Skimmer Issues

[Hopkins]

I had been noticing performance issues with my skimmer lately. It just wasn't pulling out the dark nasty skimmate I have grown accustomed to over the past few years. Today I went downstairs and checked out the tank.... The skimmer was full of pretty large bubbles and no foam. I thought to myself, WTH? I just cleaned this thing and let it run in a bucket with a water/vinegar mixture. The pump works perfect and the skimmer itself is clean as a whistle. Then it occurred to me. In order to get the tiny bubble and foam mixture, it has to be pulling in AIR along with the water. DUH. :stupidme:

So I took apart the pump intake assembly and tried to blow through it. Nothing...

http://hopkinsintranet.com/koken/storage/cache/images/000/010/IMG-0370,medium_large.1426357142.JPG

I grabbed a pipe cleaner and tried to stick it through the hole, no go. It took several tries to push through the calcium build up. Man, there was a ton in there. I pushed through and put it all back together.

http://hopkinsintranet.com/koken/storage/cache/images/000/011/IMG-0371,medium_large.1426357146.JPG

Now she is skimming like day 1. Well, a lot better than day 1, since it has been broken in for some time now.

http://hopkinsintranet.com/koken/storage/cache/images/000/009/IMG-0372,medium_large.1426357137.JPG

Moral of the story: When you clean your skimmer, be sure to clean all of it.

[Seph]

Adam, a little trick I use is to get a drill bit that is the size of the Venturi hole and just twist it by hand to clean the calcium buildup. Works a lot easier than trying to force a pipe cleaner through. Just wanted to say your latest pics of your corals look great too.