than the bottom of the end?

btw brian, my skimmer is skimming - it just needed to get past my cleaning it with my hands.

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8776466#post8776466 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by FinsReef
Yes this is not uncommon as they wear out and often one has more wear than the other. They should be checked when you clean your pump and can be replaced with a stainless steel washer you get at the hardware store as long as they are the same diameter.

Eric

[UCanDoIt]

jnb - Any problems with the replacement washers? Do you know what size you purchase or what the correct size that it should be? Might be helpful info for others when they're ready to replace them.

[reef / aholic]

Does anybody know where to a H&S 200-1260???????

[hatfielj]

RoBolton: I got mine from fins reef. They probably won't be getting another shipment in for a couple more weeks because the factory in germany stops production for 2 weeks during the holidays. If you call or email finsreef they might be able to get one for you as soon as they come in. Good luck.

[jnb]

not sure how I missed your query before - no problems - I don't know the specs - I just had a couple of stainless ones around for working on some boat stuff - my sense is that size is not critical as long as it is not so sloppy - I am thinking 6/32 stainless - they are not expensive so if I had to have some on hand I would get 5 6/32 and 5 8/32 - ( as I understand most in US came with 3 down and two on top may may work as good with 2/2 - whatever it came with installed is the rule - fwiw, I tried to run the pump without any washers and it did not pull hardly at all

Brian may know the size exactly


<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8942576#post8942576 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by UCanDoIt
jnb - Any problems with the replacement washers? Do you know what size you purchase or what the correct size that it should be? Might be helpful info for others when they're ready to replace them.

[UCanDoIt]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8991897#post8991897 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by RoBolton
Does anybody know where to a H&S 200-1260???????
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=902403

[reef / aholic]

Thanks

[UCanDoIt]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8991897#post8991897 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by RoBolton
Does anybody know where to a H&S 200-1260???????
What size tank will you be putting your 200 onto? I forwarded you an old PM that may help you figure out if you've picked the right size skimmer.

[clkwrk]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8992038#post8992038 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by jnb
fwiw, I tried to run the pump without any washers and it did not pull hardly at all



weird I ran fliger's with no washers the whole time and so did he . It wasn't until I cleaned it before returning it I noticed it was missing washers. There was no noticable difference in air draw between his loaner and my new ( Christines old ) a200-1260 pictures can be seen furrther back in the thread.

However it did wear into the volute/venturi housing pretty good.

[jnb]

well maqybe I was premature in my conclusion - it was a test in fresh water and I turned it on for just a minute so maybe it needed to clear air, etc - any rate yes i think part of the reason for the washers is to protect for wear - oh well

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8993789#post8993789 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by clkwrk
weird I ran fliger's with no washers the whole time and so did he . It wasn't until I cleaned it before returning it I noticed it was missing washers. There was no noticable difference in air draw between his loaner and my new ( Christines old ) a200-1260 pictures can be seen furrther back in the thread.

However it did wear into the volute/venturi housing pretty good.

[clkwrk]

fw has a different density so yes that would be #1 reason ;)

[jnb]

i tested w and w/o washers both in fresh water and it sucked lots more air with washers

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8994468#post8994468 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by clkwrk
fw has a different density so yes that would be #1 reason ;)

[Reef Sponger]

I just read through this thread and there's some great info and photos here. I wanted to find out more info on anyone that has the short version of the A200 and is there adequate control over the skimmer to get wet or dry skimming? Looking for feedback from anyone with about 24"-27" shorter versions. Also, was the customization very expensive?

[Reef Sponger]

Any feedback from owners with a short A200?

[clkwrk]

I used a short one and it worked great I also have a standard a200-1260 . The info and pics for both skimmers are in this thread.

[Reef Sponger]

Looks like I missed one page on this thread and I see where you make reference to a shorty and the dirty skimmer comparison. Skimmate collection looks great. Thanks for pointing me towards re-reading this thread. It also sounds like you actually had experience using both standard and short A200. I wanted to find out if the short version of the A200 has adequate control over the skimmer to get it to skim wet or dry, or does it skim wet only?

