mrc 4 skimmer help

[erics3000]

I am finally hooking up my skimmer and have a few questions. It is a MRC MR4 with a riser and 2 beckets. The pump is a marlin. When I purchased it used it had a 45 glued tot the ball valve facing up. i have heard that the drain should be able to drain straight and just controllable with gate valve. Any way i hooked it up and notice it will run for a while and thena the water level will get real high and over flow? I have a few questions?

Where should the water level be at?

Is that u a issue? I might need to change it and buy a new gate valve and bulk head because it has a little leak at the bulk head. That might be a big issue too?

When I raise the water level if it goes pass the valve for the injectors ofcoarse it leaks all over? Do you guys put hoses onthem or do I have some other issues?

if I have to change the bulk head and put a new gate valve should I do the recirc mod?

I would liek to put he skimmer on a timer has anyone done that?

I would like to get it working with the riser but is ther a reason why I should remove the top riser?


here are some pics of the skimmer and it s current place. Thanks again for any input. I will take some more pics tomorrow and post them...

[gkyle]

I have the MRC MR-4R, modded with an extra chamber. My Beckett's are in the original position, down close to the box. I use an Iwaki pump at about 1,000gph as a feed pump and a hammerhead as the recirc pump that feeds the Becketts. Before adding the extension, I didn't pay much attention to the actual water level as it churns so much it all looks like bubbles to me. I kept the top of the bubble/water column within an inch or two of the top, and had a medium brown colored skimmate. At that time I could turn it off and not have the water back up through the air intakes at all. Now, with the extension, I still run the bubble column near the top, which is substantially higher than the Becketts. When I turn it off now I do get some water (not much) that spills out of the air intakes. I used to control it with a Neptune so that it was off for three hours after a coral feed cycle, but now it runs all the time since I'm also pumping ozone through it. To correct the spilling problem and add more oxygen to the system, I've modified the air intakes with pvc connections and 3/4" clear hose that then mounts above to a hose barb that leads outdoors (basement window). This fixes the spillage plus adds fresh air to the skimmer.

When running the level this close to the top, it's fairly easy to tweak it to the point where it will pump out too much and overflow the cup. I bought the MRC waste collector and it will actually shut the bubble production down once the receptacle is full, thereby saving you from a big spill and an empty tank.

Your skimmer looks modded to me as well, I think you also have the extension chamber, plus your Becketts have been raised from the original position. The Beckett position might be a difference betwen the recirc model and yours, I don't know. The output from the gate valve should point downwards, not up. Mine goes horizontal for 12" to clear and obstacle, then down to a 90" elbow which dumps it just below the surface, and away from the input to the return pump (to minimize bubbles).

The recirc mod will certainly improve the efficiency of the skimmer, and really only requires some PVC magic and an extra pump to feed the skimmer. I run mine on a 220 (total) system and it's definitely big enough. For what it's worth, my ORP reading jumped by 100 when replacing my Euro-Reef skimmer, and another 100 when I added the extension. I now run close to 400 ORP with the ozone turned off.

[erics3000]

maybe after i change the bulkhead and gatevalve and test if i am not happy i can try to lower the injectors. I am going to run some hose up from the injectors.

Since you have 2 pumps does that mean you have th recirc mod, or is the skimmer way from your sump. I have my skimmer pump feed right from over flow water in the 1st sump i have.

Do you have any pics of your setup?

Thanks for all the info..

[gkyle]

I do have the recirc model from MRC - that's the MR-4R. I don't have a pic of the new setup, but I'll post one today. The recirc model has a separate bulkhead on top of the box for the skimmer feed water, then a large (1.5" on mine) bulkhead lower in the box for the input to the Hammerhead pump, which then feeds its output into the tee for the Becketts.

[gkyle]

erics3000: Here are some photos of my skimmer setup. My ozone unit keeps melting the ozone input, so that's why you see the black tape on the Beckett. Hope this helps.

[erics3000]

1st let me thank you for all your help and time. I appreciate it. That is one of my favorite things about this hobby. Everyone is so helpful and pretty damm cool.

Now let me give you the full run down of my scenario. I have a 300 display with a 2-3 inch's of sand and some live rock 3 400watt MH. A few fish and a couple frags. This tank drains to my garage to a 20 gallon tank has some filter floss in it. (NEW JUST ADDED Might CANGE It IF I CANT GET THE SKIMMER WORKING CORRECTLY) The reason I did this is my overflow water that was draining into my fuge for the last year filled up with a lot of deitris. So I figured it is easier to vacuum a separate tank out first than my fuge with all the rock. The 20 also has a bulk head that feeds the marlin pump that goes to the skimmer. The skimmer out put goes to my 150 fuge. Well from there the 20 drains to my 150 fuge what ever water the skimmer doesn’t take. My 150 Fuge has a plenum and 6 deep sand bed. It has some live rock and base rock that I have been adding slowly. I am now just adding base rock here and there. I have a little flood light 24/7 and some pc with attic that come on opposite my display tank Metal halides. I have some cheato and just add 2 more type of macro algae. The pod population is going great. Sometimes I add some phyto for the pods. Now from my 150 fuge it drains to a 150 rubber maid tank I use as a sump. This is where all my reactors will be draining. I also keep my heaters in there. Then my water gets pumped with a dart to a OM4 back to the display. In the future I will figure out a calcium and kalk reactor, just use 2 part for now. I still have my phosban and sand fluid bed filter to use. Christmas I think I am going to get a nuptune JR or maybe bite the bullet and get the ac3.

