lifereef skimmer

[alebrun]

I'v had my lifereef skimmer for along time now. i recently put a new mag 9.5 pump on it because my old one bit the big one. i have my gate valve all the all open, but my skimmer keeps producing very , very wet skimmate. almost to the point that the clollection cup fills up with water. I'm not sure why this is happening. I cant close off the gate vale because the collection cup will just fill up faster. Any input would be greatly appriciated....

[d2mini]

Where is your water level in the body of the skimmer?
Typically it should be just below the flange.
If you are skimming too wet, you need to lower it by closing down the gate valve a bit.

[alebrun]

The water level is just below the neck. If I close off the gate valve some, I'm going to have water pour into my collection cup.

[d2mini]

oh right right right... i was thinking the opposite.

That is strange that the same pump is making it go nuts.
Are you sure there are no obstructions?
Maybe give the whole thing a vinegar bath/good cleaning?

[Nanook]

Have you removed the Venturi to check for clogging? Is the skimmer in the sumo or external? When it is turned off, where is the water level in the body of the skimmer?

[Nanook]

Pictures might help too.

[alebrun]

Havent checked the venturi yet for clogging. Thats my next move. When the skimmer is turned off the wtaer level goes all the way down, like half way down the body of the skimmer.. i'm going to take the venturi off this eve and rinse it out with hot water..

[alebrun]

The skimmer is a in sump skimmer

[Nanook]

Make sure there aren't snail shells or debris in the Venturi. Might try turning the gate valve open and closed a few times with the skimmer off.

[AZRippster]

If you are skimming too wet, you need to lower it by closing down the gate valve a bit.

Actually, as I'm sure it was intended, if skimming too wet, open the gate valve lowering the water level. If skimming too dry, close the gate valve, raising the water level.

[alebrun]

I cleaned the venture. The gate valve is all the way open..

[Nanook]

Originally Posted by alebrun

I cleaned the venture. The gate valve is all the way open..

Results?

[rknappjr]

My setup has a ball valve right after the input pump so I can regulate the input water flow. My setup is external so this may be harder for you if your setup is in sump.

Probably the brand new pump is moving just enough more water flow to make the skimmate to wet. If the output gate valve is all the way open then you must slow down the input water flow. So you need another valve on the input side to do this.

[d2mini]

Originally Posted by rknappjr

My setup has a ball valve right after the input pump so I can regulate the input water flow. My setup is external so this may be harder for you if your setup is in sump.

Probably the brand new pump is moving just enough more water flow to make the skimmate to wet. If the output gate valve is all the way open then you must slow down the input water flow. So you need another valve on the input side to do this.

He didn't mention which skimmer but I'm assuming the 24", in which case this shouldn't be necessary. He could run a mag 12 with no problem.
Something has to be clogged or maybe there were some oils or something in the new pump causing the skimmer to freak out? This is why I think the whole thing needs a good break down, cleaning and a vinegar bath. Just to rule that stuff out.

[alebrun]

I'm at a loss here.. My life reef 24 skimmer is going nuts.. I emailed jeff for some input as to what to do.. The water lever in the skimmer is over flowing into my collection cup..

[rknappjr]

Talking direct to Jeff is a good idea.

I got my 24 about 15 years ago and at the time he was using Little Giant 2-MDQX pumps and I am pretty sure it came with both the input ball valve and output gate valve. For some reason I could not generate enough foam from my tank water.

After a month or two I upsized the pump after talking with Jeff to the 3-MDQX at that time (it's replaced with a Pan World pump now) and used the ball valve to tune the flow rate. The ball valve has allowed me over the years to tune the flow as and when required to handle these type issues.

Yes water conditions can effect how the skimmer reacts on both directions (too much foam / no foam) Sometimes I do some maintenance that stirs things up and the skimmer goes nuts. I use the valve to dial things down a bit for 12-24 hours so I don't drain water via the skimmer then open it back up.

The ball valve is my coarse adjustment, the gate valve the fine tune. It's a very convenient extra level of control and once I set them I rarely ever touch them during normal operations.

If there is a clog, to cause this type of condition it would need to be on the output side. Too wet skimmate is water too high / fast in the skimmer for current water conditions. High, if it's not flow too fast, could be caused by an output side clog so you want to make sure you don't have that issue. I did have an old gate valve fail once and not open all the way.

Once you verify that is not your issue then if you have room for the input ball valve for $7 you can fix the problem and move on to something more fun.

Be curious if Jeff has any other ideas. Let us know how you make out.

[alebrun]

I emailed jeff, He said i would have to put a ball valve on the input side, but he has never had to do this on his skimmers. He wanted to know if i introduced anything into the water, and I told him know. The mag 9.5 that I bought said on the box that it was a pond pump. the associates at the store assured me that I can use it for saltwater. I'v never had this happen before. My skimmer is going nuts. All I can say is, that its a good thing that the air intake is connected to the collection cup. I cant see a danner 9.5 pond pump being any differant that one used for salt. They both look exactly the same..

[Nanook]

The pump is fine.

[d2mini]

Originally Posted by alebrun

I emailed jeff, He said i would have to put a ball valve on the input side, but he has never had to do this on his skimmers. He wanted to know if i introduced anything into the water, and I told him know. The mag 9.5 that I bought said on the box that it was a pond pump. the associates at the store assured me that I can use it for saltwater. I'v never had this happen before. My skimmer is going nuts. All I can say is, that its a good thing that the air intake is connected to the collection cup. I cant see a danner 9.5 pond pump being any differant that one used for salt. They both look exactly the same..

Still some unanswered questions in this thread that might help us help you.

1) What size skimmer?
2) What pump were you running before?
3) Did you do a full break down, cleaning/vinegar bath to remove any impurities and/or obstructions?

[alebrun]

the skimmer is rated for 250 gallons. The pump I used before was a mag 9.5, same size pump.. I didnt do a breakdown at all. I did soak on of my tunze pumps last saterday in vinager, but my skimmer was acting nuts before that... I'm hoping it will just line itself out.

[d2mini]

Originally Posted by alebrun

I didnt do a breakdown at all. I did soak on of my tunze pumps last saterday in vinager, but my skimmer was acting nuts before that... I'm hoping it will just line itself out.

I don't think you are understanding... I'm saying you should break down the skimmer and do a thorough cleaning to make sure there is nothing in it, or the pump that it causing your issue. A little residual vinegar in the system shouldn't do anything. People dose vinegar on a daily basis.
As stated above, impurities in the water can go either way, making it not skim at all or over skim. But it's worth a shot so you can at least rule it out. This is something you should do on an annual basis anyway, if not every 6 months.

Since this is the same pump you were using earlier, I don't think it has anything to do with the pump itself, unless it has some oils or something from the manufacturing process.