[clkwrk]

I had no problems getting wet or dry skim with either version. I love my a200. The short one pulled a bit more air and was a tad easier to get a real good dry skim.

[Reef Sponger]

Thanks for your response. I was thinking the opposite, that it will only skim wet. At least this is true for the short Deltec I was also looking at.

[Reef Sponger]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9480450#post9480450 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Reef Sponger
I just read through this thread and there's some great info and photos here. I wanted to find out more info on anyone that has the short version of the A200 and is there adequate control over the skimmer to get wet or dry skimming? Looking for feedback from anyone with about 24"-27" shorter versions. Also, was the customization very expensive? It looks like only one owner of a short A200? Thanks again, clkwrk, for your post. If any others own a short A200, would like to know your experience with your unit?

[Reef Sponger]

I have been thinking of upgrading my skimmer on my 180g for quite awhile now, but when I decided to start a new 75g, it was time to look for skimmers. I've been researching the H&S, Deltec, Bubbleking and Bubblemaster for quite awhile now. Finally decided on the H&S A200 custom short and all I did was do a "protein skimmer" search under Vendor Experiences and this company came up on top with 100% positive reviews. I contacted KM Associates Int'l and talked to Ed and he ran down all my options. Even though I pretty much decided on the H&S A200 short (and he had one in stock), he talked me out of it and said all I really needed was the H&S A150 (next model down). I am having them do 2 modifications for me, one to install a union fitting on the exhaust so that it can turn any direction as a permanent solution to what others were recommending, which was to use teflon tape. So, mine will be glued with a metric union fitting. Also, to replace the standard air clamp with a Deltec air valve as it seems much easier to turn to a certain clock position than to try and figure out how much pressure to clamp down on the air hose. Here's a preview of what I'll be getting and Ed saved me $500 from what I was thinking of getting. Going to put the extra money and invest in the H&S 110SR Denitrator as there is a lot of good reviews and great long term experience with this unit. Seems much easier than installing a DSB or refugium. Thanks Ed for all your advice. Will certainly check with you for everything before I invest in my reef equipment.
http://usera.imagecave.com/Reef-Sponger/Skimmers/A150ExhaustUnion.jpg
http://usera.imagecave.com/Reef-Sponger/Skimmers/A150a.jpg
http://usera.imagecave.com/Reef-Sponger/Skimmers/A150b.jpg

[TwistedTiger]

How much was the charge for the 2 mods?

[Reef Sponger]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9715247#post9715247 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by TwistedTiger
How much was the charge for the 2 mods? Flat rate $50 for customization, but I received the RC member promotional free shipping. My guess is that it's almost a wash.

[jeffreylam1132]

Hi Reef Sponger,

Do you have the website or number to order from Ed. I have one question regarding downsizing the skimmer to A150. For the A150, it has the Aquabee pump instead of the Eheim pump, right? Does this affect performance?

Also, by comparing the A200 to the 200(In sump), is there really a big difference in performance? Thanks everybody, this is some really good info and I am sold on the H & S skimmer.

[TwistedTiger]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9779322#post9779322 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by jeffreylam1132
Hi Reef Sponger,

Do you have the website or number to order from Ed.

http://home.wwdb.org/kmaintl

[Reef Sponger]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9779322#post9779322 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by jeffreylam1132
Hi Reef Sponger,

Do you have the website or number to order from Ed. I have one question regarding downsizing the skimmer to A150. For the A150, it has the Aquabee pump instead of the Eheim pump, right? Does this affect performance?

