[KathyC]

Quote: Originally Posted by jackson6745 Kathy, the way you have the pump plumbed to the becketts won't effect the performance of the skimmer. I am more concerned about your drain. Is the drain pipe submerged in your sump?

Thanks for the response Rich! No, the drain pipe (1 1/2" btw) from the skimmer ends 1 inch above the water level in my sump. I was told it needs to be this way since I'm using a pressure rated pump (Gen X 55) and you aren't supposed to sumbmerge the return pipe.

[herman]

Quote: Originally Posted by jhale the volume of the skimmer cup is not as much as it seems to be, it is very wide, but most of that width is taken up by the inner tube, there's maybe a 2" space for the nog to collect. it might not be as long as you think it is.

J, being that you are away from the tank for longer periods of time, you should drill the cup and add a waste container. If a cup is not big enough to hold all the waste during your time away it will just get too full and you get that thick buildup on the neck, meaning youre not skimming as much as you could be. The drilling will tke you a minute. John Guest has great valves for that.

[cali_reef]

Quote: Originally Posted by KathyC Thanks for the response Rich! No, the drain pipe (1 1/2" btw) from the skimmer ends 1 inch above the water level in my sump. I was told it needs to be this way since I'm using a pressure rated pump (Gen X 55) and you aren't supposed to sumbmerge the return pipe.

Submerging the exit pipe with the skimmer elevated above the sump water line will cause a siphon effect within the skimmer box, making the bubble level impossible to adjust and maintain. It does not matter what type of pump you use.

[cali_reef]

Quote: Originally Posted by KathyC After reading through this entire thread and learning that the skimmer is the most important piece of equipment on a reef tank, I jumped on the chance to get an MRC2 dual beckett skimmer with a Gen X 55 pump when I was this one posted for sale. After much resealing of minor leaks and redoing my plumbing to fit this skimmer, I finally have it up and running. My skimmer is in the room next to my tank which makes cleaning it much easier, plus it wouldn't fit under my stand & in my sump anyway...and I don't have to listen to that oh not so quiet pump with it being there. Would like to thank JH for answering questions in the middle of the night when I couldn't get this hooked up, and Rich Jackson for the helpful info on the becketts (yes, they both are working now ) and Slama for the bazillion answers and holding my hand through it all. Now I need to know - does it look like it's running right?

My only concern would be the difficulty to get the becketts out on a monthly bases for cleaning. Looks like you need a drain the line, disconnect the union at the pump, then remove BOTH beckett at the same time. Becareful with the cheap material on the MRC beckett housing, they will crack with very little pressure when you are cleaning them.

You will need to play around with the air intakes, looks like there is a bit too much larger bubbles in the mixing chamber. IME thats from either the pump is not strong enough or too much air is being pulled thru the becket.

[fritz]

Quote: Originally Posted by cali_reef or too much air is being pulled thru the becket.

!!!??? Too much air? That's just crazy talk.

[cali_reef]

Quote: Originally Posted by fritz !!!??? Too much air? That's just crazy talk.

Too much air pulled in will cause smaller bubbles colliding into each other just right after the injector, making the water in the mixing chamber turbulent and with bigger bubbles. Same thing as Deltec recommending closing the air tap to their Ehiems.

[KathyC]

Thanks for the info Rich & Pierce!

Appreciate the info on why the drain pipe goes where it goes..

Pierce..the larger bubbles in the middle chamber were there due to the adjustment I'd made, they are now higher up in that chamber. Is there an ideal area the large ones should be at? Do I only want larger ones up in the area of the collection cup?
I only know the Gen x 55 is the pump that is suggested for the skimmer. Would a different pump (stronger?) give me better results?

The piece the becketts attach to is easy enough to take apart the way it is with the union there. When I shut the skimmer off the water drains out of that line anyway.
I'll be sure to be careful when removing it for cleaning! Thanks for the tip!!

One more question about adjusting this skimmer...I am getting a really thick coating of crud on the inside of the collection cup. What to I adjust to get that to stop, I believe the crud that is forming there should be being carried over the top by the bubbles. Is that correct?

[jackson6745]

"You will need to play around with the air intakes, looks like there is a bit too much larger bubbles in the mixing chamber. IME thats from either the pump is not strong enough or too much air is being pulled thru the becket."

I Agree 100%

Restricting the airflow gives you finer bubbles, but if the pump isn't strong enough the skimmate will barely make it's way up the neck. I'm not up to date on the new external pumps out there, but I can tell you that using a larger pump will definitely make it skim better...

Also to repeat what Pierece said, keep up with the beckett cleanings. You will notice a decrease in performance if a beckett gets clogged.

HTH

[fritz]

Here's some shots of my ATI BubbleMaster 200 about 3 weeks in. This is 48 hours worth of skimmate.

[Tonyscoots84]

fred these bubble master skimmers are freaking awesome... mine has been running for a week and im getting insane skimmate... i love me 250...

by the way do u ever clean that cup... ....