Is this normal for an AquaC

[Dave A]

First the basic info;

125gal. FOWLR, well established
35gal. glass sump, Mag 9.5 return pump
5 medium sized fish + 4 Chromis
A few shrimp, hermit crabs, and a Serpent Star
Any more info needed see my web page

The skimmer is an AquaC EV-120 with Mag 5 pump. mounted in the sump with the outflow 1/2" above water line. It's been running for 2 weeks and seemed to kick in after about 5 days.

What happens is it will skim not bad (but watery) for about 8 hours out of every 2 days then go back to producing no foam for another 2 days them repeat the cycle. When it's not producing foam all I can see is white bubbles and turbulence going just 1/2" up the clear lift tube.

Water level inside the box is up to and touching the bottom of the internal platform with only about 1/16" of water sitting on top of that internal plateform. Even if I turn down the flow from the pump a little the internal water level stays the same, just less bubbles inside the box. I,ve tried the gat valve wide open, 1/2 and 1 turn closed with no change in skimmer production.

Does this sound familiar? Am I doing something wrong? I'm not new to skimmers and have had several with no problems, just wanted a more efficient skimmer. I'm not too happy so far.

This is what the skimmer looks like when it's not producing.

 

[heliopt]

Don't worry! My AquaC EV 180 did the same; It's the break in period.

 

[Dave A]

Don't worry! My AquaC EV 180 did the same; It's the break in period.

Thanks for the reply heliopt. So yours was on again off again until it started skimming full time? I've also found that at this point it is much more sensitive to feeding times and even putting my hands in the tank or sump. Shuts it down for a day or more. My previous skimmers would only stop for an hour or so. Perhaps like you said, more breakin time required

Thanks,Dave

 

[saltykirk]

did you wash it pretty good before you put in the sump to use?
I usually wash skimmer w/ a mild vinegar bath, then rinse to remove the oily film that is on them.

 

[heliopt]

Dry Rot, this skimmer is sensitive to feeding times, etc, but at the break in period, it's much more sensitive. After this period you will see that AquaC is a very good skimmer.

 

[Dave A]

Well.............it's been three weeks now and still not much skimmate produced. Just a little wet skimmate on two occasions and nothing for the last week. I'm starting to get a little impatient because my nitrates have doubled in the last 10 days from 6 to 12. Has anyone else had a long break-in period like a month or more?

Dave

 

[Omar H]

I've been running mine since August 03...and still can't have it to work properly. About a month ago I changed the configuration of the skimmer (it's plumbed standing besides the tank). Four months is too much for a break-in period. My older (and replaced) airstone operated skimmer worked better than the current EV 180.

The problems that I have with mine are:

The main problems are:

1. Every time food is introduced, foaming stops for approximately 6-7 hours.
2. Every time we cook in the house, foaming stops for approximately 2-3 hours (tank is about 20ft. from the stove).
3. If there is a crowd (that is more than 5 people) in the room, foaming stops and will not resume but after some hours after the room is alone.
4. Even when there is foam, it is extremely difficult to tune. Sometimes it just doesnââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢t make it to the top and into the cup, as foam, and then at times it just overflows with water, not yellowish skimmate, just clear water. If I move anything in the output gate valve, or in the intake ball valve, the results change dramatically. I.e. from no foam to overflown with water.


I know I'm not providing any solutions, I have the same problem. Last night, I sent a letter to Jason Kim at AquaC, whatever he answers I'll be happy to share with you. Although his answer (if at all) could take a few days due to the hectic New Year's Eve days. In the midtime, I'll be happy to hear any comments/suggestions.

Omar H :strooper:

 

[Dave A]

Omar.........thanks for your reply. I emailed Jason twice in the last two weeks with no reply so I hope you have better luck than me. Sounds like you are almost out of ideas. I'll give mine another 4 weeks (8 weeks total) to start working consistently. If it's no better by then then I will buy an EuroReef ES8-2 and give it a try. The funny thing is I have a Seaclone and an Excaliber on two smaller tanks and they run fine.
This EV-120 is replacing a 4 month old Prizm Pro Deluxe that I got tired of fiddling with.........but at least it skimmed.