Also, by comparing the A200 to the 200(In sump), is there really a big difference in performance? Thanks everybody, this is some really good info and I am sold on the H & S skimmer. twistedtiger has given you their webpage info. As for your questions, I couldn't answer them as I am new to H&S. But in my experience with skimmers, it's best to contact a dealer who has actual experience using, testing or evaluating the skimmers that they carry, then it isn't just an item they are selling just to make money. From my experience with Ed, he definitely knows his skimmers is why I decided to purchase from them. I am sure that Fins Reef are experts with the skimmers as they are the master dealer/importer. Rather than solicit info from members with no experience with all skimmers (some do have experience, I know), go to a realiable source to get answers to your questions. I did get an RC discount of FREE s/h/i on my purchase, that was really cool.

[jnb]

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b7da04b3127cce83244aaed56700000016108Tct3LZuQ

this is just a test to see if I can post pic from my shutterfly account

[klam114]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9714264#post9714264 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Reef Sponger
I have been thinking of upgrading my skimmer on my 180g for quite awhile now, but when I decided to start a new 75g, it was time to look for skimmers. I've been researching the H&S, Deltec, Bubbleking and Bubblemaster for quite awhile now. Finally decided on the H&S A200 custom short and all I did was do a "protein skimmer" search under Vendor Experiences and this company came up on top with 100% positive reviews. I contacted KM Associates Int'l and talked to Ed and he ran down all my options. Even though I pretty much decided on the H&S A200 short (and he had one in stock), he talked me out of it and said all I really needed was the H&S A150 (next model down). I am having them do 2 modifications for me, one to install a union fitting on the exhaust so that it can turn any direction as a permanent solution to what others were recommending, which was to use teflon tape. So, mine will be glued with a metric union fitting. Also, to replace the standard air clamp with a Deltec air valve as it seems much easier to turn to a certain clock position than to try and figure out how much pressure to clamp down on the air hose. Here's a preview of what I'll be getting and Ed saved me $500 from what I was thinking of getting. Going to put the extra money and invest in the H&S 110SR Denitrator as there is a lot of good reviews and great long term experience with this unit. Seems much easier than installing a DSB or refugium. Thanks Ed for all your advice. Will certainly check with you for everything before I invest in my reef equipment.
http://usera.imagecave.com/Reef-Sponger/Skimmers/A150ExhaustUnion.jpg
http://usera.imagecave.com/Reef-Sponger/Skimmers/A150a.jpg
http://usera.imagecave.com/Reef-Sponger/Skimmers/A150b.jpg You won't be disappointed with the downsizing as Ed knows what's he talking about. Saw your other post, it looks like your new skimmer kicked within the first few days, that's great! Enjoy your new skimmer and welcome to the Club!

[Reef Sponger]

Thanks KLam114. So far, the A150 seems to be a perfect match for my 180g, so no disappointment here. Yes, it does feel like the skimmer has already broken in. It's been so much easier to adjust than all my previous Euro-Reef skimmers, just took some getting use to with the wedgepipe.

[jeffreylam1132]

Just got my A200 from Ed. It is a custom short 26.5" with exhaust union mod, so don't have to deal with teflon tape. This is a beauty indeed!!!!!!!!!!!!Thanks, Ed.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v721/jeffreylam1132/IMG_0006.jpg

[Reef Sponger]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9933042#post9933042 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by jeffreylam1132
Just got my A200 from Ed. It is a custom short 26.5" with exhaust union mod, so don't have to deal with teflon tape. This is a beauty indeed!!!!!!!!!!!!Thanks, Ed.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v721/jeffreylam1132/IMG_0006.jpg That's the exact skimmer that I wanted!!! Envious! I know that Ed had it in stock, but he wouldn't let me buy as he said I didn't need anything that big for what I was keeping. I had some concerns about the Aquabee pumps is why I didn't want to go with the A150, but apparently, Ed was absolutely right again. Not one H&S owner has complained about failing Aquabee pumps like what was going on in the Deltec forum a couple months back. It seems because Deltec modifies the Aquabee, they are experiencing more problems. I am definitely happy with my A150. Jeff you won't get much feedback from H&S owners about the short A200 as I asked and only one reefer helped out with some feedback. It seems although Ed sold quite a few, it's not to RC members who post regularly. Welcome to the Club and what an awesome skimmer! Envy, envy. I just noticed you got the air valve too. That is so cool and easy to adjust. But many don't even use anything after their skimmer is fully broken in. My air valve is now set at 12noon position and I think I 'm going to leave it there and not remove it. Seems to be working really well as every 5-7 days, I get a full collection cup of dark nasty stuff.

