Overflowing Aqua C EV-120 Skimmer !!!

Josecuervo1

New member
:sad1: THERE'S WATER ALL AROUNG MY TANK STAND !!! And the thing is that we have carpet !!!!!
Well, here's the story......... About 5 days ago I set up my sump/refugium with the Aqua C EV-120 skimmer. Ive read that it is a good skimmer so I got it but reading the instruction manual it says that it works best if the air valve is FULLY open and to just adjust the gate valve. Well, if I leave the air valve all the way open it starts foaming very wet and very fast rising to the collection cup and overflowing. Last night before I went to bed I had the air valve dialed down about 3/4 open and I had a line from the collection cup to a 1 gal container just in case, just to find out that it had been overflowing over to the collection cup, into the 1 gallon jug and over to the carpet !!!! WHY IS MY SKIMMER DOING THIS ???? Is it because of the break in period ??
 
Never run a injection skimmer into a collection cup unless it has a shutoff on it.

What pump are you running? The EV120 is a great skimmer but can be touchy. You have to make small adjustments and let it sit for a few hours before doing another adjustment.
 
Oh, my. If the outflow pipe is underwater, it can really create a flood from the other apertures. I set mine on a board above the sump so that it never can touch the water, and if it ever spits it will flow back in. This model can also sit IN the fuge part of the sump if you have no head room, and that assures it won't leak into the floor. It also frequently spits on start-up. I would honestly advise it is best sitting inside the sump if you have it in a finished room: there it can spit harmlessly. [Mine's a 30 gal basement sump/fuge: Eshopps.]
 
the skimmer IS in the sump, I keep fiddling with it but not quite sure how its supposed to run, I mean, at what level should I leave it...... skimmer.jpg
 
allsps40 - thanks for the uplifting comment. Are they that finicky ?? I've hread nothing but good things about them

cobra9 - running it with a Mag 5. How should I set it up then, I mean, I want to send a line from a collection cup to a collection jug next to the sump but now I'm afraid it will overflow again
 
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allsps40 - thanks for the uplifting comment. Are they that finicky ?? I've hread nothing but good things about them

cobra9 - running it with a Mag 5. How should I set it up then, I mean, I want to send a line from a collection cup to a collection jug next to the sump but now I'm afraid it will overflow again

No they are not that touchy. Mine ran for almost 2 years with no adjustments and only cleaning the skimmer cup once a month and the injector twice a year.

First cap the drain. Only allow it to drain while your watching it unless you get a collection cup like This

The mag 5 is a little small for that skimmer. I like a mag 7 on it better. As far as setting it up, the outlef must be above water. Keep the gate valve all the way open. Never limit the outlet in anyway. Most people actually take the gate valve off and put a tee in there. Then adjust the air intake till you get it skimmer the way you want. Mine actually ran great with the air valve removed.

Just remember any oils in the water from food or your hand or some additives will knock your foam head down. If you adjust a skimmer while there is oils present a few hours later it will be overflowing. Make small adjustments over the course of a few days till you get it dialed in.
 
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Josecuervo1, how long has your skimmer been running for? I have the AquaC 180 model. It is interesting that yours is going hay nuts during the break in period while mine produced squat for nearly 3 weeks. I see in your picture that the skimmate is clear.

You said that your skimmer is in the sump. Does the level of water in your sump vary much? I believe that the skimmer will react to varying levels of water in the sump. I with Sk8r in that my 180 is mounted above the water in the sump so that I do not have to deal with the water level issue. Also, I use an auto top off switch in my collection bucket to prevent accidents from run away skimmers. Learned that lesson a long time ago.

How about the water level in your skimmer? Where do you have the water level set to?
 
Cobra 9 - Thank you so much for your help. So, when you say cap the drain and only allow it to drain while your watching it, does that mean do dial the air intake down and just raise it when I want some skimate ?? I'm afraid that if I leave the air valve fully opened its going to overflow like it did. I always had the gate valve fully opened.

Bandsaw - the level of the water in the sump is always the same and the gate valve is above water. How is it that you used a switch to shut off skimate. I thought you could not control that unless you dial down the air intake valve ??
 
My skimmer empties into a 5g pail. I use a float switch from autotopoff.com and a suction cup to hold it in place inside the 5g pail. When the pail is empty, I place the float switch about a quarter way up the pail. I then plug the skimmer into the float switch. If the skimmer goes nuts and fills the pail upto the float switch, the switch simply kills the skimmer.

I work away from home, so I have become somewhat dependednt on technology to keep my tank. My wife and kids do some feeding, but even then, my fish tend to be forced onto a diet some weeks. The float switches are nice, I have one in my DT (which has saved by rear end a few times), one in my 20g fuge, and one in my aquafuge. They are a nice insurance policy.
 
Cobra 9 - Thank you so much for your help. So, when you say cap the drain and only allow it to drain while your watching it, does that mean do dial the air intake down and just raise it when I want some skimate ?? I'm afraid that if I leave the air valve fully opened its going to overflow like it did. I always had the gate valve fully opened.

Bandsaw - the level of the water in the sump is always the same and the gate valve is above water. How is it that you used a switch to shut off skimate. I thought you could not control that unless you dial down the air intake valve ??

When I say cap the drain, I mean this. On the side of your collection cup there is a drain. You had that drain going to a 1 gallon container. It overflowed. Dont have it going to that container. Have it drain into your sump till you get a container designed for a injection skimmer, or use a float switch to kill power to the skimmer when the container is full.
 
Got you !! Guys, Thanks so much for taking some time to write this. I appreciate your help. Hope you both are having a good weekend !!! I think I will try to get a float switch and figure out how am i going to put it in. Thanks again !!!
 
allsps40 - thanks for the uplifting comment. Are they that finicky ?? I've hread nothing but good things about them

cobra9 - running it with a Mag 5. How should I set it up then, I mean, I want to send a line from a collection cup to a collection jug next to the sump but now I'm afraid it will overflow again

YEs they can be very touchy. I ran 2 of them on display tanks. Neither of the 2 ever skimmed correctly, they overflowed of did not skim. It is a old crappy design.
 
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