How to adjust red sea protein skimmer ?

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bizzybeas

Aquarium Advice Freak
Joined
May 29, 2003
Messages
391
Location
Arizona
I have a red sea prizm deluxe skimmer. I have had it set up for about 8 weeks. I set up my new reef about three and a half months ago. I lost the book and am not sure if I have the thing set up properly. I have never gotten any fluid in the collection cup, but there are some bubbles which have risen up through the chamber. Is this normal? I do have 4 fish, a clean up crew, and some ricordias. The only time I saw it really working was when I forgot to unhook it after adding melafix. :oops: I am not sure how much gunk I should be getting at this point. If anyone has one of these, some tips would be appreciated. I know they are touchy. :?
 
How big of tank again?

The prizm skimmer will have a black valve at the top of the intake tube. The more you open this valave the more air/water is processed by the skimmer. I found as mine ran more and more I would need to open the valve more and more to keep it skimming at a somewhat efffective rate.

The center chamber is where the air/water reaction takes place. The neck of the center chamber will have a rubber gasket that seals the collection cup atop it. Adjust your water level by opening/closing the valve until the overall water level in the center chamber is just below that ruber gasket.

How much skim you get and how often you have to empty the cup is kind of dependant upon your tank and how poluted your water is from fish waste, uneaten food, etc.
 
I have a 65 gallon. I have two controls, water and air. So far, I have adjusted the water to just trickle slowly and then just a little air. Should I turn the water up first to get the level up, and then the air?
 
Your pizm skimmer must be the new design. Mine is the old classic design. Turn up the air. You want a really good frothing of airbubbles in the reaction chamber. No bubbles should be comming out into the tank.
 
Thank you for your help. I did have some bubbles coming into the tank, I have now turned my air up. I think that was the problem! :D
 
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