SCA-301 Skimmer Issues

[jayare]

Hello all, setting up a new tank and having some issues with my SCA-301 skimmer. It was producing foam nicely, only issue was microbubbles. I tried raising the skimmer and also did the nozzle mod to try and reduce micro bubbles. This didn't help micro bubbles. The skimmer was working well but has now stopped foaming. The skimmer column is full of larger bubbles. Any idea what would cause this? I don't have any rock in the tank yet, just live sand. Thanks!

[slief]

How long has the skimmer been in the sump for? It takes at least a week for a skimmer to break in during which time microbubbles are to be expected.

[jayare]

Been running for 2-3 weeks. Wondering if the output nozzle mod was a bad idea.

[CafeReef]

You cut the nozzle to the base like this? I did this to cut down on micro bubbles on mine, worked great.

[CafeReef]

How open is the blue pipe?

[CafeReef]

Mine is like this



Microbubbles are minimal, running 7 months

[jayare]

Yes, I did that mod. Just not getting good bubble production. My blue tube is at around 4. Could it be because I have no bioload right now?

[jayare]

What water level are you running in?

[jayare]

Photo

[kzaveri19]

That happened to my 302 once. I found debris stuck in the venturi by the airline. However, this may not be the problem in your case since yours is a recent setup

[homer1475]

Their designed to be run in about 6 - 8 inches of water.

Also you have no bioload(no live rock or fish) so what exactly does the skimmer skim? Nothing at this point, so its more then likely just going to spit bubbles out. You can run it to get it "broke in", get a nice biofilm on it so its ready to go when you do add fish, but at this point it's not going to skim much nutrients out of the water as you have none.

[RobZilla04]

The water level should be roughly one inch above the red disk/mark in the micro bubble chamber.

I haven't done this mod yet. The mod should simply reduce the amount of micro bubbles emitting from the back of the unit.

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/sh....php?t=2605881

[homer1475]

Originally Posted by RobZilla04

I haven't done this mod yet. The mod should simply reduce the amount of micro bubbles emitting from the back of the unit.

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/sh....php?t=2605881

Originally Posted by CafeReef

You cut the nozzle to the base like this? I did this to cut down on micro bubbles on mine, worked great.

Originally Posted by jayare

Yes, I did that mod. Just not getting good bubble production. My blue tube is at around 4. Could it be because I have no bioload right now?

I often wonder if people actually read threads, or just reply to the title?

[jayare]

Yeah I was thinking bioload could be the issue. Just weird because it did foam really nice for a day or two. I'm also battling really cloudy water. It's like a white haze. I thought it was microbubbles or sand being blown around, but it was still cloudy when I shut the skimmer and gyre down for a day. I'm getting this weird clear almost like "slime" on tank walls and equipment. May just need to wait until the rock shows up, hopefully this week.

[CafeReef]

Mine runs in 8 inches of water, no bioload can possibly be your issue, throw some food in the tank see what happens, might give some protein to feed the skimmer

[CafeReef]

Originally Posted by homer1475

I often wonder if people actually read threads, or just reply to the title?

I apologize for trying to help him???

[RobZilla04]

Originally Posted by homer1475

I often wonder if people actually read threads, or just reply to the title?

Yup, read the whole thing. Thanks for only quoting a portion of my response.

Hard to tell from the pix but I believe the water level is lower than the recommended height.

[homer1475]

Wow really?
You posted about cutting the barb fitting when in the seventh post he clearly stated he did.

Here's the quote from your entire post.

Originally Posted by RobZilla04

The water level should be roughly one inch above the red disk/mark in the micro bubble chamber.

I haven't done this mod yet. The mod should simply reduce the amount of micro bubbles emitting from the back of the unit.

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/sh....php?t=2605881

What exactly in the rest of your post that I omitted in my quote has any bearing on what I was talking about?

And Cafereef, you were helping. I only quoted your post to show that the mod was already discussed.

And FYI....

The OP has not posted any photos of water level. The ones with the water level were from Cafereef. Again I stand by my comment of not reading(or maybe its a lack of reading comprehension?) the entire thread before posting.

Really I'm not singling you out for any reason. I'm just starting to see this more and more on these boards and its hella annoying.

[CafeReef]

Originally Posted by homer1475

Wow really?
You posted about cutting the barb fitting when in the seventh post he clearly stated he did.

Here's the quote from your entire post.



What exactly in the rest of your post that I omitted in my quote has any bearing on what I was talking about?

And Cafereef, you were helping. I only quoted your post to show that the mod was already discussed.

And FYI....

The OP has not posted any photos of water level. The ones with the water level were from Cafereef. Again I stand by my comment of not reading(or maybe its a lack of reading comprehension?) the entire thread before posting.

Really I'm not singling you out for any reason. I'm just starting to see this more and more on these boards and its hella annoying.

that's fair, I should have given more context myself. I did read that he is wishing he didn't perform the output mod. But I figured I would post photos of everything I did to mine, rather than assume I understood what he was calling as the "output mod" as the mod I was thinking he did.

[homer1475]

Originally Posted by CafeReef

that's fair, I should have given more context myself. I did read that he is wishing he didn't perform the output mod. But I figured I would post photos of everything I did to mine, rather than assume I understood what he was calling as the "output mod" as the mod I was thinking he did.

It's kind of odd the 301 doesn't come standard like that. The 302 comes stock with fitting cut off, it just has a couple millimeters sticking out into the bubble cup.

I remember researching mods when I got my 302, and reading all these mods then looking at mine not realizing the 302 comes with 99% of the mods people do to the 301 stock.

[jayare]

Appreciate all the help. Just super frustrated right now. I've been out of the saltwater game for some years but never experienced some of the issues I am right now. Just need some rock in the tank!

[CafeReef]

Originally Posted by jayare

Appreciate all the help. Just super frustrated right now. I've been out of the saltwater game for some years but never experienced some of the issues I am right now. Just need some rock in the tank!

do you have lights running on the tank? or are you simply just running water only? you mention no rock in the tank yet so you have not really started cycling yet really. If so, you have no biologics at all and probably why your not getting any skimmate out of your skimmer.

It's a tossup whether or not you run your skimmer during cycle. I have always ran mine simply because I want it broken in by the time I introduce fish. But I haven't seen any definitive evidence that it's wrong to run it or not.

[jayare]

I just started running my light yesterday. Otherwise I just turned them on once in awhile. I am getting my rock from arcreef.com. They tell me this rock will not require much curing since it comes straight out of the ocean. We shall see.

[CafeReef]

Originally Posted by jayare

I just started running my light yesterday. Otherwise I just turned them on once in awhile. I am getting my rock from arcreef.com. They tell me this rock will not require much curing since it comes straight out of the ocean. We shall see.

there will still be die off on the rock. TBS rock, which it's hard to dispute that it's some of the most full of life rock you can buy, even has SOME, minimal but some. your cycle will be short more likely than not.

Not running much for light, and not having any biologics in the tank is why your skimmer is not creating any head/skimmate. once your rock is in and your cycle starts, you will see it settle down.