Still no skimmate from tunze 9010 please help.

[glennhornibrook]

Hi Roger and to all,
This is my first post because normally if i have a question I simply read through previous posts
where someone has always asked the question before me and i find my answer.
(Thank you to everyone for your help in the past.)
This time i can't find a solution.
Two months ago i invested in a tunze 9010.
It was a stretch in my budget but it was worth it for tunze
and to help reduce my high nitrates but since then i have yet to produce 20ml of skim in a week.
Water level is correct and steady.
all parts are fitting together correctly.
I have followed instructions exactly.
I tried it in sump and in tank with a months break in time each,
but nothing
Even with adjustment screw fully out the skimmate doesn't make it to the collection cup.(using 1/4 turn per day)

please help

I'm out of ideas.

I wont be able to check back for two days but look forward to reply.

 

[rvitko]

When you had it set up in sump, did water exit the tube? How far out is the venturi screw (number of turns)? Does the airline fit nipple fit snuggly into the venturi and is the venturi positioned inside the clear jet pipe in the skimmer?

Make sure your venturi is not broken as shown here-

It should come apart like this-

 

[glennhornibrook]

When it was set up in the sump water did come out the pipe.
Venturi looks fine and all fittings are snug.
The venturi does produce bubbles but almost nothing makes it to the cup.
The adjustment screw is fully out now which took 7 full turns.
I only turn 1/4 turn per day.

 

[rvitko]

The nipple from the airline should fit into the venturi snug enough that the pump can be lifted by the airline, my guess is that this is a loose fit, it should skim at about 3-4 turns out.

 

[glennhornibrook]

Thanks for quick response,
I checked the connection and it was a snug fit that could lift the pump but I was able to push it in a little more.
I will let you know if this helped once it has had time to settle.

 

[glennhornibrook]

It has been a week now since I checked the connection.
There is only about 50ml of skim.
It skimmed most of that on the second day and then stopped skimming.
That is the way it works everytime.
After a clean it takes a day to start skimming .once it has skimmed between 20ml and 50ml it stops.
Gunk does build up in the neck but almost nothing makes it to the cup.
What do you think?

 

[glennhornibrook]

P.S. The adjustment screw is still out fully.

 

[rvitko]

Can you send me the skimmer? I would like the complete skimmer without the cup for testing.
I will repair it and send it back preassembled.


Tunze USA
305 Victor St
Austin TX 78753

 

[glennhornibrook]

I will have to check the price of shipping because I live in Ireland.
Are you confident something could be done with it.
Maybe you would like to refer me to someone closer.
I bought the skimmer in Canada so I don't know who deals with Tunze here but i could find out.

 

[rvitko]

I am sorry, I thought you lived in the US, you would not send it to me then, you would send it to Tunze in Germany but we may have found the problem. Isn't Ireland 240V 50Hz like UK? Canada is 115V 60Hz, even if you converted the voltage the Hz is different and it is a different motor, a 50Hz motor does 3000rpm and has a different, larger impeller and the motor coil itself is different in the number of windings and diameter of the wire on the coil. A 60Hz pump spins at 3600rpm and the impeller is smaller, you probably have the smaller impeller spinning at 3000 rpm so the air and water flow are much less and long term the motor will probably burn out. You may just need to order a 9010.015UK motor and a 0235.120 impeller and the problem will be solved.

 

[glennhornibrook]

That would make sence alright. I have the power converted to 110v but i never thought about the Hz. I have 2 6045s and a 6101 running in the same way but you wouldnt notice a problem with them (interesting to see how long they last). You learn something new every day. When you say change the motor do you mean the full pump unit?
Thanks for taking the time to answer my questions.

 

[rvitko]

The 6045 will also have much less flow and will suffer long term. The 6101 does not depend on Hz, it generates its own Hz pattern, it is what is termed an asynchronous motor, i.e. it doesn't spin at the frequency of the mains voltage. The 6101 transformer is auto adapting from 100-240V so no convertor is needed.

 

[rvitko]

You just need the motor block and impeller blades, the part numbers I listed above, you could order them on the Tunze site, just be sure to select Ireland when you enter the site and you will get the right ones.

 

[glennhornibrook]

That's good news about the 6101 I'd hate to see it go.We'll just have to put the the 6045's down as an experiment. I'll post back any side effects. Thanks for your help, it's much appreciated.

 

[glennhornibrook]

9010 Skimmer working great now

9010 Skimmer working great now

Hi Roger,
I finaly got the parts for the 9010 and it has produced 300ml of good skim in first 3 days which is a huge improvement .Thanks for the advice. I can set the skimmer up with hang on tank construction or in sump construction as there is a constant water level in the area of the sump in which it is located. Which do you think would give the best performance or does it matter? The 6045s are still working fine except when you turn them on they are as likely to go backwards as forwards as my clown goby found out the hard way. R.I.P. Do you think this could also be caused by them workin on 50Hz instead of 60Hz?
Thanks again for sorting skimmer issue,
Glenn.

 

[rvitko]

Yes, the coils are wound for the frequency and voltage and for the start up to work the coil has to be tuned fairly precisely to the voltage and HZ.