Complete newb w/55 gallon, need some ID and skimmer help :)
 

First post here :)

I've had some freshwater tanks of increasing size for a few years and was sort of half-heartedly thinking about getting into saltwater when a friend recently gave (!) us their tank and everything with it.

Hardware-wise, it is a 55 gallon with a Fluval filter/pump underneath, a CPR Bak Pak protein skimmer, a powerhead, heater, Deep Blue Solar Extreme lights with Deep Blue T5 lights (4) (I plan to replace the bulbs soon as I understand there are much better options out there).

In terms of critters, it came with a couple shrimp (I think), some turbos, some crabs, a big brittle sea star, and a spotted cardinalfish. We have added three green chromis. I plan to get a buddy for the cardinalfish and then a clownfish.

Background of the tank - they had paid someone to come advise them and take care of every couple of weeks, but they lost faith in him as he didn't seem competent and they kept losing critters. I think they got irritated by it and sort of lost interest.

The moving process was incredibly stressful because it was rushed (they wanted it out of the house, and of course for a free tank we wanted to oblige) but I managed it in about six hours (breakdown to up and running and stocked). I managed to transport about 35 gallons of their water and added some new mix. Only real change was that I replaced the crush coral substrate with live sand.

Anyway, my questions:

[IMG]http://i47.*******.com/2zs3f4o.jpg[/IMG]

Can someone ID this for me? I changed the live rock arrangement and they get more light and more water flow, and even in a few days I notice they are bursting out. What a difference.

[IMG]http://i46.*******.com/jhx7p0.jpg[/IMG]

And this? I have no idea what it is. When only the actinic lights are on the "buds" glow greenish. Pretty cool.

[IMG]http://i49.*******.com/2hmf3ev.jpg[/IMG]

As you can see, this is not working correctly. I'm not sure that it was set up right when we got it. (I have no saltwater experience so it was just another piece of humming equipment.) The directions online leave a tremendous amount to be desired. From reading I believe the column on the right ought to be nice and bubbly, but it isn't (what appears to be bubbles is only dried salt), and I really don't know what I should start adjusting to get it working correctly.

Anyway, sorry for the babbling, and I greatly appreciate any advice :)

Dave

First one is Frogspawn and the 2nd one i believe is Green Star Polyps

Yes, your skimmer should have bubbles in the lower part and they should slowly rise into the upper chamber (cup) to be dumped out when needed. I don't know why there are rings in the left chamber (I'm not familiar with that model).

Is it moving water at all or just sitting there humming?

It moves water like a champ, it just doesn't bubble and nothing gets up to the cup.

After way too much googling I may have stumbled onto the answer in the interim, which is to basically take everything apart and clean out any deposits in the pump/air hose/etc. Barring any other miracle answers I will try that tonight.

A quick thought...... I presume that when you moved this the skimmer was emptied of it's water. Did you fill it back up before you turned it on?

The motor/pump of the skimmer might not be strong enough to prime itself. If there is no water in the chambers fill it up about 1/2 to 3/4 and turn it back on. You should see a difference.

BTW WELCOME!

We must have been typing at the same time:crazy1:

In that case I would inspect the air intake and look for blockages. If there are no bubbles at all, it makes me think that there is no air getting to it.

I honestly can't remember. Everything was a rush to get it set up.

However, it does pull water in great and flows it out very strong. I just don't see bubbles, and thus nothing gets to the cup.

and thanks :)

Try this before you take it apart......

The little black knob at the top of the air line is an adjusting screw. This could be the reason for your lack of bubbles. Try turning the screw to the open position. It's possible that your screw is turned down tight and therefore not letting in the air.

If this fails to make a difference then go ahead and look further and clean it up some.

I got home from work last night and the skimmer was working!

I had monkeyed with the valve on the air line in the AM, nothing had happened immediately, and I just left.

I'm a very happy camper :)

Just keep an eye on it. The unfortunate thing about hang-on skimmers is if they overflow that nastiness gets on the wall and or/floors.