Sooping up Berlin Turbo Protein Skimmer

[dakar]

Thought I'd pass this along since I know there are others using this same skimmer. It's always worked 'ok' so long as it was regularly cleaned and stuff. But I've been looking for a way to soop it up just a bit to get some better performance from it. I found the grey knob on the pump that governs water flow and where the air is drawn in has a restrictor about halfway down the tube.

I took a small drill bit 5/64" (i think, i just went up the sizes until I found the right size) and bored out the restrictor so that tube is the same size all the way through. Now it's really rocking! For the first time ever I've had to actually adjust the water flow down from max to stop it from overflowing the collection cup! It will now skimmer agressively pulling lighter skimmate, or cut the flow back a bit and it's pullling very dark skimmate.

Dave

[Reptoreef]

It's funny what can be done with a little imagination and some tools. Imagine this... a larger venturi pump(3/4") and a 1" out with a gate valve... with a modified collection cup to allow extra overflow to run into a seperate container. How about modifying the skimmer body by adding a slightly taller, larger diameter body(maybe 6" diameter). Anything's possible!!!

[dakar]

one of these days, probably next fall now that it looks like spring is finally here, I've got some plans half drawn up in my head for a new skimmer design, a monster fed by two becketts....hee hee

[enpharedskin]

#ed_op#br#ed_cl#I took a small drill bit 5/64" (i think, i just#ed_op#br#ed_cl#went up the sizes until I found the right size) and bored out the#ed_op#br#ed_cl#restrictor so that tube is the same size all the way through. Now it's#ed_op#br#ed_cl#really rocking!#ed_op#br#ed_cl#

#ed_op#br#ed_cl#Where is this retrictor? On the pump or the skimmer itself? What do you#ed_op#br#ed_cl#mean by you bore it out so its the same size all the way through?#ed_op#br#ed_cl#

[dakar]

Where the air inlet is on the pump itself, there was a ridge in that 'tube' about 1/3 of the way down. I just took a small drill bit that would just fit the hole and drilled straight through it, that removed that little restriction. Then I went and removed a little more material as well with the next size up bit I had on hand. Skimmer works much better, but I think it could still do better.

Now I'm looking at methods of getting even more air into the skimmer itself, thinking maybe a couple of wooden airstones hacked into the bottom of the skimmer. Adding an air pump pushes too much air for the pump and the impeller starts cavitating.