Anyone else having this issue?

[reefkeeps]

It's really a mess, the foam never breaks just goes straight up through the holes!

[ctenophore]

Wow, that's some very sticky foam. Have you tried running the water level a little higher to produce "wetter" foam?

[GlassReef]

I agree with ctenophore, your problem has nothing to do with your Swabbie. Looks like your smimmer is set too dry.

[Avast Marine]

What is that little white fitting on the cup for?

[reefkeeps]

I agree it's dry, my ATO is not flawless right now and the water level (even an inch) has a large impact on wet vs.super dry, this is also a work in progress..


I don't have the problem with the lid that comes with the skimmer. One thing to note is that the lid that comes with the elos skimmer only has a single hole in it.

I noticed in searching the internet that in one of the BK manuals it mentions this very problem and a fix of rubbing the lid with silicone grease. I might give that a shot.


The white fitting is for the overflow.

[ctenophore]

Interesting re: silicone grease on lid. I hadn't heard of that before. Please report back if that helps.

Could also be that the single hole Elos lid is putting some backpressure on the skimmer body, or forcing a lot of air through the cup drain. That might take the foam with it; path of least resistance.

[jwilliams860]

Does the swabbie lid have an inner ring attached to the lid, that helps force the foam back down isntead of letting it fill the cup

[Avast Marine]

Originally Posted by reefkeeps

The white fitting is for the overflow.

Is there another drain in the lower portion of the cup?

[Avast Marine]

Originally Posted by jwilliams860

Does the swabbie lid have an inner ring attached to the lid, that helps force the foam back down isntead of letting it fill the cup

Yes

[reefkeeps]

Originally Posted by Avast Marine

Is there another drain in the lower portion of the cup?

No sir, part of me wants one but gravity will then not allow it to flow to the DJ locker...


Please also keep in mind the cup can be empty and some still comes out the top. (yeah I know it's weird, but really no stranger than me sitting on the floor focused on foam) My wife thinks I have fallen off my rocker...

[reefkeeps]

Originally Posted by jwilliams860

Does the swabbie lid have an inner ring attached to the lid, that helps force the foam back down isntead of letting it fill the cup

Sure does but after reading your question I measured the inner ring in it's about 5/8ths of an inch shorter than the ELOS ring. I tend to wonder if the issue isn't a backflow issue as mentioned by ctenophore.

As a test I taped all but one of the hole and it still shoots out the one hole, but the smaller (shorter) ring may allow that to happen....


A shame really as I like the lid for the swabbie better than the original.


Also, just to be clear, this is great product and the price point is fantastic, typically you get what you pay for, in this case you get a lot more than what you pay for....

[ctenophore]

I doubt the length of the lid ring plays much of a role. My prototype 14" swabbie doesn't even have a lid ring and most of the time no foam comes out the holes- only when I run the skimmer really dry or if the skimmer has been off for 6-8 hours.

I wonder if rubbing the inside of the cup with vegetable oil or dish soap would do the same thing? Obviously careful not to get it in the neck. I think I'll try that.

[Avast Marine]

Originally Posted by reefkeeps

As a test I taped all but one of the hole and it still shoots out the one hole, but the smaller (shorter) ring may allow that to happen....

Try taping all of the holes, if you have the DJ locker attached it should still allow the skimmer to function properly. I can send some rubber plugs as a more elegant solution if this works for you.

I think the best solution would be to wet out your skim just a tad though, a well placed baffle in your sump should stabilize water height and pressure.

[reefkeeps]

The DJ issue is it's almost as tall at the skimmer, if I lower the fitting gravity is no longer in my favor...

let's see if the Silicone and the ATO fix does the trick, I have high hopes! Thanks for the support Dan..

[dahenley]

most people have a designated section for their skimmer. this allows the water level to be consistent no matter what level the return section is. it keeps skimmers supper consistent, and allows people to "Dial a skimmer in" in your situation with fluctuating water level, you will never reach the full potential of a skimmer.......

you might think of silicone-ing a baffle in your sump (preferable where the dirty water comes in the sump) so that you get a more consistent water level...

just a thought.

also, i had a skimmer do what your talking about, and the only fix for that is to raise your water level. with a skimmer pulling super dry foam, it becomes super sticky, and the proteins will not collapse. no matter how long the inner ring of the lid is, or even if there is silicone grease.. (eventually the grease will get covered in foam and your back to square one....)

[reefkeeps]

Alright, it's been two weeks since I followed the BK instructions, results below....





http://s879.photobucket.com/albums/a...nomorefoam.jpg

[dahenley]

a sweet tip for you would be to put a 90 on the inside of the cup (attached to your drain) and then add a piece of tube to extend down to about 1/4- 1/2 in from the bottom of the cup. this way when the cup hits the top of the fitting, it will create a siphon and drain the entire cup. that way you dont have to leave it full all the time!

just an option. (plus it will let you see in the cup at the riser and swabby)

[reefkeeps]

LOVE THAT IDEA! Now I just need to figure out the parts!

[dahenley]

does that fitting go through the cup, or did the manufacturer cut it so it didnt stick inside the cup?
if it sticks through, then you can get a female 90 JG fitting and screw it on the existing fitting. then stick the RO tubing to it. presto!

or,

you can take a piece of RO tubing and put some sand in it, then heat it with a heat gun and bend it 90 deg. (the sand will keep the tubing from kinking and closing off the tubing.

after it cools, then just run water through the tubing to clean the sand out.
then just silicone it or superglue it to the inside of the fitting already in the cup.

[ctenophore]

That should work well, just make sure to test the locker when it's close to full first, to ensure a sudden siphoned cupful of skimmate doesn't overflow it. The length of the sensor tube was designed to give some leeway on this but you don't want to find out the hard way!

So the silicone grease on the lid did the trick?

[dahenley]

Originally Posted by ctenophore

That should work well, just make sure to test the locker when it's close to full first, to ensure a sudden siphoned cupful of skimmate doesn't overflow it. The length of the sensor tube was designed to give some leeway on this but you don't want to find out the hard way!

So the silicone grease on the lid did the trick?

well, i didnt even think of that....
(Watch your catch can!! and do a little experiment to see how much drains in the collection container every time your cup flushes. (you can do this in the sink with just water to make things easy and less messy))

good catch on that!

[reefkeeps]

yup, just a dab of silicone grease did the trick, it's been working for 2 weeks at this point. Great ideas, I'll test the locker theory but it seems likes it's viable.

[reefkeeps]

Just a follow up to say...That fixed worked and this little product maybe the best VALUE of any product I have seen in the industry!

[reefkeeps]

Originally Posted by dahenley

a sweet tip for you would be to put a 90 on the inside of the cup (attached to your drain) and then add a piece of tube to extend down to about 1/4- 1/2 in from the bottom of the cup. this way when the cup hits the top of the fitting, it will create a siphon and drain the entire cup. that way you dont have to leave it full all the time!

just an option. (plus it will let you see in the cup at the riser and swabby)

That also worked like a champ, I just put an airline hose into the current fitting, almost a perfect fit, if I ever clean the cup again I'll take a picture! Thanks again!

[Snafu-2112]

Originally Posted by reefkeeps

That also worked like a champ, I just put an airline hose into the current fitting, almost a perfect fit, if I ever clean the cup again I'll take a picture! Thanks again!

I'm not following what was suggested. Do you have a picture of how you have the fitting inside the cup situated so as to drain the entire thing, rather than just the top 1/2" ? I can't figure how it will create a siphon when the cup fills, that is all. Thanks!