imput and opinions on a skimmer please.

[wreck]

Tank is 65 g display and 40b sump. Currently running a vertex in-100.

Now it seems my skimmer will go absolutely nutz and overflow like a sob. Splashing all over. Yesterday I checked the cup and it had maybe 1/8 in of skimate in it.
Came home from suppernand the bloody thing had gone nutz and was splashinh all over. I shut skimmer off and walked away mad lol.
Skimmer isnt dirty so I a not sure the deal is.

This happens often.
Should I trash the in-100?

I was thinking about buying the omega 150?. Thought- s and suggestions would be very much appreciated

[IanWR]

I'm not sure if there's is such a thing as a skimmer that will not overflow. I read an article, http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2010/1/aafeature, that has some interesting things to say about skimmer performance. If your current skimmer skims, and you are happy with how quiet it is, you can try to narrow down what caused the overflow so you can adjust/temporarily turn off your skimmer.

[Proteus]

I had one and while loud it worked. I wonder if the venturi is partially plugged

I have omega 130 and so far what . Don't care for is the silencer is on the outlet pipe making it hard to hold on to. But that's me

[wreck]

I understamd they all overflow. Like nick said maybe the venturi is partially plugged.

I just thought it was weord to go from empty cup to bam splashing everywhere

[The Guy]

I got a Vertex Omega 150, before I put it into the sump I set it up in a 10 G tank with 7.5 " of ro water and 2 cups of vinegar I removed the collection cup closed it completely and let it overflow for 24 hours then set it up in the sump opened it approx. half way and it skims great so far I'm getting dark brown skimmate, I'll do a fine tune in about a week if necessary. I think it's the best skimmer I've ever had without selling the farm.

[gregzz4]

Originally Posted by wreck

I understamd they all overflow. Like nick said maybe the venturi is partially plugged.

I just thought it was weord to go from empty cup to bam splashing everywhere

The first time my skimmer did this I was completely baffled
I cleaned out the skimmer, did water changes. Nothing fixed it
Didn't know about calcium building up inside the venturi
What I saw inside looked like part of the plastic until I poked around a bit
Cleaned out the buildup and it went back to normal

I now clean out the venturi weekly
I bought a spare and soak it for a week in vinegar, poke around inside with a small screwdriver, then swap it out

Keep in mind critters can also block it - snails, stars, whatever

I also ran my airline out the window and a bug got sucked against it - guess what happened again

I put a filter outside and now all is good

I've also added a float switch in the cup to shut it down before it can puke