Bubble King Setup, Tuning and trouble shooting thread. Post your questions here!
 

Got it Scott. I think I will raise the sump depth and at the same time using a stand to raise my skimmer .

Well I will try to let my sump water down further one cm and if that is the sweet spot then it means I have to find a stand that will raise my skimmer water level back to 22.5 cm while my sump depth is at 27 cm then. In this case the stand should be around 5 cm high (may be an acrylic stand looks nicer then ).

Bubble King Setup, Tuning and trouble shooting thread. Post your questions here!
 

This thread will be dedicated to setting up, tuning and trouble shooting Bubble King Skimmers. Feel free to ask any questions related to choosing the right skimmer as well as setting up, tuning or trouble shooting your skimmer.

Bubble King Setup, Tuning and trouble shooting thread. Post your questions here!
 

Hi Scott,

That's good you create a posting for this subject . Sorry to post on the other topic , can you transfer all related earlier post of mine to this area. Thanks

After the water level goes down 1 cm more the skimmer looks not much change:

https://vimeo.com/149475674

Furthermore , when you said break In , usually this took a week ? How can I say my skimmer already hit the sweet spot , as of now no overflowing issue have been notice almost 5 days now .

It takes 1 to two weeks for the skimmer to completely break in. Overflowing typically happens in the first 24 hours. You won't know if you hit your sweet spot until the skimmer is completely broken in. I wouldn't expect to see much change with 1 cm of drop in water level. It will be subtle. You are making good foam and the skimmate looks fine. I'd say your skimmer is working well right now and it doesn't appear to need any adjustment.

Exactly a week since it was set up.....does this means my skimmer broken in?;

https://vimeo.com/149631672

I would say your skimmer is broken in and appears to be skimming quite well.

Thanks Scott, finally I got the answer for the heigh (water level ) of my going to build new sump .

Will be posting pictures of my new set up soon, it's in 8.5inches of water. Trying to dial it in but when I upload photos through photo bucket it shows my whole album.


Corey

Here it is I think.

Corey

Is this what you are trying to post? If so, I would say you are pretty close to a good setting to ride out through breakin. That is some very dense and good looking foam. It would appear that you have a fair amount of DOC's in your water. If it starts to come out the vent holes once you put the lid on, close the wedge pipe a tiny bit to wetten it up. In the mean time, put that lid on and see how it does.
http://i333.photobucket.com/albums/m...C592D05E78.mp4

Thank you. When you say wetten it you mean add more water into the chamber, correct?


Corey

Yes. Closing the wedge pipe will raise the water level in the skimmer body causing the skimmate to be more wet and not stay in a foam state as long. You could also bump the pump speed by 1 watt but I like the foam I see there so if anything, I would close the wedge pipe a tiny bit and see what that does. In the mean time, I would put the lid on and see how it does as it is. If you find the foam filling the cup up and coming out the vent holes then close the wedge pipe ever so slightly. It won't take much but a fraction of a turn. That heavy foam is an indicator or plenty of DOC's. It's looking good though. Much better foam than the videos I saw with it at the high pump speed.

There are PLENTY of DOC's in the tank. I know it's a lite load in there but it's been semi skimmer less for awhile.

Corey

http://i333.photobucket.com/albums/m...98F0787388.mp4


Here is where it stands now, maybe some fine tuning is needed. I'm close tho I think. It hasn't broke in all the way yet so I want to get it close to he sweet spot the let it settle for a few days u til it's broken in. Then I will really dial it in and start taking back my tank!!!!


Corey

http://i333.photobucket.com/albums/m...82B7B8544.mp4]http://i333.photobucket.com/albums/m...082B7B8544.jpg

Now, lowered to 27 per sleifs thoughts


Corey

That's looking pretty good from a foam quality standpoint. I assume you put the lid back on it. How long has it been running that way with the lid on? How is the foam collecting in the cup with the lid on? I might suggest closing the wedge pipe a fraction of a turn if by tomorrow the foam isn't spilling over very slowly into the cup. My guess is that it will be though. Especially as the dissolved organics start building up in the neck which with foam that dense should be happening as I type this.

Been running this way with the lid for about 3.5-4 hours maybe. I'll leave it be until tomorrow to see how it pans out over night.
Thanks for all your help Scott

Corey

Glad to help. Will look forward to the update and hopefully some nicer brown stuff collecting in the cup. Be sure to take a picture of the cup with the lid on tomorrow so we can see what's going on in there. Removing the lid impacts the pressure in the skimmer neck a bit and tends to flatten the head out as you may have noticed. As such, seeing what's happening in the cup with the lid on can be somewhat telling.

got it plugged up and closed that wedge just a tad to see how it pans out


corey

Sounds good.