[jeffreylam1132]

Thanks Dee. Originally, my plan was to get the A200-2x1260, but talked to Ed and told him that I will probably have a light load. So, he presented me with this baby. Even though I haven't had a chance to hook it up, I am satisfy already by the way it's built and the look, "SO SEXY". I guess if I decide to increase my bioload, we'll put this baby to test and see if it can handle. For feedback, once I set this baby up, I'll do the feedback. :)

[Reef Sponger]

Don't make me wished I should have bought that skimmer. lol

Interesting, I just looked at the dates on this thread and it is over a year old. Interesting how facts don't change, when they work, they work.

[asnatlas]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9933042#post9933042 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by jeffreylam1132
It is a custom short 26.5" with exhaust union mod, so don't have to deal with teflon tape.

I would like to get more info on this "exhaust union mod" as I would like to add one to my H&S... Who can I talk to about getting one ??

[asnatlas]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9935703#post9935703 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by asnatlas
I would like to get more info on this "exhaust union mod" as I would like to add one to my H&S... Who can I talk to about getting one ??

Thanks Reef Sponger

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9935884#post9935884 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Reef Sponger
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1091271

[Reef Sponger]

We have a discussion going over on one of the BM threads. Can any owner of a A200 tell me how large is the diameter of the riser that is inside the A200 collection cup? Also, how tall it is from the top of the riser to the bayonet connection. So, diameter by length of the inner riser. Thanks in advance.

[klam114]

RS, I know this is kind of late. It's approximately 4" diameter by 7.5" tall. HTH

[sjm817]

Interesting differences in the single Eheim skimmers.

AFAIK:
Deltec riser = 3.5"
H&S riser = 4"
ER riser = 4.5"

[Reef Sponger]

Thanks klam, yes, it's late and the discussion died off. I heard from another member that PMd me and said the diameter of the H&S A200 was closer to 4.25", so it's probably metric. And yes, I did want to know the height of the riser so the volume could be calculated.

[purebullet417]

just got mine
http://i135.photobucket.com/albums/q136/purebullet417/skimmer.jpg
couple of questions? what size tubing to you need for the inlet and for the outlet?

[Reef Sponger]

http://www.finsreef.com/product.php?productid=16143&cat=254&page=1
External Skimmer Up To 300gal - A200-1260
Pump: Eheim 1260/65w
Diameter: 8"
Height: 29"
Footprint: 9"x19"
Intake: 5/8"
Output: 1 1/4"
Website reads input is 5/8" barb and output is 1.25" slip. The O-Rings for your pump looks like they are still in your skimmer cup.

[purebullet417]

yup they are just wanted to make sure it fit

[klam114]

pb417, nice unit. have you got it up & running yet?

[purebullet417]

not yet. another week or so. i had to trim about 5/16 off the collection cup with a dremmel to get it to fit under the stand and that worked out nice. if you want follow the thread here
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1157869&perpage=25&pagenumber=1

[klam114]

That is one tight fit. Do you have a photo just of the modification you did with the collection cup? Great looking system, nice size reef tank! Welcome to the club!
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10407823#post10407823 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by mbaychuk
picture of protein skimmer with trimmed collection cup to fit
http://i187.photobucket.com/albums/x248/mbaychuk/proteinskimmercuptrimmedtofit.jpg <a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10421142#post10421142 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by mbaychuk
drilled the 2 inch bulk head into 40g sump using 75mm hole saw.
http://i187.photobucket.com/albums/x248/mbaychuk/2incbulkhead002.jpg

[purebullet417]

ill see if i can get my uncle to take one for you tomorrow. he simply took a dremmel. and cut a 5/16" ring off the skimmer. ill ask him to take a pic of the ring and of the clearence

[purebullet417]

you cant really tell but the the cup can just come off without hitting the top
http://i187.photobucket.com/albums/x248/mbaychuk/210gpainted014.jpg
http://i187.photobucket.com/albums/x248/mbaychuk/210gpainted013.jpg

[klam114]

Very clean work. I can see the very tight clearance above the lid. Also, I can tell the skimmer cup has been shorten because the overlapping acrylic ring on the lid is lower and overlapping more than others who own this model. I think you saved yourself $50 as this is what Germany usually charges for this modification.

