Broken skimmer

[Daenerys]

Hello,

I have bought a used 20g tank 2 months ago and RemoraC skimmer stopped making any noises and died. I think the pump went out. The snail was sitting on it beforehand while I fed the fish, it was unplugged.
Should I buy the replacement pump? It was very noisy and worked only 14 hr/day -not at night. I was plugging it on&off for feedings and night/day. Did I break it by doing so?

I have bought a used skimmer by AG ,but when I turn it on,it
partially fills with water and then nothing happens. I shut it of b/c I'm afraid to break it. Should I wait until it starts skimming? how long- a few days?

I have about 1/4 of the tank filled with rock, shallow sandbed,
2 small hammerhead corals, a lot of sponges,
2 hermit crabs, 2 tomato clowns, h.erectus,
1 snail, 1 cleaner shrimp,
Fluval 105 filter, 3 powerheads.
I have Fluval 305 that I plan to put in while I don't have the skimmer with the old media yes/no?

I just did 10g WC on Saturday.

I had to buy a running 70g tank (that's where the AG skimmer came from) b/c I feel that 20g is too small for the fish.
I plan to set it up ASAP - I need a bigger car to transport it. It has live sand and and a bit of live rock. Hopefully, by Fri.

Also I have a 90g used tank that I need to clean and fully cycle -
that's where all my critters will go in July if I do it right.
I am not even thinking about adding new fish at the moment (I'd get wrasses), it feels like such a train wreck.

I am a complete novice when it comes to skimmers and I don't have manuals.
There is no model # on AS skimmer.

Another question : could I add a couple of rocks from the 90g that look dead to my tank and the crabs will clean it? Or just leave all the rock for cycling.
It has been sitting in a bucket with a powerhead for 3 weeks... (unlike the rest of the rock that just sits in a Brute can)I had an issue with overflow and couldn't figure it out. Couldn't find anyone to help me either : the LFS guy agreed to help then didn't have the time for 3 weeks. I was going to pay him, I told him I need an hour-two of his time max b/c I cleaned and emptied most of the equipment. He lives less than 5 mi from me. I mostly needed advice on what's wrong and what should I do.

What should I pay for this kind of work?

I am not going back to that LFS ever again. I was there bi-weekly buying RO water and frozen fish food, I told them that I can't buy fish as I don't have space for them yet but working towards it. I even surrendered a 10" Jaguar cichlid & 10" Cowfish that I got in used tanks that I couldn't keep. That was in the last 2 months when I started to go there.

I will drive to the further LFS where I'm not feeling unimportant. Besides, I was told that the 1st LFS has ichy SW fish.
I think I need to look at some videos about how a skimmer should work...

[Crooked Reef]

I have the remora. If the water stopped it is one of two things. Either the pump failed which is more likely it is clogged. If you look down inside of it there is a white plastic screw. Unscrew that and you can clean out the nozzle. This is standard maintenance and should be done monthly. If that is completely clogged the pump may be working but can't pump water through, kind of like your water faucet is always pressurized but until the faucet opens nothing flows. If the pump failed get another one and the remora should work fine. You can also put the pump in water in the sink and plug it in. If it works it will spray water everywhere unless you aim it downward. If you need a new pump go with a maxi jet 1200 or a mag 3.

[Crooked Reef]

You can google the manual for the aqua c remora and download it. If you email the company they will probably send you one. You can more than likely do that for the other one but I have no knowledge of that company. Aqua c has great customer service though.

Another thing about the remora is that I have had mine for about 8 years. I have had to replace the pump once and have had it clog once. It still runs like brand new. The little white screw can strip easily though because of the plastic. It does not need to go far in. Just enough to keep the water from shooting out of the screw hole. The manual even says that some water coming from around the screw is fine. Don't strip it. It is a pain. The lower the collection cup is the wetter the skim mate it will produce. The higher, the dryer. That's what the black I ring around the collection cup is for is to "tune" the skimmer, i.e.ake it produce the skim mate you want. Wipe down the tower in the collection cup inside and out every couple of days otherwise it will not produce as well. Also skimmers don't produce for a few hours after feeding and working in your tank because the oils from your skin and some foods prevent it. I run mine 24/7.

[Daenerys]

I thought I cleaned it on Sun, but I forgot to unscrew the white button.
I did that last month. I need more sleep so my memory will be better

[Crooked Reef]

No problem. One more thing, take apart the powerhead (pump) and clean the magnetic impeller and the cavity it goes in. It may start again when you do and save you some money. That should be done periodically as well. If is a stock pump the bottom should just twist off. It's pretty clear how to take it apart.

[Daenerys]

I broke it when I cleaned it, what an idiot I am...I shoved the brush into it.
And I was wondering where did those purple tab-things came from...
That's the downside to buying used things: I don't assemble them,
so I have no idea what's inside and where it's located. I was afraid to disassemble things that worked well enough.
It was noisy anyway.

so should I get a new pump or just the impeller? It's 2 yo.

I have to get it out of the water again to find the model #, something Marineland M or MI, I can't read in artificial light well.

Another question for another tank: how much water flow I will need for
45g corner tank? it's 25" deep, 2 corner sides 22", 3 sides 13"
I have 2 pumps in there (one 550), not moving enough water.

[Daenerys]

http://www.amazon.com/Marineland-Ml9...=maxi+jet+1200

This maxi Jet?? WHAT GHP should I get? 295???

I saw the purple impeller part on amazon, it's $18, pump is almost the same price.

Saving money...wrong hobby, it all goes to fish (after kids)and I am very frugal, trust me.
But I have acquired a few tanks in a few months somehow...just happened. I didn't plan it this way, I just saw that my fish need better living conditions as they grow.

[Reeferz412]

you can purchase a used MJ1200 for it for dirt cheap. It doesnt use a venturi so the regular utility pump will do fine. Remoras arent the best skimmer out there so if you really want to invest into a nice hob external pump skimmer, look into the Octopus BH100 or 1000. I own an Eshopps PSK 100-H which is also external and works fantastic. Also an HOB skimmer that is set and forget.

[Crooked Reef]

They come stock with the maxi jet 1200. the Mag 3 comes stock with the remora pro but will work on the regular remora. If you are replacing anything I would probably replace the whole pump if its around the same price, plus then you have a full set of instructions.

Hopefully someone else will give you recomendations on flow. I can tell you what I have though but I found it through trail and error. It is a 65 gallon display 36"X18"x24". I currently have a mag 9 pump as a return pump which is pushing around 586 gallons per hour. three koralias one puching 850 gph, one at 240 gph and one at 425 gph. The way my rock and overflow are set up I still have a couple of dead spots and have a koralia 1150 coming in today. I am going to try it with just the two bigger pumps and remove one or both of the smaller ones once I get the flow right. I may keep one of the smaller ones in there strictly for surface agitation.

So adding everything up my current circulation is 32 x tank volume per hour. With the 1150 and 850 plus the return it will be at 40 x tank volume per hour. At 32 all of my corals are happy. It is just a matter of seeing what your livestock likes. The only reason I am adding more is because of detritus build up and I am hoping to remove the two smaller pumps.