<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14439351#post14439351 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by FishTruck
My skimmer does the opposite when I clean it too thouroughly.
I get nothing for about three days (seven if I really clean it like brand new clean - not recommended), then, back to normal.
I guess you know you are broken in when you get consistent skimmate.
Now, I just rinse the neck and cup with warm water and do a single wipe with a paper towel. This does not interrupt skimmate production.
You adjust for dry or wet skimmate by raising and lowering the water column. Usually, by dialing up / down the resistance on the outflow. If you push the column up, you will get wetter (and more) skimmate. If you push it way up, water will start pouring out of the skimmer and you can do a water change this way (see thread of the month).
I dont even bother turning the skimmer off when cleaning the neck and collection cup.. I take the lid off and rinse it and then take a sponge and reach down the neck of the skimmer and pull up against the sides all the way around.. smear the thick skimmate off on the edge so it falls into the collection cup, rinse the sponge when it gets clogged in the skimmer. Sop up a bunch of clean skimmer water from down inside and then swish that around in collection cup and the rest runs down into the collection bucket via the collection cups drain. whole process takes less than two minutes and the skimmer doesnt miss a beat. It sure is nice to have neck that can easily be reached down into