[purebullet417]

that is what Brian and ed both told me to do to save some money. they said thats all they were going to do so we did it. it took about 10 mins with a dremmel going VERY slow

[klam114]

purebullet417, I see your tank project with mbaychuk is coming along nicely. Any updates on how your skimmer is doing and what it's pulling out. BTW, nice setup.

[klam114]

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1193497

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10638361#post10638361 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Fliger
I just wanted to show pix of my custom H&S skimmer. I got it about a year ago, its awesome. I like the gray plumbing so I chose it instead of white. Its a custom short model, made to fit under my last tank. It pulls between 900-1,000 LPH.

http://i95.photobucket.com/albums/l134/dfliger/Elos%20160XL/IMG_5316.jpg

http://i95.photobucket.com/albums/l134/dfliger/Elos%20160XL/IMG_5317.jpg

Couple days worth, it'll clear a room fast .... :lol:

http://i95.photobucket.com/albums/l134/dfliger/Elos%20160XL/IMG_5446.jpg

http://i95.photobucket.com/albums/l134/dfliger/Elos%20160XL/IMG_5447.jpg

http://i95.photobucket.com/albums/l134/dfliger/Elos%20160XL/IMG_5349.jpg

[Reef Sponger]

purebullet, your tank progress is coming along great. any updates on your skimmer? photos please. :D

[purebullet417]

ill try to get one for ya

[Warboc]

Hello all. Installing my new H&S A-150 external. Have any of you done any modifications to the skimmer cup to prevent overflows in foam over situations?

[jnb]

page 3 shows my mod - I installed a drain and Y'd it to a loop, the top of which is the point at which the skimmer cup will fill, then start draining into the sump eliminating the cup water level so high it overflows. - you could extend the air hose, drill a hole thru the top to accommodate the diameter and insert at the level you want the skimmer to shut down - when the water rise too much in the cup it will shut off the air and the skimmer will stop making a mess and this way no dirty cup skimate makes its way to the sump


http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=818119&perpage=25&pagenumber=3<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10819480#post10819480 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Warboc
Hello all. Installing my new H&S A-150 external. Have any of you done any modifications to the skimmer cup to prevent overflows in foam over situations?

[Warboc]

I like the air hose option. Let me see if I understand correctly. Extend the air hose. Drill a hole in top of skimmer cup for it. Insert air hose into hole and push it in until it is at the max desired water level within the cup. When skimmate, or over-foaming, reaches that level then the air hose will suck in water and thus cause foaming to stop due to no air.

Anyone actually doing this? Any drawbacks to doing this?

[jnb]

one drawback is that you could get nasty stuff in your airline but you would be home soon enough to flush (let it suck cleaner water) it. Experiment with it - first just put the end of the air hose in water and see the skimmer shut down bubbles and that the water level stays about the same except that there is less air volume displacing overall water in the system meaning your sump water level will rise a bit -

if you don't mind all that, temporarily extend the air hose and just put under the cup top down a bit and start closing off your outlet so the bubble water rises until it reaches the air hose - I forget why I never tried this. There was a reason - guess I did not want to drill a hole to find out it destracted skimate production - the other way is fail safe it saved me a couple of times

I'll let others chime in


<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10819877#post10819877 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Warboc
I like the air hose option. Let me see if I understand correctly. Extend the air hose. Drill a hole in top of skimmer cup for it. Insert air hose into hole and push it in until it is at the max desired water level within the cup. When skimmate, or over-foaming, reaches that level then the air hose will suck in water and thus cause foaming to stop due to no air.

