skimmer question

[labatt]

i just got my wet/dry from ebay, it has a built in skimmer. My tank hasnt arrived yet. I was wondering if i could run the wet/dry and put somethin in the water to see if the skimmer is going to work.

 

[tomnmaddie]

labatt

other then checking to see if the pump works with water you can not check the effectiness of the protien skimmer, but checking the skimmer with water to make sure pump works and no other obvious problems is a good idea. foam will not be produced when u do this....

 

[labatt]

pump runs and everything, I was just wondering if i could get something in there that would foam up a bit so I know if I still need to get a skimmer.....i have my doubts on this one. Thanks for the answer.

 

[MCary]

You'll need salt water first. Freshwater doesn't foam in small skimmers. And by small I mean less than the size of a Buick. Then you need some protein of some sort to develop surface tension. If you want to watch your skimmer go crazy, you can put a capful of melefix or stresscoat in the water. Won't tell you much about the effectiveness of the skimmer however, any skimmer can foam melefix.

Mike