+BobcatReefer Posted April 7, 2016 Share Posted April 7, 2016 No pump cleaning - just the cup. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jen_McG Posted April 7, 2016 Share Posted April 7, 2016 I have a bubble magus 7 and a bubble magus 9. Mine does the same thing if the water level has changed even slightly, or if I change out filter socks. Doesn't do it all the time but once every so often. I just leave it alone and within a few days it starts working again. I even tried raising and lowering the water in the sump to fix it and nothing. Googled the problem and still nothing lol. So like I said for whatever reason it's starts working again within a few days. Almost like it's breaking itself in again. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+BobcatReefer Posted April 7, 2016 Share Posted April 7, 2016 Thanks Jen, I was hoping someone would say that so it would give me some easy hope! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jen_McG Posted April 7, 2016 Share Posted April 7, 2016 Thanks Jen, I was hoping someone would say that so it would give me some easy hope! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jen_McG Posted April 7, 2016 Share Posted April 7, 2016 haha no problem....I was in your shoes not to long ago so I knew exactly how you felt ? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
corsair66 Posted April 9, 2016 Share Posted April 9, 2016 Looking for some help on my skimmer issue.... Bubble Magus Curve 5 was chugging along like a champ, right up until I cleaned it last week. Rinsed the collection cup w/ tap water and used my fingers to rub off the mung. Now there is a decent level of mung built back up on the inside part of the cup (the inside inside part - extension of the neck), but the bubbles don't want to come up the neck of the skimmer body into the cup anymore. Doesn't matter where I have the adjustment set, still can't get the foam to rise. HALP! Skimmers have to break in. The goo you cleaned out of the neck is what the bubbles stick to so they can "climb" up to the cup. It takes a minute to rebuild the biofilm and make the thing work again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+BobcatReefer Posted April 9, 2016 Share Posted April 9, 2016 See, I feel like there's plenty of mung built up for it to be producing skimmate. As is, it only clears the neck on the highest flow setting, and then it's way too wet. https://vimeo.com/162198434 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FarmerTy Posted April 9, 2016 Share Posted April 9, 2016 You need to do the opposite, clear that junk out. Skimmer necks need to be clean to perform properly. Yes, they do need to be broken in but that's usually from the factory, as there are residual production chemicals that prevent the adherence of bubbles to the neck wall. After that though, your goal is to keep that neck clean, more stuff on it, less skimmate you'll pull. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+BobcatReefer Posted April 9, 2016 Share Posted April 9, 2016 The stuff in the neck just showed up this week after I cleaned the cup. I'll get after it later today. Thanks Ty! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+BobcatReefer Posted April 10, 2016 Share Posted April 10, 2016 :/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FarmerTy Posted April 10, 2016 Share Posted April 10, 2016 Now can you adjust the bubble level higher? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+BobcatReefer Posted April 10, 2016 Share Posted April 10, 2016 Nope... That's the issue! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FarmerTy Posted April 10, 2016 Share Posted April 10, 2016 That's the highest it will go with your adjustments? You've brought the riser tube/adjustment knob to its highest level? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+BobcatReefer Posted April 10, 2016 Share Posted April 10, 2016 lol - YES! After all day at the highest flow setting, here's where I'm at: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reburn Posted April 10, 2016 Share Posted April 10, 2016 Ok I have a dumb question. Did it ever work right? Did you verify that your valve that restricts the water flow is actually closing and opening with turning the knob. It looks like you need it to be mostly closed to get your bubble head higher. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Isaac Posted April 11, 2016 Share Posted April 11, 2016 I clean mine w/ my fingers in my change water... i try not to make it "squeaky clean" on the inner area, my skimmer performs best when slightly dirty (but that can be said for all of us, eh? hehehe) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+BobcatReefer Posted April 11, 2016 Share Posted April 11, 2016 Yes, it worked correctly: Bubble Magus Curve 5 was chugging along like a champ, right up until I cleaned it last week. They have been running ~90 days and were kicking arse right up until I cleaned the cup last week.And yes, the valve that restricts flow is functional: https://vimeo.com/162198434 Going to pull the whole thing out of the sump and give it a good once over, especially the pump. I have to think something is stuck or impaired if it won't push foam into the cup - that's what skimmers love to do: overflow! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FarmerTy Posted April 11, 2016 Share Posted April 11, 2016 I was going to say, if it worked before, but doesn't work now, and you've cleaned the air line... then the last possible culprit is the impeller or the pump itself. You wouldn't believe what a snail shell can do in some of those needle-wheel impellers... just shatter and break all the points or get lodged within it. If the needle-wheel impeller looks fine, I'm going to blame a malfunctioning pump at that point. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reburn Posted April 11, 2016 Share Posted April 11, 2016 ^^^ Agreed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan H Posted April 11, 2016 Share Posted April 11, 2016 Just as an FYI, I have to clean the impellor on my skimmer pretty much weekly. Stomatellas seemed to get sucked in there at least once a week. Plus all sorts of other detritus and gunk just clog it up and make it run less effeciently. Definitely check it out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+BobcatReefer Posted May 14, 2016 Share Posted May 14, 2016 Soooo..... Dan was nice enough to come by and give my system the once over just to make sure I was on the right path. It took him about 14 seconds to notice a hole in the housing of the skimmer where a plug should go, so I put the plug in and now it works like a champ. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FarmerTy Posted May 14, 2016 Share Posted May 14, 2016 Were you just dripping skimmate back into the sump? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+BobcatReefer Posted May 14, 2016 Share Posted May 14, 2016 No, there's an extra hole that comes w/ a plug in it. The plug kept floating out and annoying me, so I put it off to the side. 1+1=2, but 1+X could equal anything. It never occurred to me that the hole needed to be sealed to keep water pressure high enough to push up the neck. In my defense, I've only ever had an HOB skimmer in the past. On the obvious side, I feel incredibly stupid. red plug, right side: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FarmerTy Posted May 14, 2016 Share Posted May 14, 2016 Ahhh... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jen_McG Posted May 14, 2016 Share Posted May 14, 2016 Whoops......lol at least you got it figured out! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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