Protein Skimmer Question... Level Changing

[mhosts]

Hey Everyone.

I have a question about my protein skimmer... It's a Marineland in sump 300.

My sump has a constant water level where the protein skimmer is and it is within it's specified height.

When I turn on the skimmer and set the bubble level it will tend to go lower over time.

So at first my skimmate bubbles over into the cup, but then a few days later I get solids forming on top of the bubble level and not going over the top into the cup.

After a while it settles and stays constant, but then when I have to empty it the process starts all over again because I need to turn it off.

What should I do?

 

[dahenley]

bump^

 

[tkeracer619]

Is the skimmate when you first do it good quality? If so you will need to clean the skimmer more often.

One thing you could try doing is not wiping down the inside of the neck, just spray it off with high pressure water so it leaves slime in the neck. My skimmers produce more for longer when i do this. Every couple weeks i will have to give it a good cleaning but usually i just spray off the solids and toss it back on weekly.

 

[mhosts]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14842467#post14842467 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by tkeracer619
Is the skimmate when you first do it good quality? If so you will need to clean the skimmer more often.

One thing you could try doing is not wiping down the inside of the neck, just spray it off with high pressure water so it leaves slime in the neck. My skimmers produce more for longer when i do this. Every couple weeks i will have to give it a good cleaning but usually i just spray off the solids and toss it back on weekly.

Actually, when I clean the cup all I do is let water flush it out. I never wipe it with a rag or anything.

And yes, the skimmate is awesome quality at first (Like dark brown but not too dark).

 

[mhosts]

Actually I think the issue is when the skimmer is turned off/on

It's almost like theres a buildup of air at the top before the neck cause the water wants to shoot past the cup when I turn it back on and then it settles way back down.

If I don't turn the knob it will fill the cup with water.

Maybe I should call marineland and see what they say.

 

[billyr]

I am having the same problem with a Octopus extreme 200
It will run a day or two pulling good (or bad?) skimmate then it will go nuts and overflow putting all that was collected right back in the water!

 

[mhosts]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14844016#post14844016 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by billyr
I am having the same problem with a Octopus extreme 200
It will run a day or two pulling good (or bad?) skimmate then it will go nuts and overflow putting all that was collected right back in the water!

Does the water level in the sump fluctuate at all?