Microbubbles - help

[gnatp2]

I have tons of microbubbles coming from my sump with a mag12 through flex pvc piping to a 1" sea swirl. I've completely submerged my pump, and have a clamp on my slip fitting into the sea swirl. I can tell that somehow they are being created somewhere between the mag12 and the outlets of the sea swirl. My fittings all seem tight though. Is it possible that a mag 12 pump could somehow be creating these microbubbles even if it is totally submerged?

Thanks,
Nate

 

[TimberTDI]

There maybe some air that didn't escape the Mag 12 when you submerged it. Try rotating the pump to see if you can dislodge any air that maybe trapped.

Steven

 

[Tonyscoots84]

couple of questions..

How far is the water line above the mag 12... (maybe to low and sucking in air)

How do you have the mag 12 positioned... (if the inlet hole is facing up, it might be sucking in air and water)

Are the connections between the pump and return to the tank completely sealed. (could be sucking in air as well)

How big is this setup tank and sump...

How much water do you have going through the sump from your overflows... ( fast flow through the sump wont allow all microbubbles to rise to the surface to pop in ur sump)

Do you have the mag 12 at 100 % no ballvalves between the return and the pump to reduce flow..

do u have a skimmer running near the return pump that might be putting bubbles into the water..

Is ur overflow pipping submerged under the water.. ( if this is ur problem causing most of the microbubbles to be in ur sump add a micron filter bag, will cut down on the bubbles from the overflow and i do rec. the overflow pipes or tubing to be submerged)

these are just a couple of questions for you to think about.. alot of this stuff will cause microbubbles in ur tank... also starting up a new pump may cause this but only in the beginning and should go away rather quickly..

i had microbubble problems but mine was caused by way to much flow in the sump passing through....

 

[GQ22]

i had a similar problem i just recently solved. i had just set up a new sump and skimmer, and put in a phosban reactor all in one shot. after doing so, a ton of micro bubbles ended up in my tank. at first i tought it was bubbles from my new skimmer or some bad design in my sump, but it turn out it was the in take of my pump. i had put a grid (the kind that comes with over flow kits) and placed a foam filter over it completely enclosing it, so that no bubbles would get to it. turns out all that restriction was what was causing the micro bubbles. i discovered the fix when i took the grid and filter off to clean it, and returned to a crystal clear tank.

To make a long story short, it may be the intake is too restricted, somehow causing micro bubbles.

(please dont flame me if this makes no sense, as i am just sharing my experience)

 

[gnatp2]

Thanks guys, it turns out that with the newer (and larger) mag 12 pump over my previous return pump, large bubbles were created when water fell over one of the baffles in my sump. Then that larger bubble got sucked into the the mag 12, chopped up into a million microbubbles and sent back in the tank. Easy fix

Thanks again guys!!