Red Sea Prizm Skimmer Mods

pbukow · 10/18/2007, 03:00 PM

Anybody know of any to help this thing out?

crispyreef · 10/18/2007, 04:07 PM

I read about a mesh mod someone did on one of those a while back. They got good results with it. I had a prizm and just decided to dump it.

Gdubb · 10/18/2007, 05:03 PM

My prism took a dump, looking for a new HOB skimmer now. Good Luck

GobyJohnKenobi · 10/18/2007, 07:28 PM

I had one of the smaller, HOT Prizm Deluxes.

For best performance:

Use the surface skimming basket!! Set it as high as possible without evaporation shutting off the flow before you top off.

Use the Media Basket in the output!! Fill it with carbon ( I found the size and shape of SeaChem Matrix worked best ) or cram it full of Enkamat. This puts a little bit of back pressure on the skimmer and helps to cut down on microbubbles.

Raise the body of the skimmer as high as possible on the frame of the tank!! Put the holding screw in the bottom hole and raise it up until the screw touches the glass right under the inside lip of the frame. Cut a piece of styrofoam to fit under the output ramp and hold the skimmer at that height.

This allows you to set a higher flow without it overflowing or filling the tank with microbubbles.

I've seen a few mods for neck extensions that the users claimed worked well. I just don't see them as being worth all the effort.
I mean, look at the size of the neck on this skimmer! I can barely fit my pinkie finger in it. IMO and E - a fatal flaw for the design.

One of the best things to do for the skimmer is clean the neck every 2-3 days. The severe constriction of the neck causes all of the crud to build up inside the neck and never make it into the cup unless you skim very, very wet. Which I never had good experiences doing with this skimmer.

That being said, I lived with one for a year and a half and my tank and fish were all very healthy ( in 15 gallons ). Can't really say I hated it, nor do I miss it.

BTW - The design also makes it almost impossible to completely clean out the skimmer body. After a year and a half of operation I had sponges and baby snails and all kind of stuff living in the skimmer like it was some kind of refugium.
Okay..that was kinda cool. LOL

brad23 · 10/18/2007, 07:54 PM

Best place for these is the dumpster

GobyJohnKenobi · 10/18/2007, 08:01 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by brad23
Best place for these is the dumpster

Two of the happiest days of my life:

The day I bought my Prizm Deluxe.
And the day I finally chucked it into the dumpster.

GobyJohnKenobi · 10/18/2007, 09:13 PM

AHA!!

I finally found it:

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/sh...readid=1013904

pbukow · 10/19/2007, 06:03 PM

Awesome thread thanks goby for finding that!

10/18/2007, 03:00 PM	#1
pbukow Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Charlotte, NC Posts: 453	Red Sea Prizm Skimmer Mods Anybody know of any to help this thing out? __________________ What do you mean I have to change the water? PBITAWA Every Day

10/18/2007, 07:54 PM	#5
brad23 Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Bloomington IL Posts: 2,959	Best place for these is the dumpster __________________ Ye old English Current Tank Info: 75g reef

10/19/2007, 06:03 PM	#8
pbukow Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Charlotte, NC Posts: 453	Awesome thread thanks goby for finding that! __________________ What do you mean I have to change the water? PBITAWA Every Day

10/18/2007, 04:07 PM	#2
crispyreef Registered Member Join Date: May 2006 Location: North Bay Posts: 1,189	I read about a mesh mod someone did on one of those a while back. They got good results with it. I had a prizm and just decided to dump it.

10/18/2007, 05:03 PM	#3
Gdubb Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Houston Posts: 321	My prism took a dump, looking for a new HOB skimmer now. Good Luck

10/18/2007, 07:28 PM	#4
GobyJohnKenobi Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Atlanta Posts: 413	I had one of the smaller, HOT Prizm Deluxes. For best performance: Use the surface skimming basket!! Set it as high as possible without evaporation shutting off the flow before you top off. Use the Media Basket in the output!! Fill it with carbon ( I found the size and shape of SeaChem Matrix worked best ) or cram it full of Enkamat. This puts a little bit of back pressure on the skimmer and helps to cut down on microbubbles. Raise the body of the skimmer as high as possible on the frame of the tank!! Put the holding screw in the bottom hole and raise it up until the screw touches the glass right under the inside lip of the frame. Cut a piece of styrofoam to fit under the output ramp and hold the skimmer at that height. This allows you to set a higher flow without it overflowing or filling the tank with microbubbles. I've seen a few mods for neck extensions that the users claimed worked well. I just don't see them as being worth all the effort. I mean, look at the size of the neck on this skimmer! I can barely fit my pinkie finger in it. IMO and E - a fatal flaw for the design. One of the best things to do for the skimmer is clean the neck every 2-3 days. The severe constriction of the neck causes all of the crud to build up inside the neck and never make it into the cup unless you skim very, very wet. Which I never had good experiences doing with this skimmer. That being said, I lived with one for a year and a half and my tank and fish were all very healthy ( in 15 gallons ). Can't really say I hated it, nor do I miss it. BTW - The design also makes it almost impossible to completely clean out the skimmer body. After a year and a half of operation I had sponges and baby snails and all kind of stuff living in the skimmer like it was some kind of refugium. Okay..that was kinda cool. LOL

10/18/2007, 09:13 PM	#7
GobyJohnKenobi Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Atlanta Posts: 413	AHA!! I finally found it: http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/sh...readid=1013904