Skimmer Cleaning

[Threshold]

How often do you recommend cleaning each part of a skimmer? In my case, I have an Omega 130 by Vertex.

I know the cup would be daily -- what about the body of the skimmer? The pump? The tubing for the air? The valve to control water flow?

Thanks for your answers!

 

[cloak]

Is your sump lit up or not? If you've got all kinds of algae growth coating the inside of your skimmer than cleaning it once every 6 months or so would probably be a good idea. If your sump is kept dark, then a skimmer can go for years without a cleaning IMO. I think I went 6 or 7 years without ever cleaning my old Euro-Reef skimmer and never had any problems. It was actually kind of cool seeing how the chamber took on it's own little ecosystem over time.

 

[nuxx]

Basically clean the skimmer when something goes wrong... like a pump dies. Good excuse to clean it.

Cleaning the neck is the most important part of the skimmer to clean IMO.

Bought a neck cleaner for our display's skimmer, thinking about getting another for our frag tank as well

I don't even clean the cup, just drain it.

 

[hkgar]

I don't even clean the cup, just drain it.

What about the neck portion of the cup? Mine gets about a 1/8 inch of crude every week.

 

[Threshold]

Is your sump lit up or not? If you've got all kinds of algae growth coating the inside of your skimmer than cleaning it once every 6 months or so would probably be a good idea. If your sump is kept dark, then a skimmer can go for years without a cleaning IMO. I think I went 6 or 7 years without ever cleaning my old Euro-Reef skimmer and never had any problems. It was actually kind of cool seeing how the chamber took on it's own little ecosystem over time.

I am just starting out, so my skimmer doesn't have anything to skim (other than the die off from live rock)...

The sump IS lit (for the refugium -- which doesn't actually have anything other than saltwater in it yet).

 

[Threshold]

Basically clean the skimmer when something goes wrong... like a pump dies. Good excuse to clean it.

Cleaning the neck is the most important part of the skimmer to clean IMO.

I just want to make sure I understand these two sentences correctly...

Wait until something goes wrong and then clean the neck?

 

[nuxx]

I just want to make sure I understand these two sentences correctly...

Wait until something goes wrong and then clean the neck?

No the entire skimmer.

The neck needs to be cleaned all the time.

If I didn't clean mine daily, the skimmer would basically not work right.

That's why I bought an automatic neck cleaner. It cleans the neck every 4 hours.

 

[kentwo]

I clean my entire skimmer once a month. Mine is a HOB model with extra chambers. Right now the chambers are empty except for a small bag with some Phosphoban. When I see somethings being trapped in the nooks and crannies of the skimmer, I rinse the whole thing out.

 

[Customride0105]

I clean the body once every 2 days. If not it won't pull anything out of the tank

 

[ericarenee]

Clean the neck twice a week by forcing the skimmer to over flow into the collection cup with a drain line on it. I do so using a small brush then i will clean the collection cup in the same way..
I think for longer pump life you should take the pump down and soak it in vinegar then gently clean it same with venturi and other inlet plumbing as needed... The skimmer body i would not clean unless you see a function issue with the skimmer or it gets to where bubbles are sticking to the sides of skimmer.. So i will when i clean the neck go around the inside of the body lightly with a brush with bendable handle bottle cleaner brush .