Octopus Skimmer Mods

[JCTewks]

Kroe: what size ID air line ar you using? i'v been wondering if there are any benefits to stepping up to 3/8"ID air line for the venturi.

[reefez]

Seems to me like too much modding needs to be done to these skimmers to perform well. I'm takeing off the gutter guard and putting on mesh pad that I got from the Home Depot. I am also going to boar out the valute, and the intake a bit. I guess I might as well re-do the venturi too. Shoot how about I just re-design the entire thing? Oh wait a minute. That's what I'm doing.
I can not for the life of me get this thing to skim dry. Is that because their is not enough air getting into the skimmer? If these mods don't work I'm putting it up for sale and getting a H&S or Euroreef. I'm just worried if I do all the modding that I will be getting too much air-water, and won't be able to go back.

[reefez]

Also I allready have the 3000 so it is a recirc that basically just skims wet out of the box. Someone tell me I diden't just blow 400.00 on a junk skimmer. I have read through this thread, and have done the gg mod. Should I drill out the venturi and glue the r/o tubeing in? I mean it's the same diamater hose that's on their right now so what good is that? Just because you are eliminateing the 90 degree elbow?

[reefez]

My Turbofloater Multi was pulling more gunk then this thing has.

[nebraskareef]

Reefez, just last page you were praising this thing for how great it was, and now you bash it?

My octopus took upwards of 2 weeks before it became stable, another couple of weeks before it was really performing.

Stop tweaking and let it run for awhile, it's easy to get discouraged.

[kroe]

JCTwerks: I am using 3/8" ID airline - not sure if it made a difference over the 1/4" since I made lots of other changes at the same time.

[hounddog01]

Originally posted by nebraskareef
Reefez, just last page you were praising this thing for how great it was, and now you bash it?

My octopus took upwards of 2 weeks before it became stable, another couple of weeks before it was really performing.

Stop tweaking and let it run for awhile, it's easy to get discouraged.

I agree, my skimmer performed ok after all the mods, now it ROCKS. It has been installed for 3 months and I can pull from black to light green. Just depends on what I want. I do not have the recirc but that should be even better.

Have paitents like every other aspect of reefing!

[impur]

Same, it took a few months to really start ripping. I just cleaned mine for the first time and now i can't even have the black outlet riser on the thing or the foam fills the cup in a few min! I'm getting a full collection cup of brown skimmate(not black as i like to run it semi-wet) a week on a lightly stocked 75gal

Keep these skimmer clean for peak performance!

[generalee]

For the gate valve mod, can I use a 3/4 inch gate valve instead of a 1"? I have 2 3/4 inch gv's hanging around and would like to put them to use for something other than collecting dust. If not I'll p/u a 1" Any ideas?

[hounddog01]

I believe you need a 1.5 inch gate valve. I just bought stuff from menards to do mine. Got a slip fitting and use pvc for the rest. Not as quick and easy as a gate valve but once it is adjusted your done.

[generalee]

Thanks for the response. I'll p/u a 1.5 valve tomorrow during lunch.

[reefez]

Reefez, just last page you were praising this thing for how great it was, and now you bash it?

Have paitents like every other aspect of reefing!

I agree, my skimmer performed ok after all the mods, now it ROCKS. It has been installed for 3 months and I can pull from black to light green. Just depends on what I want. I do not have the recirc but that should be even better

Ya I am usually a patient person but after almost a week I just think it should break in faster. And I have performed a couple mods on it thus far. I'm just haveing a really hard time getting a dry dark foam out of it like I was on my Turbofloater. Not trying to bash it. I think it is a fine skimmer for the money. It should have all the kinks worked out so it's ready to go out of the box minus the normal break in period.
I am going to ream out the Valute and input a bit tomorrow, and drill through the venturi and epoxy r/o line in there to eliminate the 90 degree elbow, and also take off the gutter guard and put on mesh instead. After that I will leave it alone and keep my pie hole closed untill I am proved wrong. I know this skimmer will Rip! I just need to be more patient. It has been 5 days though. But as the old addage says. "Nothing good ever happens fast in this hobby"

[Kurt03]

guess i should share my pics
meshed nw200 on a 150 thats not all the way setup. Around 100lbs rock so far and one fish.






Sounded like some people were beginning to think these skimmers cant pull anything, guess thats good though. Means when i go to buy another one they will still be cheap compared to others

[kroe]

reefez: If you want to mod it you need patience. You don't need to mod it to get it to blow away skimmers that cost about the same, it will do that out of the box. You mod it to make it hang with/blow away $1000 skimmers. If you are going to mod it each thing you change will require a couple iterations. Personally I made some venturi mods that actually hurt performance. Without a kill-a-watt and air meter I wouldn't have known. Now I have my nw-200 pulling 43 scfh. Including all my diy supplies used in the final setup and botched, the kill-a-watt, air meter and the skimmer itself I am at around $300 and am confident that my skimmer can hang with the big boys.