Let me know what Jason says if he replies.
Thanks,
Dave

 

[pnosko]

Dry rot, that pic is so clean looking, it looks like a FW tank!

How often do you have your hands in the tank?

 

[Dave A]

Dry rot, that pic is so clean looking, it looks like a FW tank!

How often do you have your hands in the tank?

I consider it my show tank so it's quite clean..........thanks, I think

I feed 3 times a day. Meaty foods (krill and mysis) twice a day and seaweed once a day. My hands usually go in twice a day, once to put two veggie clips in and once again to remove them about 1-2 hours later. The skimmer hasn't done anything in almost a week and my nitrates are starting to slowly rise.

Dave

 

[SaltyDogg]

Well I will be interested too if you find out anything about your AquaC skimmer.....

I have a ev-120 and it doesn't seem to do that great of a job.

 

[Dave A]

Well I will be interested too if you find out anything about your AquaC skimmer.....

I have a ev-120 and it doesn't seem to do that great of a job.

Yes, and it's not like I'm new to skimmers. I've had several over the years on various tanks with this AquaC being the most expensive of the bunch. I must say so far I'm not impressed. I'll have an EV-120 for sale soon if things don't improve.

Dave

 

[Pen Man]

If you do not get this working, look at the Euro-Reef. We are running a CS8-1 on our 125 and getting 1/2 inch on the greenest goop everyother day. No adjustments needed, it does slow for a while after feeding. It is pulling sludge, not just green water.

 

[Dave A]

If you do not get this working, look at the Euro-Reef. We are running a CS8-1 on our 125 and getting 1/2 inch on the greenest goop everyother day. No adjustments needed, it does slow for a while after feeding. It is pulling sludge, not just green water.

Actually when I got this one I had done some research and I had it down to the EV-120 or the CS8-2. Needless to say I went with the EV-120.

Is there a users manual available online for the CS8-2?

Dave

 

[Pen Man]

The link to the online manual is:
http://www.euro-reef.com/ER Manual/index.htm

Euro-reef skimmers:
We talked to most the people in the Boston Reefers and this was one of the most popular. The thing that I liked is that it uses a lot less pump than most other skimmers for the same volume. We bought a blem for the CS8-1 from H2Otropicals.com and saved over $100. It has a glue smudge on the collection cup. Had been running a ES6-2 on the tank and moved that to our 72 gallon bow. It did a good job on the 125 even.

 

[roberts722]

Dave - Having the same problems with my AquaC. It is a Remora HOB however. I was able to get a reply from Jason and he said that any water conditioners of any kind, even those without stress coats will cause problems. Would be good to know ahead of time.

I am only on day 8 but am not getting anything yet. I am very glad I have the Fluval running or I would be in really bad shape. My levels are still good and have had no problems since the cycle.

I am not sure what is next however, I will give it to the weekend to get resolved before looking for other options. You are more patient than I am .

 

[vinstr]

I have an EV 120 also with the MAg 5 and it works great but I did have the same problems as you initially. The picture you have looks great. Even though the foam is not going all the way up at the moment it will- just be patient. This skimmer is very sensitive. I will look at my skimmer and it will look just like yours did and then when I come back a few hours later, the foam will be overflowing...the problem I think you are having is you keep adjusting it. Do not lower the flow rate on the Mag 5- keep it at full flow. Then open the gate valve all the way. If the foam is only just coming up and inch or two (like in your picture) thats FINE. Don't touch it anymore. Check back every few hours and soon you will see the foam start to overflow. If your nitrates are high and the water is not very good to start with, you might see that the skimmer will start pulling out too much stuff and it will be like gallons of very weak skimmate. (this is what happened to me at first). So I had to reduce the AIR intake a bit (keep the gate valve open fully and the mag at full flow). This provided less overall skimmate but it was a more steady thick foam. After a few weeks, as the water quality improved, I was able to open the air intake fully and now I collect a daily 1-2 inches of thick gunck and it works great...there are times when it stops for an hour or so (if anything enters the tank like food, additives, my hands, etc) but if you just leave it alone it will soon resume its production. The constant tinkering is not letting it get set...I hope it works for you

