skimming question

[ellisz]

I have read recently that Berlin Skimmers can be finicky and need to be watched. Well, I noticed that my polyps and xenia have not been been opening up as well the last 3 days. I did a water change this week and it appears that the skimmer stopped skimming at that point. I adjusted today and it started running like crazy again.

My question is why does this have such a big effect on my tank? I have 110 lbs of LR and a DSB that was seeded with LS and all has been up almost 6 months. I have 2 damsels and 1 clown fish in there so I would consider my bioload pretty small.

I am planning on adding my mandarin tonight since he is not doing well in my QT tank and I have a yellow tang and 3 chromis I want to add as well. I planned on adding 1 each week but I wonder if that will still be too much?

I know some people don't skim so what is the secret for that? I do wonder if I need to clean my LR a bit more since I have noticed some of the rocks seem to have stuff accumulating on them?

Any ideas?

 

[reefrunner69]

Any sudden change in the tank will most likely produce a negative effect, it's not necessarily that the conditions are poor, just the sudden change.

You will find that with a heavier bioload the skimmer will preform a bit better. Also what pump are you using on the skimmer?

 

[Biggen]

Venturi action skimmers require seemingly constant attention in order to get them to perform correctly. I have been through 2 venturi skimmers in less than a year now and I didn't care for either of them. I finally settled on an Aqua C which uses a spray induction jet and it seems to work wonders so far.

anyway, on to your question...

My question is why does this have such a big effect on my tank?

Are you asking why the water changes affected your skimmer? Or are you asking if skimmer has anything to do with your polyps and xenia not opening?

Skimmers often wont work for some time after a water change. They also seem to not work as well immediately after feeding for some reason. I believe it may have something to do with the chemical and oils in the food and the new salt used in a water change. Why this is I am not certain. It is just what I have observed.

I couldn't imagine your skimmer would have anything to do with the poor health of corals. That is, of course, if you are overskimming, but I doubt that is a problem unless you skimmer is way overrated for your size tank (not likely).

I do wonder if I need to clean my LR a bit more since I have noticed some of the rocks seem to have stuff accumulating on them?

You really shouldn't have to do anything to your LR at all. If you have algae growing on them you may want to look into getting the appropriate clean-up crew in order to take care of that.

I say this and then I go and take out my own LR in order to remove bubble algae every once in a while...

 

[ellisz]

Also what pump are you using on the skimmer?

I am using a Mag5 on the skimmer.

Are you asking why the water changes affected your skimmer? Or are you asking if skimmer has anything to do with your polyps and xenia not opening?

Seems like when the skimmer stops working, the polyps and such don't open as much.

I couldn't imagine your skimmer would have anything to do with the poor health of corals. That is, of course, if you are overskimming, but I doubt that is a problem unless you skimmer is way overrated for your size tank (not likely).

My skimmer runs all the time. It is a Berlin Classic and the tank is 75 gal. When I say it is not working, there is not any bubbles in the skimmer chamber. I don't expect it to be pulling crud out all of the time but I think the chamber should show the swirling bubbles.

I have heard that it is good to suction out some of the loose stuff on the LR or blast it with a turkey baster. You don't do this?

 

[reefrunner69]

I am using a Mag5 on the skimmer.

If it is a classic...Red Sea recommends a minimum of a mag 7. When I had one, I used a mag 9.5, I have seen others that had better results from their skimmer by changing the venturi.

My skimmer runs all the time. It is a Berlin Classic and the tank is 75 gal. When I say it is not working, there is not any bubbles in the skimmer chamber. I don't expect it to be pulling crud out all of the time but I think the chamber should show the swirling bubbles.

Take a piece of thin stiff wire (way smaller than coat hanger) and clean the air intake for the venturi, make sure the tubing is seated on there also. When I had one, I used to use warm (microwaved) RO water and have the air line for the venturi suck out the water from the cup once per week to remove any salt deposits.

I have heard that it is good to suction out some of the loose stuff on the LR or blast it with a turkey baster. You don't do this?

I baste my rock, once per week minimum. It is quite easy for detritus to settle on the rock.

 

[Biggen]

I baste my rock, once per week minimum. It is quite easy for detritus to settle on the rock.

I guess I need to get with the times. I have never done this. Although my LR looks "O.K.".

 

[reefrunner69]

Mostly it settles in the holes in my LR, there are a couple of places that due to the arrangement of the rock, don't get as great a flow and they need to be blown off.

 

[Gauge]

Okay, I'm confused. I thought that a Berlin skimmer was a skimmer that ran on an air pump? Perhaps I should start a new thread asking about all the different kinds. I guess all my skimmer knowledge is potentially wrong. :/

 

[Biggen]

Hey Gauge,

The Red Sea Berlin Skimmers use the venturi style of skimming in order to work. They need a venturi pump attached to it in order to draw in the air into the riser. Here is the official site for the Berlin skimmer: http://www.redseafish.com/SubCategory.asp?catID=93&subID=35

Here is a great article to get you up-to-date with the major skimming technologies:
http://saltaquarium.about.com/cs/proteinskimmers/a/aa052200.htm

If you need anything else, just ask...

 

[Gauge]

Thanks, that article was exactly what I was looking for. I appreciate it.