[JCTewks]

Originally posted by kroe
reefez: If you want to mod it you need patience. You don't need to mod it to get it to blow away skimmers that cost about the same, it will do that out of the box. You mod it to make it hang with/blow away $1000 skimmers. If you are going to mod it each thing you change will require a couple iterations. Personally I made some venturi mods that actually hurt performance. Without a kill-a-watt and air meter I wouldn't have known. Now I have my nw-200 pulling 43 scfh. Including all my diy supplies used in the final setup and botched, the kill-a-watt, air meter and the skimmer itself I am at around $300 and am confident that my skimmer can hang with the big boys.

Well Put Kroe...i feel that if you aren't going to have fun messing with stuff, just go ahead and buy the pricey stuff and be done with it. For me the best thing about DIYing stuff is the fun and mental challenge of doing it. Most of us have day jobs that just don't stimulate us enough....to have something else to wrap your mind around is all part of this hobby we are all NUTS over.

[kroe]

Kurt: you should get a biohazard sticker to put on that collection cup, that skimmate is nasty!

[reefez]

Well Put Kroe...i feel that if you aren't going to have fun messing with stuff, just go ahead and buy the pricey stuff and be done with it. For me the best thing about DIYing stuff is the fun and mental challenge of doing it. Most of us have day jobs that just don't stimulate us enough....to have something else to wrap your mind around is all part of this hobby we are all NUTS over.

reefez: If you want to mod it you need patience. You don't need to mod it to get it to blow away skimmers that cost about the same, it will do that out of the box. You mod it to make it hang with/blow away $1000 skimmers. If you are going to mod it each thing you change will require a couple iterations. Personally I made some venturi mods that actually hurt performance. Without a kill-a-watt and air meter I wouldn't have known. Now I have my nw-200 pulling 43 scfh. Including all my diy supplies used in the final setup and botched, the kill-a-watt, air meter and the skimmer itself I am at around $300 and am confident that my skimmer can hang with the big boys.

That is why I took a gamble and bought the 3000. Because I like modding things and makeing them perform to their potential. I did get a bit discouraged at first because I did the gutter guard mod when I first got it before I even gave it a vinegar bath and also reamed out the venturi a little bit. All I got in a week was really wet light green skimmate. But after reading and re-reading this thread I decided to take it a bit further. So after my additional mods that I did earlier this evening here is my take on the Octopus 3000.

1) Don't even bother with the gutter guard. Get the mesh! I found mine at the Home Depot. It is the blue 3M brand industrial strength scour pad. After removeing the gutter guard and putting on a 1/4 in. thick piece of this material it is a night and day difference. It pulls WAY More air now! I am going to be getting a meter soon. It sounds like a jet engine starveing for more fuel!
2) Don't waste time wondering if you should drill out the venturi. Snap that plastic nipple right off and drill it through with a 1/4in. bit. run your clear flex hose, or R/O Tube in the hole after cutting the tip at a angle to make it sharp just like many others in this thread. Stick the sharp end in so it is in the pipe. epoxy or super glue it well. If you turn your skimmer off or loose power it will leak if it is not sealed well.
3) Use a 5/8 in. spade and ream out the intake that the venturi is in. You actullay do this first before glueing in the venturi.
4) Also use a sanding drum attached to a drill or dremill tool and smooth out the edges of the valute.

I have done all of these mods this evening in under an hour while watching Survivor After it was all done I re-attached the pump to the skimmer and crossed my fingers.
Within 5min. of starting it back up I new it was good! Better then good! The differnce is 10 fold. I don't need a schm meter or whatever it is called to know I am getting mass air and more flow through the pump with H2o.
The bubble colum is now very stable and easily adjustable for dry or wet skim. I mean I just got finished modding it 3-4 hrs ago and am now watching a very nice dark and dry foam boiling over the neck. Sorry no pics or lpm of air like all the others but I basically just followed all the info and pics on this thread.
In my personal opnion these mods are not an option. They must be done to make it do what it needs to do. Without any mods on the Octopus 3000 all you have is a well built sub standard performing skimmer.
But with the mesh, and the venturi you have a skimmer that will keep pace with the 600.00 to 900.00 dollar skimmers.

[hounddog01]

Originally posted by reefez
That is why I took a gamble and bought the 3000. Because I like modding things and makeing them perform to their potential. I did get a bit discouraged at first because I did the gutter guard mod when I first got it before I even gave it a vinegar bath and also reamed out the venturi a little bit. All I got in a week was really wet light green skimmate. But after reading and re-reading this thread I decided to take it a bit further. So after my additional mods that I did earlier this evening here is my take on the Octopus 3000.

1) Don't even bother with the gutter guard. Get the mesh! I found mine at the Home Depot. It is the blue 3M brand industrial strength scour pad. After removeing the gutter guard and putting on a 1/4 in. thick piece of this material it is a night and day difference. It pulls WAY More air now! I am going to be getting a meter soon. It sounds like a jet engine starveing for more fuel!
2) Don't waste time wondering if you should drill out the venturi. Snap that plastic nipple right off and drill it through with a 1/4in. bit. run your clear flex hose, or R/O Tube in the hole after cutting the tip at a angle to make it sharp just like many others in this thread. Stick the sharp end in so it is in the pipe. epoxy or super glue it well. If you turn your skimmer off or loose power it will leak if it is not sealed well.
3) Use a 5/8 in. spade and ream out the intake that the venturi is in. You actullay do this first before glueing in the venturi.
4) Also use a sanding drum attached to a drill or dremill tool and smooth out the edges of the valute.

