PDA

View Full Version : Protein Skimmer



RothChyld
05-26-2003, 10:01 AM
I have a protein skimmer but the cup hardly gathers anything even after a week. I often let total flow in and still no goop. Is this the sign of a healthy tank or a malfunctioning protein skimmer?

Thank you in advance!

Setup
--------------------------------------------------
90g Reef Tank (3 years of age)

Fish: 8 Chromis Damsels, Yellow Tang, Red Hawkfish, Lawnmower Blenny, 3 Bar Gobies, Sandsifting Goby, Royal Gramma, Maroon Clown, peppermint shrimp, featherduster, several turbos and hermies.

Inverts etc: Bubble, Hammer, 3 Gorgonias (brown, red, yellow), 2 finger leathers, 1 elephant leather, 30 or so mushrooms, brown polyp colony, brown/green polyp colony, torch, plate coral (looks like a plate and its hard - no tentacles or anything)

Water:
Everything is in range. Sometimes I have nitrate spikes but not enough to damage anything. Also that means that instead of no reading its miniscule. Temp stays around 80. I can break down if needed.

Infrastructure: wet/dry with liverock inside for the trickle, carbon underneath, and protein skimmer. I have about 3" of substrate floor.

VoodooChild
05-26-2003, 1:30 PM
It could use a good cleaning. They need it about once a month and you'd be amazed how much of a difference it makes. Know what brand?

RothChyld
05-26-2003, 2:28 PM
I have no idea what brand but more people from the LFS says it looks like a good kind??!!

What portion do you clean? I clean the cup out and right around the top cylinder that you can get to (I used to clean it then I didn't to see if the results would change and nothing.) I hear you never clean the inside cylinder plus I am not sure I can even get to it.

Thanks for the replies.

BrianH
05-26-2003, 6:34 PM
How long have you had it on your tank? They usually take from a few days to a couple of weeks to break in.

Brian

VoodooChild
05-26-2003, 7:39 PM
I suppose this is different for every skimmer, as they come in many designs, but I take mine entirely off my tank and rinse as much as I can in tap water. About once a month, and for about 2 weeks afterwards it pulls about twice as much crap as it normally does.

RothChyld
05-27-2003, 2:56 AM
Thanks for the replies. I will give that a shot. Brian, its 3 years old.

BrianH
05-27-2003, 8:37 AM
Did it just stop producing foam?

Brian

RothChyld
05-27-2003, 4:45 PM
It produces just barely some foam. In other words after a week there is a little foam and very little goop. Prior it would fill up the entire cup.