Anyone actually doing this? Any drawbacks to doing this?

[CruzinKim]

Nice thread, great info. The only time that I suggest a drain is when the skimmer cup is really too small for the skimmer. Usually with a good size skimmer cup, you should clean the neck and collection cup by the time it's close to filling or your skimmer will not continue to perform well. This is true for most skimmer unless skimming so wet that nothing collects in the neck of the skimmer.

[jnb]

I've heard that before - The drain in this case is for a reason having nothing to do with the discipline of keeping the skimmer neck clean or an inadequate cup size. We are looking at solutions to overflows. Bubble King puts drains on all their skimmers....

hi<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10824154#post10824154 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by CruzinKim
Nice thread, great info. The only time that I suggest a drain is when the skimmer cup is really too small for the skimmer. Usually with a good size skimmer cup, you should clean the neck and collection cup by the time it's close to filling or your skimmer will not continue to perform well. This is true for most skimmer unless skimming so wet that nothing collects in the neck of the skimmer.

[Warboc]

More questions..... :)

Right now my A-150 has a couple of issues. First, detrius is collecting in the bottom of the cylinder. Water is very calm at the bottom so things just settle. The next issue is that at night the water level in the skimmer frequently fluctuates a great deal. Usually it goes too high causing overflow of the skimmer cup. Thankfully I have done a mod (similar to one suggested above) to allow the water to flow into sump.

One more thing.. If there is a more appropriate thread which already has a lot of information like this then please direct me to it.

[Reef Sponger]

I would suggest isolating what causes the overflowing and talk to Fins Reef about it if you haven't already done so. I've never even come close to overflowing except during the first week when I had it set too high. I like my skimming very wet, but not overflowing and there's a really fine edge between overflowing and a stable consistent performance.

How about a float switch inside the skimmer cup to guard against overflowing?

[Zoom]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10900737#post10900737 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Warboc
More questions..... :)

Right now my A-150 has a couple of issues. First, detrius is collecting in the bottom of the cylinder. Water is very calm at the bottom so things just settle. The next issue is that at night the water level in the skimmer frequently fluctuates a great deal. Usually it goes too high causing overflow of the skimmer cup. Thankfully I have done a mod (similar to one suggested above) to allow the water to flow into sump.

One more thing.. If there is a more appropriate thread which already has a lot of information like this then please direct me to it.
You can turn the skimmer off and vacuum the bottom of the skimmer using a W/D vacuum cleaner.
Skimmer overflow at night is from feeding frozen foods adding vitamins and other things you add in the tank... the foam collapse and after about two to four hours the skimmer usually starts to overflow .
try to only use some dry flake food for a week and see if the skimmer calms down.

[purebullet417]

i got some pics for you guys
http://i187.photobucket.com/albums/x248/mbaychuk/proteinskimmer001.jpg
http://i187.photobucket.com/albums/x248/mbaychuk/proteinskimmer002.jpg
http://i187.photobucket.com/albums/x248/mbaychuk/proteinskimmer003.jpg
http://i187.photobucket.com/albums/x248/mbaychuk/proteinskimmer004.jpg

thats like 2 or 3 days

[CruzinKim]

Wow, that's a nice photo! Just a suggestion being there so much dry waste collected in the riser within the cup, you may want to raise the bubble level up about 1.5". When the riser gets so dirty in 2 to 3 days, the skimmer slows down and won't work as effectively. By raising the bubble level up, the riser won't get as dirty so quickly and most of that waste will end up inside the collection cup instead of getting stuck within the riser. Just my 2 cents. This is what I like to see more of for the A150 skimmer that I'm considering.

[DeltecRules]

Here is my A200-1260
14 hours after set up
I would like to thank Marvin at Atlantis aquarium in VA for hooking me up!! Thanks Marvin!!