Ok Scott, no real change and nothing in the cup. Wedge is about 30-40% closed and power is on 30. So should I lower the skimmer and if so how much? Or is it okay to just bump up the power to maybe 32 or so and see what that does.

Corey

Sure. You could bump the power and see what it does.. You could even drop the power and close the wedge a bit more. Ideal sump depth is normally around 8-8.5" but since you are a really low load, you could go 9" without an issue and lower the pump speed a tiny bit. That will reduce bubble size further which is always a good thing. Keep in mind, you are still breaking in. While you can settle at a sump depth, once the skimmer breaks in, you will still need to find the sweet spot which you should be getting close to.

Ok. Break in time is about a week or so? How will I know when it's broken in?
I have 10 fish going into the display next week possibly. Taking my count to 30. I can leave it where it is for now. I'm just curious about it is all.

Corey

There is no way of telling for sure that break in is complete other than knowing the minimum time is about a week at which point there will be a good slime coating inside the skimmer. At the 2 week point, it is without a doubt broken in.

Since you aren't seeing anything in the cup yet, I would close the wedge pipe slightly and see what that yields in terms of skimmate. Lowering the skimmer is at this point isn't really needed since you're not broken in yet and you're going to be adding more fish. Once we find the sweet spot for you pump after more fish are in there, then we will see if the sump needs adjustment. When you close your wedge, set it so the transition from heavily aerated water to where it turns to foam is just above the base of the neck. This transition will appear as an obvious line. Since your load is light, I would target that transition to be about 1/4" up from the white ring where the collection cup connects to the body of the skimmer. Make you wedge pipe adjustments slowly and give it a minute to settle down. A little tiny turn of the wedge will make a big difference in the level inside the skimmer.

The other alternative would be to increase your wattage in 1 watt increments as that will also raise the level in your skimmer but I did like the foam I saw. It's kind of a matter of experimenting to see what results in the best foam that is pushing the waste up the neck the best couple with a water level inside the skimmer that results in that waste going over the neck and into the cup slowly. Every tank is different which is where fine tuning for the individual tank comes into play. There really is no right or wrong but the general idea is that the lower the pump speed, the longer the contact time and the smaller the bubbles. With a lower speed comes the need for a high level in the skimmer which is where sump depth and or wedge pipe adjustments come into play. This isn't much different that any other skimmer in terms of the end result. You just have a better ability to fine tune the skimmer and foam with the RD3. Don't be afraid to play with different settings over the coming days. When I setup my Supermain 250, I played with it for nearly a month making little changes here and there to get a feel for what worked best for me in terms of pump speed and the level inside my skimmer.

Here it is today.
http://i333.photobucket.com/albums/m...AE7006840.mp4]http://i333.photobucket.com/albums/m...5AE7006840.jpg

Corey

Looks great now! You are finally skimming and something to show for it in the form of skimmate in the cup. I wouldn't mess with it anymore for a few days and see what it produces.

Guys I have jyst bought double cone 200 with rd3 pump for my 180g reef. Previous to this i was running an atb 840 and its absolutely fantastic skimmer. But I treated myself this Christmas.

Skimmer is now 2 weeks old. After 1 week it started skimming, but it was in shalliw water of 16cm, running at 34w with wedge pipe 75-80% closed. But it then stopped skimming.

Following advice I have relocated the skimmer to deeper water.i found it was simply not producing consistant skimmate like me previous skimmer. This Produced little to none and very wet.

It now sits in 24cm of water. Royal exclusiv rec 20-25cm for this skimmer.

At this depth with wedge pipe FULLY OPEN i can achive a head of foam midway in the neck at 34w on pump. It still is not producing good skim and it's very watery. Howrver the height ofbthe foam head is like my previous skimmer, halfway up the neck.

In order to improve and make more consistent do you:

Do you advise closing the pipe and reducing air?
Or increasing power and let it skim wet in a hope it darkens up later?
Leaving it to run as it is?
Is there really a big differdnce at each setting?

I still cannot understand the concept of wantjnb to restrict skimmer air and water, i always was told bigger is better.

Could somebody please explain what I should do and why?

Can you tell me a little about your tank? Display size, number and size of fish etc? It would help greatly to understand your load which is why I am asking. Also, what is your salinity and are you measuring with a hydrometer or a properly calibrated refractometer? I ask because it sounds like you either have very low load in terms of fish or really low salinity. The symptoms are that of an oversized skimmer for the display size or load. Without enough dissolved organics, a skimmer can't make a proper consistent foam head and would have to be adjusted really wet to produce consistently. The larger the skimmer, the more dissolved organics needed for the skimmer to be consistent. As such, please tell me more about your tank and the answers to the above questions may shed some light.

