New Protein Skimmer overflowing like crazy

[omgitztrey]

I hope you all are well and I'm very excited to join this community and truly hope I could learn something from you on establishing my new tank.

I bought a 60g rimless cube, Pukani dry rock from BRS, and is going through the process of cycling the tank, or at least attempting too. This morning after almost 18 hours, using RO/DI water, I was finally able to turn on my return pump in the sump and get the whole tank cycling.

What's freaking me out is the Reef Octopus 110 int protein skimmer. I've followed the printed instructions, the online instructions, and the local-fish-guy instructions and can't figure out why it's acting so crazy and overflowing. As you can see in the photographs, I tried restricting the airflow by using a bent cotton swab on the main air intake. Any advice or concerns would be greatly appreciated.

http://imgur.com/GD3B2lF
http://imgur.com/DyuMzVD
http://imgur.com/oYOeXQ2

 

[DSREEFER]

Welcome to RC! I believe we have the same skimmer and I ran into the same issue when I first started mine. First off when they come from the manufacturer they still have oils and junk on them from the process of making them that will make them go crazy like that. The fix is to soak them in vinegar. I ran mine in a vinegar water solution (2 parts vinegar 1 part rodi) for a few hours and then just rinsed it with rodi. The second part is getting the water level set correctly. The directions tell you 8-9 inches of water. I set mine up on some stacked up egg crate I had lying around until the water was just above the bottom of the water outlet of the skimmer. It takes some time and patience to get them dialed in so keep working at it. I believe the water height is the most important factor. Good luck!

 

[Waters40]

Everything that DSreefer said is correct. One thing I noticed on your pictures is the water level for that model is way too high. I also had to build an egg crate stand for my skimmer to sit in the sump and still be at the correct water level.

 

[scooter31707]

Agreed with everything mentioned ^^^. The vinegar and ro/di will help get the oily residue out. Once that is done, I usually run it again in aquarium water in a separate container with a little prime added. After that, I put it into the sump along with the old one until it breaks in, taking the old one out at that time.

 

[omgitztrey]

Thanks so much for the kind welcoming and awesome responses! I'm going to go to Home Depot later today to grab some egg crates and readjust the skimmer. That would explain why it was pumping majority water into the collection cup.

Another thing I can only think of, after reading other threads, is that it may also by the epoxy I used during my aquascaping that may be driving it double crazy. Thank you all so much!