NEW Euro Reef AM I Doing something wrong?

[drgnbttrfly]

I did a water change tonight..turned off all the pumps and skimmer.

I emptied all the water out of the cup and put it back together. When I turned it on it didn't rocket to the top this time. I slowly adjusted the air. Its about halfway open. It is working now and giving me a nice bubble slime. I will probably have to empty it tomorrow. It isn't green or anything but the tank is fairly clean still. But I can tell its working because its pulling uneaten flake food up into the cup.

So thanks for all the tips. I think it just had to get it all out of its system.

I am going to build a stand for it so it can sit a bit higher in my sump and the outgoing water won't be so close to the waterline. I will have subsailor help me if he doesn't mind. I picked up some grating from HD to make a stand and some acrylic to make a casing to keep the spray enclosed in the sump.

It will be my first attemp at making something like this of my own...it will be interesting to see how much I mess up..

Thanks!!

[crossxfire2]

I can't believe I didn't see this post earlier!!!! I think I know exactly what is wrong.

Lets cover the basics:
Your skimmer is sitting in way too much water. The water level is much too high. Here is a cruddy video of my euroreef. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g88VZGZv6dg The water level is EXACTLY 7 7/8 inches. I just tested my skimmer for you, at the water level yours is at (according the the picture), and it did some wacky things, but nothing drastic. But that is absolutely a necessity to keep the water level correct.
Next: From the picture, this is definatly the problem. Do you see your water outlet? The tube that comes out from the bottom of the skimmer? I am sure you know this, but this part is adjustable. It can be slid up or down. Make sure it is ALL THE WAY DOWN!!!!!!!
Next: In the last 7 days, have you added any kind of chemical?? The skimmer is most sensitive to chlorine remover. I added it in the past, and my skimmer did EXACTLY what yours is doing right now. It went bazurk.

I hope this helps. PM me if none of these works.

[crossxfire2]

I just read your last post. Lol. I am sorry. Good luck with your new amazing skimmer!! Euroreef is my favorite! This will be your favorite piece of equipment, lol. I kindof like watching mine, lol.

[crossxfire2]

I am sorry again. Just do what the instructions say about the water height, I guess.

[drgnbttrfly]

Yeah the outlet I had to take the tube off...because it would be in the water. And it said that was bad and I had to turn it to the side. I did lower the water level and it worked.

I bought that crate stuff from HD and I am gonna build a stand but it is working well now. The part in the directions about the carbon I think was dead on. I did add some stress stuff when I added a new fish to the tank...and that could have done it I suppose...but either way...yay..all is good now. I also was able to create a "sliding glass door" out of acrylic I bought from HD that is the height of my stand and it covers the water splash areas of my sump to protect my stand and floors from bouncing water since my sump was made completely coverless. I made a temp cover for my fuge that I place over it when my light is on and I take the light off when not in use since its a cheap clip on ($9) from Lowes with a flourecent bulb in it with no cover.

It also helps keep curious kids out but I can still see whats going on in the sump when I open the doors and simply slide it down when I need to work in it or empty the cup. I think I am going to build a proper cover for the fuge and return area with holes for the incoming and outgoing water later.

I am still recovering from the bleeding wallet from the whole setup. So updates and improvements will have to wait a bit.

Well that was a long one...so I will stop typing now......

[aimaike]

As for the "Stress Coat" type stuff, I can vouch for that causing problems. Stick with Prime and you won't have that particular problem. I used it once in a pinch when I did not have Prime and it sent my skimmer into orbit. Following along with what CXF2 said, I have 2 ERs and they are just terrific. One is like yours with the downspout job and the other is a recirc model. As much as I love the RS250, man those recircs are really darn hard to be. For the money though, I don't think you can beat ERs in general.

[crossxfire2]

Yeah, they can be expensive! But man, it is my favorite piece of equipment! Its fun to watch!