Skimmer Overflow - can it be plugged?
 

I purchased a Eshopps PSK-100H Hang On Protein Skimmer from another reefer, awesome skimmer but the cup fills fast. I've gone from emptying every 2 days to twice a day. I've adjusted it to try to reduce the flow but its still producing tons of skimmate.

I have 2 choices - buy longer tubing so the overflow can run into a bucket - or plug the overflow to stop it and let it sit in the collection cup. What would you do?

If you plug it, you might end up overflowing it to the floor.

If you cup is filling that fast it is usually the water flow. Too fast of flow and the skimmer does not have time to process the bubbles and pushes it straight through.

Another culprit is "new skimmer syndrome". You can remove the cup and leave the skimmer to run. Throw the cup in your tank or sump. After a few days your skimmer should develop a "film" you can't see. Like a biological film of some sort. Then try again.

Lastly it could be something you are dosing. Skimmers will over react to certain things.

I hope this gives you a start.

I would run it into a bucket, but here is also another fancy trick that I used when I had a similar eshopps skimmer - I used an old aquaclear HOB filter housing, hung it on the back, and ran the skimmer tube into it. This would be my skimmate collector, and when it would overflow when I was not home, it just flows back into the tank so that there was no spillage. Worked great.

If the plug is at the bottom of the collection lid plug it permanately.drill a hole near the top of the cup, insert 1/2 vinyl to go back to your tank. In theory if the Skimmers working right you'll get a full cup of skimmate, if it overflows then it does so back into your tank in which case it goes back to where:twised: it started.

Great responses, thanks. I have the intake fairly close to a powerhead, I can relocate the skimmer. Its a used skimmer so no break in period needed. It was skimming great and could go a couple of days, dark skimmate. Now its clearer and filling fast. Nothing dosed in the tank, water change done last week. I will pick up longer tubing and run to a bucket. No hob filter on the tank, bucket is a good cheap solution!