Your pump level is higher than I would normally recommend for that skimmer and you are running at a higher depth that I would normally suggest for a reasonably stocked tank. Normally I would suggest around 20-22cm and a pump speed of around 27-30 watts. The lower wattage will decrease the bubble size which makes better foam and will increase the contact time. Both of which are important for best skimmer performance but the depth is kind of a variable that depends on other factors. A lighter load will necessitate a higher sump level. The heavier the load necessitates a lower sump level. Your skim is wet in part because of the high pump speed and high water level. Less is more sometimes and in this case, the smaller bubbles coupled with the increased contact time will produce better results. In your case, these changes will lower the foam level in your skimmer so you will need to make futher adjustments to raise the foam level in the skimmer. I would suggest dropping the wattage to 30 watts and closing the wedge pipe to raise the level of foam in your skimmer. That or raise the sump level even more so that your skimmer is in 25cm of water. Even so, with the lower pump speed, you are more than likely going to need to close the wedge pipe a bit even if you raise your sump level another cm.

Edit:
It seems about a year ago you and I corresponded on the forum about skimmers. We were originally talking about the double cone 200 until you indicated that the display size was 125g and the total system volume was 180 or so gallons at which point I said that made a difference and suggested the double cone 180.. I also explained that you don't want to oversize these skimmers. What prompted you to do with the DC200?? Hopefully you got a bigger tank because the double cone 200 is too large for a 125 gallon display which would explain why the skimmer is running inconsistently and your need to adjust it really wet to keep it producing. See my post below because if my hunch is correct, than that changes things a bit.

From our previous conversation in this thread:
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/sh....php?t=2462653



If the above is correct and your display is 125, I would suggest lowering the pump speed down to 28 watts. Raise your sump level to around 25cm.. You might need to go deeper. The idea is to use the lower wattage to create drier foam and use the sump level to raise the foam level so that the water transitions to foam just above the white collar where the collection cups neck threads onto the skimmer body. You want to use the sump level to raise it up with the wedge pipe wide open or close to it. That way you can use the wedge pipe to fine tune it from there. You ideally don't want to close the wedge pipe more than 50% at your final setting. The lower pump speed will create better foam for removing the dissolved organics. The higher sump level will get the foam up into the neck.If you can't raise the sump level more or lower the skimmer deeper into the water, then use the wedge pipe to get the water to foam transition up into the neck. It will take several hours or more to settle in so make the adjustment and give it some time. I would suggest removing the collection cup drain plug so it can drain back into the sump if the skimmer overflows since you will be making a major change in settings.

Hi slief

You correct that was me before and my system and display size has stayed the same.

You recommended the 180 but jeremy b said to go for 200.

He said as coral mass increased it would increase bio load etc. And the 200 would be better suited in the long run.

So 1 year later with bigger corals here I am.

Reef runs at s.g of 1.025 with a refractometer.

Fish load
1 medium achilles tang
1 small kole tang
1 small convict tang
1 medium bkueface angel
1 royal gramma
1 flame angel
1 longnose butteffly
2 clownfish
2 emporer cardinals
3 green chromis
3 bicolour chromis
3 medium wrasse

Thanks

Corals don't really contribute to the load much unless you feed them a lot where as fish do because they eat and poop. You have a decent fish load but the skimmer is a bit oversized. I would reduce the pump speed as I suggested above. Try 28 watts. That will reduce the bubble size and increase the contact time which will create better foam. Then increase the water level in the sump to raise the level inside the skimmer. Start by raising the water level 1/4" and see where that gets you. From there, you can try to use the wedge pipe to raise it further but try not to go past 1/2 closed. If you need to go past 1/2 closed then raise the water level in the sump further. You want the water to transition to foam inside the neck. I would aim for the transition point to be about 1/4" an inch above the point were the neck attaches to the body. That would be your starting point with a moderately light load for this skimmer. You may have to go higher but I would start there.

Thanks for the help slief

Im a little disappointed I was advised by both jeremy and royal exclusiv to go for the 200. Have I bought a very expensive paperweight?

I will try the setting you have suggested.

So to clarify the lower the wattage the smaller the bubbles (better) but less water is processed (bad) so its a case of balancing the 2. Is that right?

I didn't want to make a whole thread about this, so I hope it's somewhat relevant to this one day...

I cleaned out my skimmer today and I noticed three of my impeller teeth were broken off. I then remembered a while back I had a snail slipped in and got caught in the intake, but took it out. It was probably this instance that broke it.

Anyways, I was wondering if there was any kind of snail guard available that could prevent this.

Thanks in advance!

