Protein Skimmer

[milkton]

Hi all, first time with a protein skimmer so go easy. I just set up my skimmer in my tank and there has not been any gunk in the top of the cup that catches/holds the organic compounds. It has been on for about 5 hours, should i wait longer? is this normal or is the skimmer not working.

thanks

 

[TigerIssey]

What make and model is the protein skimmer you have??

Skimmers can take a while to bed in, new plastics actually repel proteins therefore the skimmer needs a period where it settles down and starts to skim.

 

[milkton]

What make and model is the protein skimmer you have??

Skimmers can take a while to bed in, new plastics actually repel proteins therefore the skimmer needs a period where it settles down and starts to skim.

it is the SHK-1802 model, the details is in the website -> click me (sorry! kinda lazy to type all the stuff in)

thanks!!!

 

[TigerIssey]

Right, as long as you have started off at the level it tells you to in the instructions, give it a few days to bed in.

Venturi skimmers may give out some air bubbles initially into the aquarium or sump. This is normal, it will reduce once bedded in.

If after a few days you are still not getting any skimmate, it may be time to adjust the skimmer.

 

[AK77]

I had a Red Sea Prism ( ) Skimmer that came with my old tank. I found that the dirtier the riser tube got, the better the skimmer foamed. Whenever I washed it out, instead of just empying it, it took a few days for it to start collecting gunk again. As Tina says, give it a couple of days and you should see it start to remove waste. It may also depend on how long your tank has been running and the number of inhabitants that are contributing to the bio-load.

 

[jtnova13]

mine took about a week to break in to where I was pulling dark sludge every couple of days.

micro-bubbles-a-plenty too during that period. You may have to adjust it after break in. I did it so the micro bubbles are about 3/4" up the collection cup and that has been working pretty well.