CaptainCoral
New member
With a good strong pump, it will seem like the "sweet spot" is very small. Try to use very, very small adjustments to the air valve when tuning it in.
AquaC CLUB!
- Thread starter JohnL
- Start date
I have had a Remora (w/Maxijet) for about 18 months now...
I recently did an aquarium move to a new stand and canopy so the Wife Approval Factor would go up.
I took the oportunity to really clean the powerheads and the Remora setup.
My question is this...
How long should it take to produce skimmate?
My aquarium guy has zero experience with HOB skimmers and said his regualr sume skimmer produce in a few minutes, especially consdiering the ammount of gunk in the water after a move.
Thoughts?
I recently did an aquarium move to a new stand and canopy so the Wife Approval Factor would go up.
I took the oportunity to really clean the powerheads and the Remora setup.
My question is this...
How long should it take to produce skimmate?
My aquarium guy has zero experience with HOB skimmers and said his regualr sume skimmer produce in a few minutes, especially consdiering the ammount of gunk in the water after a move.
Thoughts?
CaptainCoral
New member
Hello Dan.
I've used an ev180 with an extension. (I'll leave my thoughts on the pros and cons of it out here. With a 1" exit, its' a different story)
My feelings is that it would need a (biggest pump for the ev400) to be any good. If I had the ev240, I'd try a minimum of 22' head pressure pump with the stock foam tower before I'd order an extension or mod it. My feelings are that you might be able to drive it very hard and get great air intake with it choked very hard producing smaller bubbles (same or more air with smaller bubbles). I've always wondered what my Mak4 would do on a ev240.
I've used an ev180 with an extension. (I'll leave my thoughts on the pros and cons of it out here. With a 1" exit, its' a different story)
My feelings is that it would need a (biggest pump for the ev400) to be any good. If I had the ev240, I'd try a minimum of 22' head pressure pump with the stock foam tower before I'd order an extension or mod it. My feelings are that you might be able to drive it very hard and get great air intake with it choked very hard producing smaller bubbles (same or more air with smaller bubbles). I've always wondered what my Mak4 would do on a ev240.
What do you mean by a 1 inch exit? Do you mean the nozzle? If so I do have the upgraded nozzle and it works very well... btw.... I am driving my skimmer with a 70RLT:eek2: I have the head pressure trust me... I am interested in your thoughts on the extension though.... I just like to tinker dammit!!! BTW the skimmer works great already......
Thanks
Dan
Thanks
Dan
CaptainCoral
New member
The exit plumbing on the ev180 and 120 are 1" pvc restricting the amount of flow and pressure it can be driven with. With those models, you cannot use a pump from the next model up because the box (with the 1" exit) cannot handle the flow and pressure without backing up the water line beyond the max height. (try to go beyond a mag9 to see what I mean, and even then you'll need to unscrew the gate valve from the back of the box)
The ev240 and up with 1.5" exit plumbing can handle much more flow and pressure without causing the issue of backing up the water line.
The amount of air the skimmer can suck into the box is determined by the amount of flow and pressure of the pump. A little experimenting with the air valve shows that the bubble size shrinks the more it's choked back. (the water height also effects bubble size with max height being the smallest) The more powerful the pump (think of head pressure as more important than flow, but flow matters too) the more air the skimmer can suck in. So the smallest pump for a given model will need little or no choking of air, and the largest will need the most chocking of air. The difference being that using the larger pump, you get smaller bubbles and better foam.
The ev240 and up with 1.5" exit plumbing can handle much more flow and pressure without causing the issue of backing up the water line.
The amount of air the skimmer can suck into the box is determined by the amount of flow and pressure of the pump. A little experimenting with the air valve shows that the bubble size shrinks the more it's choked back. (the water height also effects bubble size with max height being the smallest) The more powerful the pump (think of head pressure as more important than flow, but flow matters too) the more air the skimmer can suck in. So the smallest pump for a given model will need little or no choking of air, and the largest will need the most chocking of air. The difference being that using the larger pump, you get smaller bubbles and better foam.
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I'm using an EV-180 with a Mag 9.5. I found I needed to throttle back the Mag (with a ball valve) and the gate valve wide open to get the correct water level. To combat noise I added a 90º street el (drilled with an anti-siphon hole) to the output of the gate valve. That required that I open-up the Mag all the way. With this setup, controlling the production was easy --- it's all about the air setting. One thing I learned is to make small adjustments and wait! You need to wait for an hour or so for the skimmer to find its groove with the new setting or you'll drive yourself crazy.
All-in-all though, I've found the skimmer to be awesome. It works as well as I could ever hope. The key, I believe, is small changes and wait for the skimmer to stabilize before making any other change.
All-in-all though, I've found the skimmer to be awesome. It works as well as I could ever hope. The key, I believe, is small changes and wait for the skimmer to stabilize before making any other change.
