Coralife Super Skimmer 65

[Fierro Nights]

i got my CSS in the mail the other day i had it set up in my main tank ( 20g ) but the micro bubbles where horrible and seemed to bother my fish, he looked like he was having seizures so i took it out, my fish is doing great now so i took out some tank water put it in a bucket, replaced my filter and threw in my old filter into the bucket and placed in my skimmer to break it in, i plan to use it in my sump which will be here late on saturday. well ive had the skimmer on for two days now, i came back from dinner today to find it over flowing but i didnt mind as it was inside the bucket and not HOT style. i dont know why it over flowed, but before dinner i didnt skimm anything other then clear water w/ micro dust floating in it,.

i do water changes twice a week, 2 gallons each and i preform water changes after stiring the sand bed to remove water particles. is it possible that my water is too clean or does the skimmer need modifying?

im sorry for the bad picture quality i used my camera phone but this is where i have the micro bubbles set at.

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[lance]

You need to let the skimmer break in. This takes 3 or 4 days and it needs to break in , in the main tank. I dought the bubbles had anything to do with the fish but MB the added O2 (though its the wrong type of o2) made the fish happy from added O2 , or the added flow kicked up ammonia causeing stress.

Then whene it overflowed it means its breaking in. Just set the bubble level real low and adjust a few times a day as needed.

Debris being kicked up could be from a few sources. To much uneatin food , or fish waste or other debris collecting and the added water movement is kicking it up. A HOB media filter will help with this along with good water flow and proper feeding habits.
Its best to feed more often and in smaller amounts with 4 or 5 types of food.
You could use a turkey baster type device and right before water change blow small areas of LR and sand. Then the water change will help remove more along with the Hang On Back media filter and feeding scedule.

Also readjusting your CUC will help. Nass snails and hermits would help.

 

[ccCapt]

Overflowing/flooding is a common problem with these skimmers. IMO, they are not worth the price. It will take a week or 2 for the skimmer to break in and the microbubbles will slow down or stop.

but MB the added O2 (though its the wrong type of o2)

??? What does that mean? There is more than 1 type of oxygen? o2 is o2 is o2. If it's not oxygen, it's something else....and if it's something else, it's not o2.

 

[catmel]

I had mine overflow once, and came home to a very unhappy boyfriend lol. I've noticed you have to be home for about an hour or two and watch it after you turn it back on to make sure the flow is right. Once I got it down to where I needed to turn the nob, I didnt have any problems with it. Although I must admit, I got mine for about $50 pretty new off e-bay. Not sure I would have paid full price for it, but it seems to be working pretty well so far.

 

[lance]

The Oxygen that your salt water needs cant be seen. Its the amount of saturated oxygen in the water. The oxygen is added by a gas exchange at the surface through water movement or amount of current produced from powerheads. This is also how you remove nitrogen which was converted from nitrate and ammonia from your LR and LS so the better the flow the better your gas exchange at the surface will be. This is why it isnt good to cover a SW tank.

Overflowing/flooding is a common problem with these skimmers. IMO, they are not worth the price. It will take a week or 2 for the skimmer to break in and the microbubbles will slow down or stop.


??? What does that mean? There is more than 1 type of oxygen? o2 is o2 is o2. If it's not oxygen, it's something else....and if it's something else, it's not o2.

 

[ccCapt]

The Oxygen that your salt water needs cant be seen.

As opposed to the oxygen that we breath and can see?

 

[lance]

I only mean that the bubbles produced from the skimmer cant be absorbed by the fish.

 

[Fierro Nights]

so having my tank flooded w/ micro bubbles, the fish was just playing around in them, not bothering him?

 

[lance]

If he tends to hang in this area then your water movement might be low. But as for hurting them i cant see this. The added water movement could have kickup debris causeing ammonia or nitrate to rise which could stress them out.

 

[Fierro Nights]

i have two power heads in my tank, its a 20 gallon tall, along w/ two filters that pour water into the tank, there is plenty of movement.

my fish likes to hang between the glass and the heater w/ his tail bent and facing down so he can be squished in the corner until its feeding time. he likes it in there alot, he's still a baby.

and the rest of the water is fine, my sticker thermometer reads 82 F im slowly lowering it to 78

 

[Fierro Nights]

alright my sump came in today, my coralife skimmer is too big to fit inside the thing im afraid that my skimmer may overflow again, because i can only install it HOT style.

any suggestions?

i was thinking of getting some extra vynil for the motor to hang lower and extend the pipe work for the return flow, that way the skimmer can sit above the sump, so if it overflows, water will simply go back into the sump. this however will take up alot of space which i have, just doesn't look as fancy.