Cleaning DIY projects before use.

Wspangler · 03/06/2014, 08:56 PM

Hey guys I wanted whatever input I can get on this subject.

I've had the cs1 for over a year.( I bought during halftime of last years Super Bowl). After I had fully assembled it and let set for a day I washed with cold water and threw it in my tank. I had what I would say to be the opposite effect of most new skimmers. Even with the gate valve fully open it was overflowing very fast. After a few days I contacted avast, and was told something along the lines of it was the solvent or something( I really don't remember). I drained my overflowing skimmer into a 5 gallon bucket. Within the first day the overflow problem had greatly slowed down. Within 2 days the skimmer was running like a champ.

Fast forward to now. I bought the mr5 to use for biopellets. I am having a problem getting them to properly tumble using a 200gph pump. This accually has nothing to do with my problem and I'm fairly sure I just need to play around with it a little more.

My problem is the skimmer overflowing again. I thought that maybe the pellets were making the skimmer skim wetter, but I've been running it fully open and my skimmer is still overflowing. I soaked my reactor in ro water for 24 hours before hooking it up. I started collect the overflow and so far have tossed around 3 gallons. Each overflow takes longer than the last one. I'm fairly certain that it's the same issue as I had with my skimmer. So here's where I wanted your guys input. What is causing it?the solvent? Is this common? Should I have vinegar bathed first? What steps should I have taken/ what step should I take next time?

Kdawg_69 · 03/08/2014, 04:14 PM

always soak your recently put together projects in vinegar to clean the residue off the project so it doesn't effect the chemistry of the water

03/06/2014, 08:56 PM	#1
Wspangler Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2013 Location: Lorain Posts: 466	Cleaning DIY projects before use. Hey guys I wanted whatever input I can get on this subject. I've had the cs1 for over a year.( I bought during halftime of last years Super Bowl). After I had fully assembled it and let set for a day I washed with cold water and threw it in my tank. I had what I would say to be the opposite effect of most new skimmers. Even with the gate valve fully open it was overflowing very fast. After a few days I contacted avast, and was told something along the lines of it was the solvent or something( I really don't remember). I drained my overflowing skimmer into a 5 gallon bucket. Within the first day the overflow problem had greatly slowed down. Within 2 days the skimmer was running like a champ. Fast forward to now. I bought the mr5 to use for biopellets. I am having a problem getting them to properly tumble using a 200gph pump. This accually has nothing to do with my problem and I'm fairly sure I just need to play around with it a little more. My problem is the skimmer overflowing again. I thought that maybe the pellets were making the skimmer skim wetter, but I've been running it fully open and my skimmer is still overflowing. I soaked my reactor in ro water for 24 hours before hooking it up. I started collect the overflow and so far have tossed around 3 gallons. Each overflow takes longer than the last one. I'm fairly certain that it's the same issue as I had with my skimmer. So here's where I wanted your guys input. What is causing it?the solvent? Is this common? Should I have vinegar bathed first? What steps should I have taken/ what step should I take next time?

03/08/2014, 04:14 PM	#2
Kdawg_69 Registered Member Join Date: May 2013 Posts: 160	always soak your recently put together projects in vinegar to clean the residue off the project so it doesn't effect the chemistry of the water