 

[Trickman2]

Get a euro reef. you will never regret it mine skims like a champ. No fiddling and the damn thing came with a pump to I have a cs6-1 Sell it and go buy a euroreef. Mine pulls coffee crap out like every week. Cs6-1 on my 90 awesome easy skimmer
http://www.thereefweb.com/skimmer_comparison.htm

 

[ClarkiiClownfish]

I have a 220 reef with 3 Remors Pro's, and they fill up with yellow/green sludge every 2 days. I have had them for close to 2 years now I think and they work great.
This 220 was set-up originally as a FOWLR, but I switched to reef after a year or so. I have used many types of in-sump and hang-on skimmers and the Remors'a have performed the best by far.

With that said, I purchased an EV-400 for my in-wall 180 with 100 gallon sump. It is almost ready for water. The guy that is helping me install is coming over on Jan 2 to help me do the final touches of the plumbing and I am going to start dripping R/O water in there that night. So hopefully my EV-400 will be operational in a matter of weeks if not sooner.
I sure hope it perfoms as well or better than the remora's. I will be extremely disappointed if it does not, considering what I paid for it.

I also wanted to state that when I recieved my Remora's I just put them right on the tank and started skimming. No vinegar bath, no wiping, no nothing. It did take them a few days to get going, but after that they have been pumping out skimmate at a rate better than I have seen from any hang-on skimmer and most in-sump skimmers. I did upgrade to the larger pump with them....I think it is a Mag 3 or maybe a Mag 5....I dont remember.
The collection cup on the Remora's is larger than any other hang-on I have seen and larger than most in-sump skimmers.....and all 3 of mine fill the thing up fully in every 2 days. I know what it is taking out of the tank is very foul by the smell of the skimmate. Nasty stuff.
I also have the surface skimmer boxes with them. I think they make a huge difference. They are big and boxy and ugly, but they sure help with the efficiency of the skimmer I think.
My 220 sure is ugly with 3 remora's and 2 over-flow boxes hanging off the back. There is somehting haning in the tank on the back the whole 6ft length of it. Definately ugly, thats for sure. But it is my first saltwater/reef tank, and I admit I made a lot of mistakes. No getting it drilled, too small of a sump, not enough flow........but my 180.....that thing is going to be state of the art. Nothing haning off the back. It has an 8ft long, 100+ gallon - 4 stage sump. Stage 1 is for the EV400skimmer with room for another down the road if needed. Stage 2 and 3 are mud/calupera and stage 4 is a "no-bypass" area for removeable media. I also have a UV and a Ocean Clear canister for running large amounts of carbon.
Another thing that I like about the EV400 is the jong Guest fitting for running ozone or for plugging in the effluent of your calcium reactor, which is what I am going to use it for.

 

[roberts722]

Here is my latest answer from Jason Kim at AquaC.

Jim,

The microbubbles are definitely a by product of this whole overfoaming issue, so that should resolve itself along with everything else. I don't have any experience with that brand of conditioner, so tentatively speaking it is likely that this is the cause of the problem. Running some activated carbon in the mean time will also help pull any stray chemicals from the water, so you might try that as well. The salt you are using should be fine.

Let me know if things settle down in a few days...
-------------

Jason Kim
President

AquaC, Inc.
9825 Carroll Center Rd., Ste. 400
San Diego, CA 92126

858-689-1121 customer service
858-564-3419 fax