CaptainCoral
New member
The sweet spot is different for every pump/skimmer combo, whether using a 1" pump/injector, plus whichever personal preferences.
Finally I got my skimmer tuned. Guess why? My bioload is too low for the skimmer to start kick in. This morning as usual, nothing skimmed out from the skimmer and I start to ignore it. Then I start feeding my coral with chopped market shrimp, then my EV120 starts to skim out all those "dirty" stuff although my sump is prefilter with filter sock.
I guess I can start adding more fish to my tank.
I guess I can start adding more fish to my tank.
Rickyrooz1
Acropora Nut
Is this the right kind of skimmate that I want from my AquaC EV-120? This is 10 hours worth of skimming.
alright, i just got my aqua c ev120 started, WHOA
sorry for the wierd writing, i was gunna ask how long it normally takes for the break in period? i read in the manual it said 2-3 days but i just looked over and it looked like its foaming up after ~3 hours!
the foam hasnt gotten to the cup yet but its getting there!
cant wait for it to start producing skimmate!
oh and ricky, that skimmate looks really wet but in the manual it says there is no right or wrong skimmate, whatever that means
sorry for the wierd writing, i was gunna ask how long it normally takes for the break in period? i read in the manual it said 2-3 days but i just looked over and it looked like its foaming up after ~3 hours!
the foam hasnt gotten to the cup yet but its getting there!
cant wait for it to start producing skimmate!
oh and ricky, that skimmate looks really wet but in the manual it says there is no right or wrong skimmate, whatever that means
hammmerhead
New member
I would skim as wet as I could or you reaction chamber will get gunked up like this.
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well this is really wierd, are all aqua c skimmers this finicky?!
last night it was foaming and doing very well then i wake up and it stopped foaming then i come back for lunch and its foaming very well again and now its not foaming anymore
i fed the tank maybe an hour ago but it stopped foaming well before that
havent added anything to the tank so im at a loss now
im not gunna mess with the gate valve just yet until maybe tomorrow or sunday
unless anyone suggests i do that
last night it was foaming and doing very well then i wake up and it stopped foaming then i come back for lunch and its foaming very well again and now its not foaming anymore
i fed the tank maybe an hour ago but it stopped foaming well before that
havent added anything to the tank so im at a loss now
im not gunna mess with the gate valve just yet until maybe tomorrow or sunday
unless anyone suggests i do that
Otto2
Member
Sorry if this has been answered earlier but it would take me days to read through all this.
I just got a used EV-180 and I swapped out the injector for the 1" instead of a stock 3/4" and I am using a Mag 9 to run it in the sump. The water level goes up almost halfway up the gate valve. I have the gate valve and air valve fully opened.
I just upgraded to a bigger tank with a sump and this is my first skimmer that isnt HOB. I had a remora and it worked great, but on this 180 it seems like its bubbling to much and it pulls out a gallon of water in about 2 minutes. The water is clear and not green at all. I just set up the tank with new sand and about 80% new water, but I have about 100 pounds of rock from my 75 thats been established for a long time. Currently I have a 120 with only 5 fish.
So finally my question, is my Mag 9 to much of a pump for the EV180? I know a Mag 7 is recommended, but I was reading you get better performance if you go one size up. Maybe its because its new and has only been running for a couple days. I am trying to close the air valve a little at a time, but it seems to stop all the sudden. Do I need to adjust the gate valve or maybe put a ball valve on the pump? Instead of just dumping all that water it skims, I just have it running back into the tank b/c its clear and I would have an empty tank now if I didnt. Thanks in advance for the help.
I just got a used EV-180 and I swapped out the injector for the 1" instead of a stock 3/4" and I am using a Mag 9 to run it in the sump. The water level goes up almost halfway up the gate valve. I have the gate valve and air valve fully opened.
I just upgraded to a bigger tank with a sump and this is my first skimmer that isnt HOB. I had a remora and it worked great, but on this 180 it seems like its bubbling to much and it pulls out a gallon of water in about 2 minutes. The water is clear and not green at all. I just set up the tank with new sand and about 80% new water, but I have about 100 pounds of rock from my 75 thats been established for a long time. Currently I have a 120 with only 5 fish.
So finally my question, is my Mag 9 to much of a pump for the EV180? I know a Mag 7 is recommended, but I was reading you get better performance if you go one size up. Maybe its because its new and has only been running for a couple days. I am trying to close the air valve a little at a time, but it seems to stop all the sudden. Do I need to adjust the gate valve or maybe put a ball valve on the pump? Instead of just dumping all that water it skims, I just have it running back into the tank b/c its clear and I would have an empty tank now if I didnt. Thanks in advance for the help.
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chase33
New member
I agree, the mag 9 isn't to much at all and imo with that size tank and the small bio-load it is needed. The 7 will be too small. You need to dial down the air injector so that it doesn't bubble over. If it is anything like mine it will take you a long time to get it dialed in correctly with that small bio-load.
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