Biocube Skimmer mod

dabob79 · 11/01/2017, 03:59 PM

Hey all! Just wanted to share a little mod I came up with for the Marineland/Oceanic Biocube Skimmer. I'm using this skimmer in the new 32 gallon LED Biocube, I can't say if this would work or not in other cubes because of clearance issues with the hood.

I'm using the skimmer in chamber 1, clipped to the wall between chambers 1 and 2 with the factory clip. I noticed right away that mounting the skimmer like this put the bottom of the skimmer cup flush against the top of the wall, which restricted the flow of water over the wall into chamber 2. This causes the water level in chamber 1 and the display area to rise, and the skimmer sits too low in the water. So, I started looking for a way to raise the skimmer to get the cup off the wall, and to get the skimmer higher in the water so the air could be turned up to create a drier foam. After some experimenting, I came across a piece of 1 1/4" OD vinyl tubing I had laying around, and noticed that it was the same size as the opening at the top of the skimmer that the cup connects to. I knew that I had about 1 1/4 inch of clearance from the top of the cup to the lid, so I cut a piece of the tubing about 1 1/4 inch long, heated it in some boiling water for a few seconds to loosen it up a bit, and slipped it over the lip of the opening on the top of the skimmer. What I have now is a 1 1/4 inch neck for the skimmer cup to connect to. This allows me to crank the air up and get a better foam, and it gets the skimmer cup up out of the water.

The cup doesn't fit as tightly onto the tubing as what I would like, so when it starts to get a little water/gunk in there it starts to sag a bit. I added a couple laters of thick two-sides tape to the top so when I close the lid, it comes in contact with the top of the cup and pushes it down snugly onto the skimmer neck.

As you can see in that last picture, it's starting to make some nice skimmate.

So there you go! A cheap, effective way to improve the Biocube Skimmer that doesn't require any modification/cutting of the Biocube or the hood.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

11/01/2017, 03:59 PM	#1
dabob79 Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2015 Location: Mascoutah, IL Posts: 464	Biocube Skimmer mod Hey all! Just wanted to share a little mod I came up with for the Marineland/Oceanic Biocube Skimmer. I'm using this skimmer in the new 32 gallon LED Biocube, I can't say if this would work or not in other cubes because of clearance issues with the hood. I'm using the skimmer in chamber 1, clipped to the wall between chambers 1 and 2 with the factory clip. I noticed right away that mounting the skimmer like this put the bottom of the skimmer cup flush against the top of the wall, which restricted the flow of water over the wall into chamber 2. This causes the water level in chamber 1 and the display area to rise, and the skimmer sits too low in the water. So, I started looking for a way to raise the skimmer to get the cup off the wall, and to get the skimmer higher in the water so the air could be turned up to create a drier foam. After some experimenting, I came across a piece of 1 1/4" OD vinyl tubing I had laying around, and noticed that it was the same size as the opening at the top of the skimmer that the cup connects to. I knew that I had about 1 1/4 inch of clearance from the top of the cup to the lid, so I cut a piece of the tubing about 1 1/4 inch long, heated it in some boiling water for a few seconds to loosen it up a bit, and slipped it over the lip of the opening on the top of the skimmer. What I have now is a 1 1/4 inch neck for the skimmer cup to connect to. This allows me to crank the air up and get a better foam, and it gets the skimmer cup up out of the water. The cup doesn't fit as tightly onto the tubing as what I would like, so when it starts to get a little water/gunk in there it starts to sag a bit. I added a couple laters of thick two-sides tape to the top so when I close the lid, it comes in contact with the top of the cup and pushes it down snugly onto the skimmer neck. As you can see in that last picture, it's starting to make some nice skimmate. So there you go! A cheap, effective way to improve the Biocube Skimmer that doesn't require any modification/cutting of the Biocube or the hood. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk __________________ Tank is finally wet! USAF Veteran, 12 years Go Cardinals!! Current Tank Info: Marineland 93 gallon rimless cube, Radion LED/T5 Combo, Eshopps sump, Nyos skimmer, Apex controller