downhill_biker Posted September 5, 2008 Share Posted September 5, 2008 I was cleaning the skimmer cup tonight, and noticed there was a fair amount of build up on the inside of the skimmer, dry skimmate grime. So I decided to clean it up, and now my tank is cloudy. Did I make a BIG mistake? Now that I think about it, I kindof put a lot of protein back into the water. I am skimming very wet right now and trying to remove as fast as possible, but is there anything else I should do? Is it something I should really be worried about? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ryan Posted September 5, 2008 Share Posted September 5, 2008 Is your skimmer in your sump? Every time I move something around or change my filter media it stirs of a lot of debris that settled in my sump....Im sure thats what happened in your tank, and is nothing to be worried about. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JManrow Posted September 5, 2008 Share Posted September 5, 2008 It doesn't sound like you have done anything "wrong". You should give your skimate collection cup an occasional cleaning. It may take a couple of days even to start pulling out a dark liquid again. How long ago did you clean it? You might try cleaning things up using activated carbon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
downhill_biker Posted September 5, 2008 Author Share Posted September 5, 2008 I use carbon and change it every 3 weeks in my canister filter. I usually clean my skimmer cup every day, or maybe every other day, depending on how full it is. i just am worried because the build up on the skimmer body has made my tank cloudy. I run my skimmer very dry, and the water level is a couple inches below the cup, so there is heavy material deposited on the top 2" of the body. I cleaned that off, and it went into the tank. So do you (or anyone else) still think I'm ok? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JManrow Posted September 5, 2008 Share Posted September 5, 2008 A partial water change then new carbon wouldn't hurt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andy Posted September 5, 2008 Share Posted September 5, 2008 I agree with John and don't think you've done anything to harm your tank. How cloudy is it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nyles Posted September 5, 2008 Share Posted September 5, 2008 I agree with John... wc and carbon to be safe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
downhill_biker Posted September 5, 2008 Author Share Posted September 5, 2008 Well I didn't post again last night, sorry. The tank was so cloudy i couldnt see through it from one end to the other, 4 feet. By the time i went to bed it was probably clear enough i could read a piece of paper through it. Really cleared up pretty fast. Over the course of a couple hours it was completely clear again, but had to clean skimmer cup about 6 times. Thanks everyone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CCR Posted September 5, 2008 Share Posted September 5, 2008 Sounds like very dry skimming. I like to skim a little wet. I did the same thing a long time ago. Stuck my finger in andtryed to get the MUCK off the top area of the skimmer. Yea I got a lot out but even more fell into the skimmer and yes what a mess it made of the water. The critters and corals didn't like it. I agree with the above. Water and carbon. Run wet. Keep the tank sterred up so it doesn't settle. Remembeer the stuff is supper fine and takes a bit. You'll be OK. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kriswaters Posted September 8, 2008 Share Posted September 8, 2008 I clean my collection cup at least once a week. I get the thick goop that lines the inside of the neck as well as the stinky skimmate that fills the cup. Perhaps your cloudiness was secondary to some air issues? Did your skimmer overflow bubbles into your sump while cleaning...or something of that sort? How old is the system? Newer systems tend to be a bit more "sensitive" to certain things. I am glad that things are all right now...just take note the next time as to "rule out" specific things that might cause this problem. kris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
downhill_biker Posted September 9, 2008 Author Share Posted September 9, 2008 I clean my collection cup at least once a week. I get the thick goop that lines the inside of the neck as well as the stinky skimmate that fills the cup. Perhaps your cloudiness was secondary to some air issues? Did your skimmer overflow bubbles into your sump while cleaning...or something of that sort? How old is the system? Newer systems tend to be a bit more "sensitive" to certain things. I am glad that things are all right now...just take note the next time as to "rule out" specific things that might cause this problem. kris I think that there wasnt an air problem. I clean my cup....gasp....every day of the dry stinky skimmate off the cone and neck as well as dump the liquid. The area that i hadn't cleaned was below the cup, the water level is about 1 1/2" below the cup, and bubbles come up from there. I just stuck my finger in there and wiped the slime (1/4" thick) off the sides, and some fell in the skimmer and I watched it turn the water in the skimmer brown, then the sump, and then flow up to the tank. It happened so fast there was nothing I could do, well I thought, I should have unplugged return pump. The tank is a little over a year old. It is still what I would consider a young tank, but is doing very well and usually very stable. As you can see here, It cleared up on its own in a couple hours, and I didn't do any water changes...because I didn't have water ready(nono)(wife)(nono). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kriswaters Posted September 9, 2008 Share Posted September 9, 2008 It is amazing what "things" can happen...I take my skimmer apart every 6 months and clean the heck out of it. If you are getting thick build up in the neck, you need to adjust your outflow pipe so that it skimms higher (wetter). The bubbles should be just below the top part of the collection cup so they flow over and into the cup. You will get a build up inside that area, but not in the skimmer body itself. Kris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
downhill_biker Posted September 9, 2008 Author Share Posted September 9, 2008 It is amazing what "things" can happen...I take my skimmer apart every 6 months and clean the heck out of it. If you are getting thick build up in the neck, you need to adjust your outflow pipe so that it skimms higher (wetter). The bubbles should be just below the top part of the collection cup so they flow over and into the cup. You will get a build up inside that area, but not in the skimmer body itself. Kris If I do that the skimmate is very wet and clear, if I have it lower it is dark green and skims slowly. This is the only way I can have it setup and run all day without filling in an hour and then not skimming the rest of the day. I think the skimmer is probably under rated for my tank. I have a 72 gallon tank and the skimmer goes up to 125, but you know how ratings go. Now....I have seen many skimmers where the bubbles rise through a bubble chamber, that is very long, and then go into the skimmer cup, isn't that what I am basically doing? I guess I have a high bioload and should get a bigger skimmer, but cant afford one, so have to make this work. Curtis Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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