For the skimmer I assume you recommend doing the upgrade. Since I already will be taking it all a part to install a new bulk head and gate valve, I might as well knock it out it.
The Marlin pump I am using eats more current than my display pump. I have a pan world pump from a bad calcium reactor that I bought sitting, if needed I might be able to use it. I will check around the web and mr’s site I remember reading about the recirc mod some where? I am always trying to keep my electric in mind. So I was thinking about running the skimmer on a timer to come on from 1 am to 10 am. To try to save some power since I don’t have a heavy bio load yet. But if I need to run it 24 7 so be it.

I have also loved the idea of running ozone. Everywhere I have read about it they say it polishes up the water. I usually only do a water change every month or 2 but have been trying to increase since I want to start adding some corals. I also remember a link on DIY ozone. I am really interested in how you have your setup on your skimmer and what brand you use?

Thanks for the pics..

[erics3000]

Pics are sweet. What do you have in that buckett in your fuge? Is it a DIY zeovit?

I will start with a new bulk head and valve. I am going to also do the same for the vents with pvc and some hose. If I have trouble I will lower the injectors. If that doesn't work then I am going to do the recirc mod with a extra pump. I might move the skimmer over the sump incase if anything spills it goes into the skimmer instead of the floor. I am sure that was a good option for you too. I will also check and see if I can come up with a way yo put a baffle in my sump so my fuge return water goes to my pump and not my skimmer. That would reduce some plumbing and give me a little more space too.

I have a lot going on but will updates soon with the results..thanks again

[gkyle]

Sounds like a nice setup. I've had many versions on my setup, but now I've removed all sand and anything else that collects food. My tank is bare bottom, which allows me to run really strong circulation. You'll notice in the right of the photo that my refugium is now empty, it's just used for the output from the reactors and drains back to the sump. I don't have any livestock that needs pods, so no problem there. I keep the nitrate and phosphate in check with a sulfur-based nitrate reactor and GFO in a reactor. Prior to removing all sand, I had to tear my tank down twice due to serious hair algae and dinoflagellate issues. I don't have a speck of algae now. I also use a dart for my return water, and run it through four 3/4" inlets I drilled that have penductors inside the tank for more flow.

The pump you use for the skimmer is really important, mine didn't perform all that well (watery bubbles instead of thick froth) when I had a Dart feeding the Becketts, but really does a great job with the Hammerhead.

If you do the upgrade to a recirc model and run a strong pump, you should be able to empty your organic matter in a few hours. My skimmer will run for hours with no output, but when I feed the tank it starts to crank and is back to no output maybe 2 hours later. I could shut it off as you suggest, but I like the aeration and the ozone.

The ozone unit made a real difference in the clarity of the water, plus I believe it improves the oxygenation in the tank. It has some potential hazards though, if you run too much or don't have a good mixer (skimmer), some ozone can end up in your tank. Also, it's not healthy for humans either. That's why you see the ducting going outside (drawn by a fan) - makes sure the ozone and the skimmer stink exits the house. I have a really large ozone unit meant for a jacuzzi (500mg/hr), but I don't run the air dryer and I have it turned down to minimum output, plus my Neptune shuts it off on a 30/30 cycle.

[gkyle]

I installed the bucket originally as a bubble trap for the return water. The water exits the bottom through some tubes and does a great job of calming it down. Since then I inserted a structure for a filter sock. I run a 100micron sock at all times, and also have an external pressure filter with a 25-micron cartridge. It's a bit of work, but I'm a bit fanatical about the water clarity. I have several socks and cartridge filters, so I just change them every other day, and power-wash/bleach soak them in between. When I travel I just remove them so my wife doesn't have to mess with it.

Also, the MRC skimmer collection device is the 4.5g model they sell, and it takes me about a week to fill it up, feeding pretty heavily.

[erics3000]

Thanks. That is another ting killing me. I am tired if the fish kicking up sand and it getting blown all over my rocks. I might replace it slowly with some crushed coral. I am not ready yet for BB but they are growing on me.

[gkyle]

I was real hesitant about removing the sand also, but my previous algae problems and the fact that the sand always looked nasty anyway prompted me to do it. Once I did, I was able to add five modded Maxi-jets behind the rocks to keep detritus from building up, and I was also able to open up my four returns fully and flow twice as much water through the sump, which also brought up my pH.

Here's a pic of my tank this morning just after the lights came on. Corals haven't opened up yet, and my setup is fairly new. I have large coralline spots starting to grow on the bottom glass and eventually it will all be purple. Attaching the pic so you can see what a bare bottom tank looks like.

[erics3000]

Wow that looks really sweet. Did you tore your tank down to pull out your sand or do it little by little? That's is what I am really worried about. I have been bouncing around replacing it little y little with the heaviest grain sand or crush coral. I just don't want to make any drastic changes.

Fist I need to spend some time and finish some other things just planning ahead.

Have you seen how people have been doing the faux sand bed. It is resin on top of sand and it looks natural but cant blow around. Just for looks. I am sure it still might get algae but at least no sand storms

[gkyle]

Since our tank isn't all that mature, we were able to move rocks and corals to one end or the other while we scooped out that sand, so we didn't have to tear it down. What we didn't get to, we vacuumed out over the next couple of weeks.