skimmer question

[Chris]

our skimmer is a berlin with a magdrive 700 pump drive. whenever we run it it always foams over out of the cup. is there any way we can fix this? thanks

[REDPYRO]

i wouldnt think the 700 would be to much pump for it.  they recommend a rio 2100-3100 pump which i believe is like 700-900 gph. 

maybe it is?  you could try a gate vavle to slow the pump to see if that helps. 

can the cup be moved farther up?

are you adding anything to your tank that would cause a skimmer to foam excessively?  (some addatives are not to be run with skimmer for a certain amount of time)

Is the skimmer new or unused?  sometimes they require some gunk in them to function properly.  no gunk and the skimmer runs free.

[verper]

I have a mag 9.5 on my red sea berlin and have a gate valve between it and the skimmer.  No way it wouldn't overflow without restricting the flow of the 9.5 some.  I had a Rio 1700 on it in the beginning and it wasn't enough pump.  Red is correct that a 2100 would be the minimum Rio and I think a mag7 is the smallest magdrive to use on it. 

You should be running the skimmer 24/7.  They usually settle down once they are running for a few days.

[Chris]

we got the skimmer used. it used to overflow due to the cup filling with water, now it just foams over. I'll keep it running and see if things settle down a bit.

[Chris]

oh and we haven't added anything to our tank and we can't move the cup any higher. it's almost like it can't offload the water fast enough and just keeps filling.

[REDPYRO]

Is there a blockage or defect in the outlet pipe?

If it was mine I would borrow a smaller pump and try it for a week or use a gate valve.

At least eliminate that...I cant see it being a problem because a mag 7 is 700 and a 2100 is rated max at like 692.

But there is an issue somewhere.

I agree that running it 24/7 might help break it in.  If it was cleaned with something before sold to you maybe there is a chemical in it?  Soak it in tank water for a few days or in a vinegar solution.

can you set up a little overflow catch tube, or if its in a sump just let it overflow for a few days...it wont hurt anything.  Just bubbley water

[verper]

Is the cup still filling up with water?  If it is, you have wet foam and need to decrease the flow some.

If it is just foam, then it is dry foam and just let it run.  That's what it's supposed to do.

I was surprised at how much stuff was skimmed out of my tank with just water, sand, and base rock.  Plus the water surface catches a lot of airborne stuff that gets removed.  There may be more there than you think.

[mhhauser321]

I have thought about your problem, and i could be completely wrong but here goes.

it Seems to me that the problem could be with the pump size, But you might also want to check out the bubble injector and see if the air stone or whatever model you have is not over producing.

IF this doesn't work, You Should let the skimmer run for a while longer and see if your problem doesn't just eliminate itself

I firmly that believe that most aquarium hobbyist's  problems can be solved with just a little bit of Patience.

If my info does not help you check out this link It was a great help for me.

http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2002-06/fm/feature/index.php

matt

[Joel]

The problem is that the 700 moves more water than the Berlin can get out. I don't think you can put a gate valve on your set up due to space limitations. The cheapest way to remedy this problem is to put a mag 5 impellor in your mag 7. It is a direct fit with no modifications and will in no way harm your pump. I most likely have them in stock and would even give you some credit off the new inpellor if you want to trade in your # 7 impeller.

See ya...Joel

[Emily]

I'll double check what we have, my wife's now saying that its not a mag7 but a mag5. I couldn't remember which we used for the skimmer.

[Emily]

oh yea and this is chris using emily's profile to post in case that confused anyone!

[micki]

I thought Emily married a man but then I was confused!!!  

[Chris]

yea, em's always logged in so whenever I come here I have to make sure to log her out first! but yea the pump is a mag5 so I guess I need to go with something even smaller.