Aqua C Remora (North Korea Style)

[sh4rkbyt3]

Can't figure this one out? Got my Aqua C Remora 2-3 weeks ago and it was running fine. In fact it broke in within only 28 hrs. All good collecting some green and brown gunk.

Added the overflow box for the skimmer to reduce and eliminate any potential microbubbles. That ran fine as well.

Today about 11am for no reason it suddenly started producing a lot and I mean tons of microbubbles so fast the simmer exhaust was flowing out bubbles.

I looked on the Aqua C Remora posts and saw someone had a similar issue that wound up being a leaking connection tube. I had used zip ties originally to connect the tubing so I thought thats a good possibility. Went to the hardware store and got stainless steel hose clamps. Put them on and still the same. Cut a new piece of connection tubing making it a little longer. Still the same. Removed the overflow box out of the sequence. Still the same.

The only thing different is I got my sump working and water flow and height is still the same. Never had this happen before on my old 90 gal even during transition.

No clue and can't reach Aqua C by phone, their phone mailbox is apparently full? The only thing I can think to try next is to retape the intake fitting going into the intake tube of the body with more teflon tape?

I'm open for suggestions. Also no new food or chemicals added recently either. The body is perfectly level side to side and front to back.

 

[moondoggy4]

So if this is a new skimmer it could be still breaking in, and yes your skimmer will get eradicate. Or you have a old tube of Crazy glue on the bottom on your tank and you do not know it. Or a brand new filter sock. Or there is something loose on your skimmer.

 

[exsequor]

I like to set my Remora down a notch where it doesn't look like its producing much, but give it a day or so and check check check, keep checking the output and it usually puts out the right amount of foam / skimmate and surprises me everytime.

Hope this helps

Did the same thing with my old cpr bak-pak II back in the day on my old 75g..

 

[sh4rkbyt3]

Not sure why but perhaps moondoggy4 was right, it's still breaking in somewhat? I let it run all night overproducing the bubbles which were kept confined into the overflow basket and eventually it got back to normal sometime this morning.

Nothing else changed besides adding the sump with a small refugium so maybe it lowered or raised the surface tension having two baskets? Took a few days to happen but it all seems normal now.

I didn't want to have to switch to another skimmer knowing how well these work from past experience.

Thanks moondoggy 4 and exsequor for your feedback !

 

[sh4rkbyt3]

Looks as though I may have to go back to the zip ties for the connection tubing until the plastic clamps get here. The screws are showing rust so I immediately plucked the Remora out of my tank and will go back to the zips for now.

 

[sh4rkbyt3]

Ugh now it's back to overproducing again. Whatever it is looks like it might take a little while to get straightened out in the skimmer.

 

[sh4rkbyt3]

Tried putting on a Mag 3 pump and it's still overproducing into the collection cup albeit a little bit slower but now it's sending billions of microbubbles back into the tank as if it's breaking in new all over again.
I did a few searches on the web and found one guy who had this problem for 6 months and another for 13 months, what the heck? My original one never did this.
Jason from Aqua C e-mailed me back and won't be back in the office until Sept 10th so have to wait and see.
At this point the only thing I can eliminate is the pump wasn't the problem.

It's gone back and forth a couple times overproducing bubbles and then not producing any for a few hours. I may have to just shut it down and wait til I can talk to Jason but working 10 hr days 6 days a week for the next few weeks ugh.

 

[moondoggy4]

When I break in a skimmer I put it in a remote tank outside and let it run in SW and I will pour in skimmate into the tank and let the skimmer go crazy, this will help build up the slime coating the skimmer needs to work correctly.

 

[sh4rkbyt3]

Wish that were an option as that would be perfect but 2nd floor small apartment . Your comment about the filter sock seems to have been a good one. Especially a "new" sock versus a "cleaned" sock.
I talked with a nearby online coral seller who uses 2 huge skimmers and he said that their "might" be some type of coating on the socks that gets washed off after the first or second use that could make a skimmer go crazy. He said he's had several customers ask him the same sort of question and they hadn't made any other changes or additions other than the sock.

I did get to use a cleaned sock this week versus a new one and while it didn't completely eradicate all of the micro bubbles there was a very significant drop in the amount of them, and continuing to drop. Of course I just ordered 9 more new ones lol so have to break them in now as well ugh.