Surface skimmer setup for Remora

[Boxster]

I had a few questions on the Remora skimmer.

1. Just brought a surface skimmer for Remora maxijet. However, I don't know how to set it up?? Doesn't seem like the Maxijet pump will fit into the pump chamber. The way my skimmer setup is that the outflow of the pump stick vertically onto the hose of the Remora. The inlet is pointing left when look from the front of the tank.

2. I added another maxijet1200 to my 46 FOWLR. After the pump is added, My Remora is not producing foam outflowing into the cup. I can still see the bubbles in the chamber but the bubbles seems to always at the level half way of the collection cup tube, and not going all the way up?? After 12 hours, it is still the same. Any thoughts?? My setup is that the Emperor 400 is on left, my skimmer pump is in the middle and the new maxijet pump is on the right side close to the top.

3. Without the additional Maxijet pump, I added a polyfilter into my Emperor and immediately I saw my Remora starts producing huge amount of foam. I have to empty the cup every 2 hours. Any thoughts?? 3-4 hours later, I turn on my additonal maxijet and my Remora is performing what describe in question #2.

 

[snapcrackler]

Regarding 2 and 3, maybe because the additional maxijet is stirring the water together so well that the surface gunk just gets mixed back into the water and the skimmer can't skim it?

I'm looking into getting a remora so I will be following this post.

 

[fishfreek]

When you put the second powerhead in do you take the filter pad out? If you turn the pump off and leave the filter pad in does the remora start producing again?

Where do you have the second PH positioned?

The overflow box will fit. How you describe the position of the maxijet for the remora is correct. The inlet should be to the left if your facing the tank and the skimmer outlet will be to the right. put the overflow box in the tank and slowly rase it over the powerhead and position the top of the overflow where you want the water surface to be. Then use the two plastic nuts to hold the overflow box to the powerhead. Run the electrical cord up the overflow box and then down to the outlet.

Make sure water is flowing into the overflow box. If its not then either lower the box some or add more water to the system. You will have to keep the water level at a point that water is able to flow into the overflow box. I have to add approx 1/2gal a day to replace evaporation inorder to keep water flowing into my overflow box for the remora.

 

[Boxster]

I couldn't fit the maxijet in there. Do I need to remove the inlet plastic tube and the cage at the tip to fit into the overflow box? There are accesories that comes with the Maxijet pump. I never tie anything on the outlet of the pump, but the inlet, I connect the extension tube and the small cage at the tip where the input of the water is. Without the cage to prevent big detris from going into the pump, I afraid that it will clog my Remora spray injection.

When I turn off my the other PH, the Remora starts to skim again (bubbles at the top of cup) after an hour or so. I placed this PH on the right near the top blowing 45 degree at the water surface away from my Remora maxijet. My thinking is that if I blow my outlet across the Remora, the clean water coming out of the Remora outflow will be blow into the inlet again and the cleanwater will get skim over and over again.

 

[Boxster]

What filter pad are you referring to. The maxijet PH does not come with any filter pad.

 

[Boxster]

What filter pad are you referring to. The maxijet PH does not come with any filter pad.

 

[fishfreek]

I added a polyfilter into my Emperor

In your message you mention the above that i refered to as a filter pad. yes you have to take the plastic cage off the powerhead intake. That cage is more to protect fish adn snails from having their guts sucked out than anything else. The only tiems getting ito the powerhead will be stuff that is floating on the top of your water and is flowing thru the overflow box fingers.

 

[Boxster]

Ok, got you. I will try it tonight. When you fit in your surface skimmer, is the 2 screws on the pre-skim box facing the front of the tank?

I still have the polyfilter pad in my Emperor. I am combating against phosphate (0.5ppm) in my tank now.

Anyone knows why the polyfilter make my Remora goes crazy?? The polyfilter supposed not to release any trace elements to the water. It is just suppose to absorb phosphate and other bad stuffs like the carbon.

 

[fishfreek]

Yes the two plastic screws is what holds the surface skimmer to the powerhead. The skimmer outlet goes on the side that has a hole in the bottom with the foam over it. Powerhead is over the side with the fingers routed into it.

 

[Boxster]

When adjusting the surface skimmer box, I found out that if the water level at the outlet chamber is close to the top of the divider, the skimmer does not perform well. I have to adjust the skimmer box higher such that the water at the outlet chamber is a few mm below the top, then my skimmer starts skimming well again. Any ideas why? The only thing I can think of is that because the return water is close to the top, its spills over to the pump chamber and thus the efficiency is reduce.

Also, is it normal that when looking into the skimmer box, there is water slips to the outside of the cup tube such that there is the normal bubbles going through the cup tube, and there is also about an inch of water surrounded the base of the cup tube in the skimmer box. Hope you guys can visualize this, this is the best explaination I can give.