Mesh mod

Rysam

Rysam

New member
has anyone done this yet? i read for 3 hours+ lastnight about this instead of watching my forestry dvd's( its like watching paint dry with a grade at the end) but anyways, what did you use. i know the enkamat is the preferred medium but i dont have the slightest clue where to get it. im probably going to use the synthetic steel wool or gutterguard if i can get a small enough piece. im only mildly happy with my skimmer right now(ASM G2) so im trying to increase its performance. this is the first step to total skimmer modification. a direct feed from the drain and recirc is next, as soon as i figure out the amount of gpm i need from the overflow. any hints of tricks would be appreciated.
 
basically it entails totally ruining a 35$ needle wheel impeller and ziptieing some mesh onto it in place of the needles. it produces much finer bubbles and better air intake. more air+smaller bubbles= better foam= more crap removed from water.
 
Did you do the Gate valve Mod to the ASM?? If not it increases the production of the skimmer by 10 fold IMO and allows finer tuning to get max. amount of skim. IMO the only draw back with the ASM is the same with most in sump skimmers, if the water level fluctuates then so does the level of water in the skimmer.
 
yep the gate valve was the first thing i did to it. almost right out of the box. the way i have it baffled my sump doesnt fluctuate at all. only the return chamber which is a couple of gallons with an ato to keep it full
 
Why are you not happy with it? IMO for the money they can't be beat. Recurculating skimmers are OK but just another pump to have sucking up power and something else to replace when it goes out
 
i just dont seem to get alot of skimmate out of it. i never have. its been running for a couple of years so it is broken in. and i really cant afford to replace it. so if i can mod it for a few bucks and get more goods then i might as well try. i was going to use the same pump to recirc it and feed it from the drain. is is still a recirc skimmer if i only use 1 pump?
 
Josh,

I don't think you've got a huge fish load so I can't imagine you'd pull out a lot of skimmate to begin with. Good luck with the mod however.
 
1x yellow tang 4"
1x hippo tang 4"
2x occ. clowns 2"
1x yellow watchman 3"
3x green chromis 1-2"
1x 6 line wrasse 2"
1x firefish 2"

thats 9 fish in a 135. 2 of which are/will be fairly good size. i should be getting much more skimmate than what i am. i didnt get around to the mod today maybe in the next few days.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11205482#post11205482 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by kinghokus420
1x yellow tang 4"
1x hippo tang 4"
2x occ. clowns 2"
1x yellow watchman 3"
3x green chromis 1-2"
1x 6 line wrasse 2"
1x firefish 2"

thats 9 fish in a 135. 2 of which are/will be fairly good size. i should be getting much more skimmate than what i am. i didnt get around to the mod today maybe in the next few days.
Click to expand...

I count 10. No wonder you thought that skimmer looked like a bong!! :rollface:
 
Half your fish load are small fish. I'm with Chris on this one, unless you are doing very little water changes you are not going to be getting a ton of skimmate.

After I do large water changes on my systems my skimmers barely produce any skimmate until the nitrates start rising, then it kicks in a little more
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11208442#post11208442 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Underwaterparadise
Half your fish load are small fish. I'm with Chris on this one, unless you are doing very little water changes you are not going to be getting a ton of skimmate.

After I do large water changes on my systems my skimmers barely produce any skimmate until the nitrates start rising, then it kicks in a little more
Click to expand...

I always think of it as good thing when my skimmer is working but not producing much skimmate.
 
Lets see on my 50 gal I have:

(1) 6"+ long pink spotted shrimp goby
(1) Decent sized Scopas Tang
(3) blu- green chromis
(1) med-large gold banded maroon clown
So by my addition that's six fish, plus some hermits and snails.

And other than the sludge that accumulates on the neck etc, I rarely get any skimmate liquid unless it smells like the phytoplankton that I dose with.

Then again I only have prizm skimmers but like I said at the meeting when I ran my larger recirc skimmer it didn't produce any more skimmate than my prizm. HTH and YMMV. :D

I would try the mesh mod just for fun if nothing else. I think I've seen some people use something like those greene scrubbing pads- just ensure it doesn't come pre soaped. I've heard of people buying sponges to clean tanks only to find their preloaded with bleach or some other cleaner. OUCH!

I love hearing about DIY mods so keep us posted. :D

-ChrisB
 
i guess i just expect more than what i get. it usually takes a week or more before i even feel the cup is worth emptying. im still going to do the mod just to see if i get a difference. after all the hype ive read, i'll bite.
 
i just did the deed and all i can say is wow! the pump is a bit noisy yet so i'll have to work on that a bit. but overall there is a hugely noticeable difference. i've only had it going for about 15 minutes and its putting out way more foam than before. i used a 1.97$ scratch pad from the paint dept at wally world. and 2 4" zipties. took about 15 minutes to mod and 45 to clean my pump and skimmer body. sorry the dog ate my sd card so no pics.
 
I love my ASM G2 with no mods. I have a heavy fish load for a 90 gallon, and it pulls out a ton of junk. But, now that I know it can be better, maybe I'd better chop it.
 
Josh, did you attach the zip ties to the front or back of the housing? I heard if they are in the back it makes a lot of noise but if you attach them in the front it quiets them up.

BTW, know where there are any pics to the Recurculating mod???
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11268222#post11268222 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Underwaterparadise
Josh, did you attach the zip ties to the front or back of the housing?
Click to expand...


i attached them in the front and then wiggled the connector down into the mesh. its not too noisy with the doors closed just more of a loud hum.
 
i forgot to mention that while i was in there. i put a 45* in the skimmer pointing slightly upward, but not very much at all. to give it more of a swirly action. its been going about 6 hours now, its getting quieter but still louder than before. i have about an inch of some pretty nasty water. a bit funkier than tea but not the funky green im after. it is just a matter of tuneage i believe.

rob- i dont have any pics of a recirc mod. the last ones i payed attention to were at asmskimmer.com(no longer site) but im sure theres something in the rc gallery. i dont see it being difficult to do. just have the pump feed from and return to the skimmer. i plan on doing this eventually and letting the drain feed the skimmer instead if the pump.

>>fast forward an hour>>


i just looked at octopus skimmersand they had a few decent pics of a recirc
http://www.octopusskimmer.com/

this is exactly what i plan on doing
http://www.marinesolutionsinc.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=22_35&products_id=72
 
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