PM skimmer

[Nemain]

I just bought one of these from someone else, and there are no instructions, could someone please help me? Just a quick where stuff goes would be great...

Thanks, Beth

[sleeman]

Beth,
Is it a bullet or their venturi style? Do you have the pump for it?

Try the web site, you might be able to get an owners manual from them as well.

Cheers,

Al

[Nemain]

Its the venturi, and I do have a pump =) Even if someone has a pic of it assembled, I shoudl be able to figure it out. I already took a brief look on the site, and couldnt find anything =(

Thanks,

Beth

[sleeman]

OK Beth,
The port on the side is where the water goes in, and the elbow close to the bottom is where the water comes out. There is a new model that has two inlets as well but only requires one pump. If it has been used already, it should be easy to figure out which bit goes where. If you are stuck, you could go down to AI as they sell PM equipment there. if you can take photos, I might be able to help more.
What model and pump do you have?


Cheers,

Al

[Bob I]

You should be able to PM the guy who sold it to you. It is too bad I arrived there a minute after you left. We could have straightened it out then. :rolleyes:

[Nemain]

The pump is a quit one 3000, I believe. I think I have the conections right, there is a small black hose - where the heck does it go?

A few extra parts - the true sign that I did it right, or so my father always said.

Now, do I need to put it on some sort of platform, or does it sit right on the btotom of the sump?

Sorry for all the questions, I just came from the ever so fantastic world of prism :P

Thank you again for your responses,

Beth

[sleeman]

Beth,
The small black hose attaches to the injector, and needs to have the other end above the water line. This is where the air comes from. I think that you need to have a ball or gate valve on the output side. This will control the height of the water. As for how deep the skimmer should be, I am guessing but somewhere between 6 to 10 inches should be good.
I bet if you were to email PM with your model number, they would email you a manual or at least some suggestions.
Hope this helps.

Cheers,

Al

[Nemain]

The skimmer is in the sump, all hooked up right (I think :P), but it is foaming like mad. If i were to let it run into a collection it would probably empty out my entire sump within a few hours.

Is the pump too much for the skimmer? I have the water valve turned down all the way, and its still spewing wet foam like crazy =(

Thanks again,

Beth

[PrairieReefer]

I have never looked at a PM skimmer, but there should be an air valve of some type on the airline attached to your venturi. Reduce the airflow until you are producing a nice dry foam in the neck of the unit, without foaming into and filling the cup. The dry foam will slowly build up and push into the cup without emptying your sump. You will have to do some playing around with the setting for a few days, until the unit is broke in (even if used, after being cleaned etc, the skimmer will foam differently until there is a little film on the plastic). Also certain additives can cause unexpected foaming for a few hours, so keep an eye on it when you put anything into the aquarium water, until you know which will cause problems.

BTW Excess airflow causes the foaming, excess water flow pushes fine bubbles into your sump

Hope that was some help.