wtheck is going with this?

[nycsicktank]

my coralife 125 skimmer isnt doing what i was expecting it to do. it does skim but doesnt overflow to the cup. it skims so much to the cone than it cant overflow to the cup. if i turn little more to wet side than cup gets overflow with nothing but plain green water. i got 3 fish so far, 2 wrasses and 1 purple firefish, not enough bio yet?:mad2:

 

[Nolapete]

All skimmers are like that. They only produce when there's a load of organics to extract from the water or if you use an additive that creates a similar condition.

 

[nycsicktank]

can you explain more about using an additive?

 

[Nolapete]

What is there to explain? You add something to your tank like food for your corals, frozen food for your fish, buffers, etc. and your skimmer goes crazy. It could even be water treatment products that contain slime coat repair botanicals.

My point was that you shouldn't expect your skimmer to be constantly producing. You've found out for yourself that if you have your setting too wet it will be constantly producing a bunch of nothing. I usually find that wet setting where it starts producing constantly then turn it back some until it is just burping foam intermittently. You will have to play with it, but somewhere around that range is where you want to have it set.

 

[Amphiprion]

You also want to keep that neck fairly clean. If it gets too dirty/thick, it won't rise into the cup. Also be sure to make sure everything else is clean and unblocked, like the venturi line and fitting. Other than that, do what Nolapete said and play around with it a bit until you get it right. You'll get it there eventually. One thing I can tell you is that your bioload is indeed sufficient for the skimmer to work.

 

[clown-lover]

I can attest to keeping the neck cup of the skimmer clean. I think that is about the most important thing when cleaning the skimmer. That is why I have gone to a three times a week cleaning regimen on my ASM G3 just to ensure that it is pulling out as much of the organics that it can.

 

[nycsicktank]

my neck is very clean. only the cone is dirty.

i thought i played around enough already. its not fun anymore =/

 

[Ace25]

Also, it can take up to 7 days for a new skimmer to start working correctly. There is a break in period on most skimmers.

Still, I know exactly what your talking about.. had a few skimmers act just like your is and I finally gave up on those cheap cylider skimmers. My last skimmer would never fill up the cup more than 1/2".. the neck on the otherhand was caked with gunk weekly. Some reason it would never work right.. turn the valve a hair one way, no foam, go the other way, fill the cup with water. Just thinking about it frustrates me.

 

[nycsicktank]

hahaha ace. mind as run my tank without one until i get one in 6 months later lol jp =D