skimmer not skimming

[gusmanda]

My remora has not been bringing up any foam lately, any suggestions as to why this might be happening? Salinity is normal, maybe even a bit high. Someone suggested I lighten up on food, even though I only feed flake food once a day. Could this cause anything?

[Randall_James]

a couple things can put the kabosh on skimming:
Oily foods or excessive amounts
Hands in tank....dirty hands or the oils from your skin
Mechanical problem with skimmer (how does it flow and how are the bubbles?)
Is the skimmer clean..I have a venturi style but if the neck gets really dirty it slows production

I doubt flake food 1 time a day is going to cause the problem. Especially true if it has been working up to now.

I would bet something in the mechanical end myself. I would look really close at the bubbles and see if maybe you are not getting what you should there.
This all assuming you have changed nothing since it quit working. Otherwise, what got touched?

[gusmanda]

to rule out the hands/oil in water, how can this be removed from water?

[Randall_James]

It will normally dissipate on its own. A good washing prior to getting your hands in tank is a good idea. A better idea is "aquarium gloves".
How long has production been down?

I should clarify on the food part also, it will diminish skimming initially. As it is protein and that is what a skimmer is designed to remove, over feeding should result in more skim-mate after the oils have ceased to affect the skimmer)

[Avi]

Putting your hands in the water for any appreciable amount of time would effect the skimming as would feedings, but that would last for a limited, if not annoying amoung of time. say an hour or maybe even a little more. But then it should start working again. Are you regularly cleaning the valves? That's most likely the problem. You can also call Aqua-C....www.proteinskimmer.com
for more advice as to how to get the skimmer working again.

[gusmanda]

this has gone on for quite a while, actually, so let me try the valve cleaning thig and see how it works.

[Avi]

They should unscrew from the skimmer to be taken out of their setting and you can clean them. Try to be sure to use teflon tape on the threads when you screw them back in after cleaning.

[soriano]

If it's venturi, i'd check the hose and connector for salt creep. My skimmer was doing awsome... then the bubble production went down. Turns out that salt crept up the hose and was blocking some air getting in.

After cleaning the hose and the inlet, everything was cool again.

[luntiz]

Lower the collection cup, I had the same problem but I lowered the cup and its been collecting ever since.