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/583/104218mini-112-1286_IMG.JPG

[CruzinKim]

http://i215.photobucket.com/albums/cc108/cruzinkim/backtotopic.gif
Any updates? I'm looking at one of these for my next tank! More pictures please.

[DeltecRules]

:bounce3:

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/583/104218mini-112-1298_IMG.JPG
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/583/104218mini-113-1302_IMG.JPG
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/583/104218mini-113-1302_IMG.JPG
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/583/104218mini-113-1307_IMG.JPG

[DeltecRules]

What does everyone use use to clean the salt and dust out of there venturi nipple?

[CruzinKim]

Totally gross, Scott! Squirt a 1/2 cup of hot water down the air hose weekly and that should keep the venturi nipple clear.

Looks like I'm picking up a used A200 at a good price locally from a reefer that is moving overseas. It's for a new tank setup next year.

[CruzinKim]

OK, I just pulled the trigger on a slightly used A200, so I'm part of the H&S A200 Club now. Unfortunately, won't be setting this up for at least 4 or 5 months for a future setup. I may try this on my 90g just to see how it does. J/K
http://i215.photobucket.com/albums/cc108/cruzinkim/skimmer/HSA200.jpg

[CruzinKim]

BTW, someone has already told the RC member who's selling this to me that the pump is upside down. :lol:

[Maximus]

Well, here's a little update on my H&S A200x1260. When I first received it, I had it running in my garage, cycling live rock. Here is a pic right after I hooked it up:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v285/sanglee24/DSC00168.jpg
A couple weeks went by and I finally got my new tank. I transferred all the rock and my skimmer to it. This is where it gets a bit strange. I began to notice that the water level kept fluctuating inside the skimmer. This prevented the head of foam from building up and my skimmate production was basically 0. I gave Ed at KM associates a call and he thought that the problem could have been the exhaust. I must have made 4-5 different exhaust models and they all gave me the same results. Ed suggested that I take off the exhaust completely and run the water out of the "T" fitting. I took off the 90 degree elbow and PVC pipe and noticed that the surging and fluctuation still occurred. That ruled out the exhaust. Our next step was looking at the feed pump. I actually had 3 different MJ pumps on hand and used all of them. Yes, you guessed it, the surging still continued. I became a bit frustrated and wondered what was going on. Finally, Ed and Eric (Finsreef) asked me to take the Eheim 1260 apart. I took a few pics of it and sent them to Ed. Here they are:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v285/sanglee24/222.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v285/sanglee24/218.jpg
Notice anything different? Ed realized that I received the wrong needlewheel! Now, I am unsure which country this needlewheel was intended for, but I am pretty sure that it is not the USA needlewheel. Here is a pic of the US needlewheel:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v285/sanglee24/t_163411.jpg
Hopefully, you can see the difference. Btw, I am 100% sure Ed and Eric from Finsreef will make it right. In fact, I called Eric today and he said he would have no problem shipping me a new pump if I found anything to be defective. Thanks Eric! I also wanted to give a huge shout out to my dealer, Ed at KM associates. I must have emailed and called him over 50 times this past week. Each time I spoke to Ed, he reassured me that he would make it right. Anyone can sell a product, however, it's the support after the sale that really makes a person shine. Thank you Ed!

[CruzinKim]

That definitely must be the cause of your skimmer surging if you've already gone through completely removing the exhaust plumbing and putting on a stronger pump on the input. Must be a European impeller and cannot handle the stronger spinning USA version Eheim 1260 pump. I can't think that this European design can draw very much air as compared to the pinwheel in your second photo. Yep, you won't have any problems getting your situation corrected quickly from what I've read about Fins Reef's consistent great customer service and of course, Ed Lum at KMA Int'l.

[Zoom]

Looks like some one miss the last cut on the NW .

[FinsReef]

H&S does not cut the needle wheels it is an Euro version. Sang your pump is packed and waiting on FedEx to pick it up tomorrow.


Eric

[Zoom]

H&S does not cut the needle wheels it is an Euro version
The front plate get cut off for the US version.