Skimmer skimming too little?

[ahochan]

Hi,

I have a 100l/26g tank. It has a AquaC nano remora skimmer with a Maxi-Jet 900 pump set up in the sump. The amount of foam it produces is very variable, and sometimes it can go for a day or two at a time without producing any foam. The collection cup fills up to about one third after a month of use.

Is my skimmer underperforming? Any reason to worry?

 

[Ziggy953]

How long has this tank been set up? What is the bio load in the tank? How much do you feed what is in the tank? All of these will contribute to what the skimmer pulls out of the water....if there is very little DOC in the water then there will be very little "foam" produced. Also do you put anything in the water like stress coat? These kinds of things will cause a skimmer to go nuts and not work properly. Please take a few moments and update your "my info" so we can better help you out.

Thanks

 

[ahochan]

Perhaps I'm blind, but I can't find where to edit "myinfo" for my account.

I'll just fill in what you asked for here in the meantime:

- Tank has been up 6 months
- Inhabitants: Yellow-tailed blue damsel, Clark's Angel, Green Okinawa Goby, Coral banded shrimp, 2 blue-legged hermits, 2 other hermits, 5 snails, 2 feather dusters, a cool little urchin hitchhiker and a shy hitchhiker crab
- Water changes: Weekly 5 liter (total capacity about 100 l). Red sea salt, use tap water.

Water parameters have been stable, NO3 has been up and down a bit, but is at around 10 ppm now. Had problems with diatoms the first few months, but nothing now.

I feed twice a day. I try to feed sparingly, but I'm not sure if I succeed
I don't use any medication, the only additive I use is chlorine-remover for top-off water and new SW.

I run constantly with active carbon that I change every so often. The last couple of months
I have also used poly filter in an effort to get the NO3 down. Oh, and I have normal fluorescent lights, the tube says 10.000K, but I'm not sure if I can trust that

 

[roka64]

Update your profile on the home page.

 

[Ziggy953]

Since you only have 3 fish in teh tank I would suggest feeding once every other day. Feeding that often can cause problems for your water. How much LR do you have in the tank? Have you adjusted the amount of air that is going into the skimmer? I know that sometimes with a venturi type skimmer with maxi-jet you have to play with the amount of air to get it fine tuned.

The carbon that you use is also pulling stuff out of the water so that will effect how well your skimmer functions.

 

[melosu58]

I also agree with feeding every other day. Been doing for nine yrs now. You might not have much to skim.

 

[ahochan]

I only feed a little each time, but I'll try to cut back I was under the impression that smaller frequent feedings were better than bigger infrequent feedings...

I have about 8 kg of LR, a lot of it is in the sump.

Also, the Aqua C skimmer doesn't use a venturi, so there's nothing to adjust.

 

[melosu58]

I only feed a little each time, but I'll try to cut back I was under the impression that smaller frequent feedings were better than bigger infrequent feedings...

I`m not suggesting bigger infrequent suggestions as is none of the others. Just feed every other day regular feedings. You dont need to double the amount because it is every other day.

 

[MT79]

I was under the impression that smaller frequent feedings were better than bigger infrequent feedings...

Feeding small amounts 2-3 times a day will yield the best results. That is closer to the way fish eat in nature, other than predators such as eels, etc. I've gotten much better coloration, growth, and activity out of my fish since switching from feeding every few days to twice a day. That is the way many hobbiest are doing it these days, due to better ways of managing waste/nutrient accumulation in tanks. Watch for algae out breaks. If you have a good skimmer, and do regualr PWC's feeding less, but more often will not be an issue. It will actaully benefit the tank. Just be sure not to over do it.
PS-No disrespect meant Melosu

 

[melosu58]

None intended. It`s funny that I can say the same as your results but feeding every other day. I have fish in my tank that were with me at the begining nine yrs ago. I have not had ick or algea in the tank for 7 yrs now. Not bad for feeding every other day for nine + yrs.

 

[MT79]

It`s funny that I can say the same as your results but feeding every other day.

Not saying it's not successful, it's what I did until about 8 months ago. Most of the Mods here would recommend sparse feedings in the years gone by. After reading a lot about increases in feeding being more natural, and people experiencing more frequent spawning, better health, color, etc. in their fish I decided my system and experience would allow for it. Since going to twice daily feedings I have saw many improvements, as mentioned above. Not that anything was wrong before, now it's just better. It's worth giving it a try, if your schedule etc. permits.
Happy reefing

 

[vsnsofadrgn]

ive read that putting the aqua c's in the sump make them not preform well. i beleieve they have to be on the main tank for the best preformance. i cant remember where i read it, maybe on their website (???). i would try that first, if it still isnt doin anything, id take a look at your bioload, feeding, etc. i had to do a slight mod to mine to get anyhting in the collection cup, but i never really had that much of a bioload either..... hth

 

[MT79]

ive read that putting the aqua c's in the sump make them not preform well

That's not true. As long as it is being fed surface water, it will not affect performance. My Aqua-C Remora starting really kicking butt when I added it to my sump. It's b/c it's in the first chamber, before my fuge, and skims the surface water pulled out by the overflow. DOC's accumulate at the surface. That is primarily why prefilter boxes are recommended for HOB skimmers if your using them in a display.

 

[Ziggy953]

Mike is right there!! The more surface water that is put into the skimmer the better! Mine gets half of the water skimmed off the surface, the other half goes into my fuge.

Ahochan, I'm not familiar enough with the Aqua C Remora to have known it wasn't a venturi, using a maxi-jet I assumed it was. I have read now and see that it is a spray type skimmer...

Happy Reefing!

 

[ahochan]

I have an aqua c _nano_ remora skimmer, and I haven't seen a surface skimmer available for it... does anyone know if one is available.

The skimmer is currently installed in the second chamber of the sump, quite close to the return pump. The reason it is not in the first chamber is that I made one very stupid mistake when setting up the tank, I put it too close to the wall, so there's not enough room behind the tank for it... D'oh!

A question to people who are feeding twice daily... how often/much do you do PVCs (I do 5 % / week). Also, I'm sure there are different opinions as to what constitutes a "small feeding"

 

[Ziggy953]

I do PWCs every other week. I usually do between 20% and 25% of total water volume. I would say that 5% isn't quite enough. Maybe 10%-15% a week would be better. If what you are doing is working for you though stick with it. As for the surface skimming what we are talking about is skimming the water that has been pulled off the surface of the display tank.

 

[lando]

the biggest issue I have seen effect skimmer collection is the cleaning of the collection cup itself. I find I have very good and consistant collection when I clean the cup every two to three days. Any longer then that and I notice a large decrease in prodution.

 

[Ziggy953]

Very good point!!! After a while the "gunk" skimate builds up in the riser tube and slows the bubbles making it all the way to the collection cup. I try and clean mine every couple of days too....

 

[ahochan]

the biggest issue I have seen effect skimmer collection is the cleaning of the collection cup itself. I find I have very good and consistant collection when I clean the cup every two to three days. Any longer then that and I notice a large decrease in prodution.

Maybe I'm just being paranoid, but I think I'm seeing the opposite effect. When I clean out the collection cup, it seems to take a while before the skimming kicks in again.

 

[Ziggy953]

That can be true also...it's like a mini break-in period. I have found that after I clean out my cup and riser tube If I dry it out and off completely I get it skimming within an hour or so. Try drying it off with paper towels after you clean it next time and see if that helps!