No.. You didn't buy an expensive paper weight. You have a very good skimmer. You will just need to tune it a bit wetter. As for less water being processed, that is counter intuitive. It's not about how much water is processed but instead about how much dissolved organics is removed as the water passes through the skimmer. As such, the faster water passes through the skimmer often results in less organics being removed. The color and smell of your skimmate is the tell tale indicator of how well the skimmer is working.

Snails and hermits will do that. They are working on some titanium inlet protectors but those are primarily for the flow pumps right now though there're may be something for the skimmer pumps coming as well. Snails in the sump are one of the reasons why I like my filter socks. One thing you could do is create a small acrylic box with lots of little slots in it and a hole at one end for the volute to slip into. I've often though of making something like that myself but in my case, the socks prevent that for the most part. With the Red Dragon 1 pumps that have the adjustable volute, something like that would be a bit of a pain if you needed to adjust the volute but for the RD3's, it certainly could work well.

Thanks. My sump etiquette was pretty poor, but I am now dedicated to keeping a filter sock, so maybe that'll minimize this. I have to shamefully admit that I didn't clean the RD3 for two years since I've had it running and it ran like a champ for that entire time.

Disassembly was a breeze and I got a load of the giant impeller and titanium shaft that makes this skimmer tick. It was quite impressive to say the least. These things are built solid! Wish I would have taken a picture!

It does have a pretty massive impeller and magnet doesn't it? I'd swear, the impeller alone weighs more than a complete comparable Chinese DC pump. :lolspin:

That massive motor and impeller make it a much more powerful motor in terms of what will ultimately stop it as well as how much abuse it will take.

One week of running http://i333.photobucket.com/albums/m...FEAEACA76.mp4]http://i333.photobucket.com/albums/m...9FEAEACA76.jpg

How's this look?!

Corey

Looks pretty good. Maybe a little on the wet side but it's hard to tell from pics and video. How long did it take to fill that much of the cup? How dark and smelly is the skim? What's the current pump setting? 27w?

It's been running since Sunday. I haven't touched it for 3 days. Yes it is a bit on the wet side, the pump is on 27 and it is dark rich color of coffee. Stinks, but I think it can get nastier.

Corey

Open the wedge pipe a tiny tiny bit. Just a crack is all it should take. That will help make it darker and stinkier but it will slow the skim collection down until you get a heavier load.

Open it a bit. To lower water level a tad. My new fish should be ready Tuesday, I have 10 coming in. That will put me at 31 fish total. I dose vinegar and vodka as well to help my nitrate issue I have been having. It's been a week and I am already pleased with the results I'm getting, can't wait to reach its potential.

Corey

I ordered the BK 200 double cone with RD3 and I am waiting for it!!
Any suggestion how to run it and break it in, in a new tank that hasn't been cycled yet and therefore has no NO3?
And any links or suggestions on how to properly cycle a potential sps reef aquarium?
Thanks!

As for breaking in the new skimmer, you really don't need it during the cycle and it can be counter productive. If you decide to run it during break in, set it to around 27 watts and remove the drain plug and let the collection cup drip back into the sump until you get through the cycle and have some fish in the tank. As for cycling the tank, I'd toss a piece of raw shrimp in it and let that start your cycle. The tank will take around 30 days to complete the cycle. If you are starting with live rock, that usually helps with seeding the tank with a wide range of bacteria which can help shorten the cycle.

Scott, I opened it a bit and got nothing in cup. So I closed it a bit today to see how it goes for the next few hours. I added 10 more fish to the tank today and upped my vodka/vinegar dosing to 4/10ml of each. Not a lot but an increase. Hopefully tomorrow we will see some sludge in there, if not I'll close it a very small amount again. Any other pointers?

Corey

No pointers to add. The additional fish and feeding will add dissolved organics to your water which will increase your foam production. As such, the lower level in the skimmer may be needed but go back to what was working before you backed it off and see how it does after a couple days. I would expect an increase in skimmate so you will likely need to fine tune a bit more.

as the vodka/vinegar mixture kicks in, should any adjustments be made for that. I see most people dosing this prefer to skim wetter by choice. I shouldn't have to change anything, maybe just expect nastier stinkier skim maybe?

Corey

You will have to make your adjustments based on the skimmate production. Personally, I've never had to dose vodka or any other carbon sources but I would adjust my skimmer no differently if I was. I'd adjust my skimmer to produce the best quality foam that the results in the best consistent skimmate and personally, I've always preferred to skim wet as that always results in the most consistent results.

Okay. When you say wet, you mean a bit drier than I have been and showed in the pictures above? It's been about a week and half so it's probably broken in or close to it. So now it's just dialing it in I assume

Corey