I have done all of these mods this evening in under an hour while watching Survivor After it was all done I re-attached the pump to the skimmer and crossed my fingers.
Within 5min. of starting it back up I new it was good! Better then good! The differnce is 10 fold. I don't need a schm meter or whatever it is called to know I am getting mass air and more flow through the pump with H2o.
The bubble colum is now very stable and easily adjustable for dry or wet skim. I mean I just got finished modding it 3-4 hrs ago and am now watching a very nice dark and dry foam boiling over the neck. Sorry no pics or lpm of air like all the others but I basically just followed all the info and pics on this thread.
In my personal opnion these mods are not an option. They must be done to make it do what it needs to do. Without any mods on the Octopus 3000 all you have is a well built sub standard performing skimmer.
But with the mesh, and the venturi you have a skimmer that will keep pace with the 600.00 to 900.00 dollar skimmers.

Glad you finaly came around! Just think in another month it will be even better.

[hounddog01]

Originally posted by reefez
That is why I took a gamble and bought the 3000. Because I like modding things and makeing them perform to their potential. I did get a bit discouraged at first because I did the gutter guard mod when I first got it before I even gave it a vinegar bath and also reamed out the venturi a little bit. All I got in a week was really wet light green skimmate. But after reading and re-reading this thread I decided to take it a bit further. So after my additional mods that I did earlier this evening here is my take on the Octopus 3000.

1) Don't even bother with the gutter guard. Get the mesh! I found mine at the Home Depot. It is the blue 3M brand industrial strength scour pad. After removeing the gutter guard and putting on a 1/4 in. thick piece of this material it is a night and day difference. It pulls WAY More air now! I am going to be getting a meter soon. It sounds like a jet engine starveing for more fuel!
2) Don't waste time wondering if you should drill out the venturi. Snap that plastic nipple right off and drill it through with a 1/4in. bit. run your clear flex hose, or R/O Tube in the hole after cutting the tip at a angle to make it sharp just like many others in this thread. Stick the sharp end in so it is in the pipe. epoxy or super glue it well. If you turn your skimmer off or loose power it will leak if it is not sealed well.
3) Use a 5/8 in. spade and ream out the intake that the venturi is in. You actullay do this first before glueing in the venturi.
4) Also use a sanding drum attached to a drill or dremill tool and smooth out the edges of the valute.

I have done all of these mods this evening in under an hour while watching Survivor After it was all done I re-attached the pump to the skimmer and crossed my fingers.
Within 5min. of starting it back up I new it was good! Better then good! The differnce is 10 fold. I don't need a schm meter or whatever it is called to know I am getting mass air and more flow through the pump with H2o.
The bubble colum is now very stable and easily adjustable for dry or wet skim. I mean I just got finished modding it 3-4 hrs ago and am now watching a very nice dark and dry foam boiling over the neck. Sorry no pics or lpm of air like all the others but I basically just followed all the info and pics on this thread.
In my personal opnion these mods are not an option. They must be done to make it do what it needs to do. Without any mods on the Octopus 3000 all you have is a well built sub standard performing skimmer.
But with the mesh, and the venturi you have a skimmer that will keep pace with the 600.00 to 900.00 dollar skimmers.

Glad you finaly came arround! Just think in another month it will be even better.

[ppurcell]

Now I have my nw-200 pulling 43 scfh.

Smokes, I don't think my G4+ neck could handle that much air. My water line is 3" below the neck as it is with 31 scfh.

[Kurt03]

Originally posted by kroe
Kurt: you should get a biohazard sticker to put on that collection cup, that skimmate is nasty!

Thanks, i still need to mode my air intake to use RODI tubing and it should pull a bit more air I cant wait to see what it pulls once i get some tangs in there

Originally posted by kroe
reefez: Now I have my nw-200 pulling 43 scfh.

Impressive, what all have you done?

[reefez]

Well in 24 hrs since the mods it has pulled out almost 2 cups of dark scum.

[Mr Bojangles]

SO. Has anyone thought of DIY'ing a wet neck yet? I have been wanting to but time is bad now.

I am thinking of a tight clear tubing around the neck to make a seal and small holes to let the water flow threw and over flow into the neck.

either that or find a plastic cup and make another cut to slip over the neck

[JCTewks]

there is a thread around about wetnecks...it says you want a sheet of water flowing continously into the neck.

___ ___
l l
l l l l
l l l l
l l l l
l l l l
l l l l


Like this...with water flowing in from the bottom to fill the space between the 2 tubes...then rising and overflowing into the neck in a thin sheet all around.

[kroe]

Here's a thread with my modded NW-200 pulling 45 scfh (pics included): http://reefcentral.com/forums/showth...eadid=1109423.

I posted it as a different thread since this one is easy to get lost in.

-Ken