Skimmer Leak

[DaveC]

I was wondering if someone could tell me the best way to fix a very small leak in a ets skimmer....I recently purchased this skimmer from someone online and it appears to have a small leak where the acrylic tube meets the flange...since there is no pressure inside the skimmer I was thinking of using some aquarium silicone around the edge but whatever I do I want it to first of all last, and secondly look half way decent since the skimmer is very clean...I have attached a photo and you can pretty much see where it is leaking from...I don't even think it is leaking from that entire area just one tiny spot and the water is then spreading outward, and it is not coming from the flange gasket and up through the screw holes...

Thanks
DaveC

[DJ88©]

Take it apart. clean the area with RO water to make sure there is on residue then take some weld on 3 and re seal it. If you have weld on 16 around it is thicker and you can put a solid bead of it around the area. It isn't as neat as the liquid form tho.

hth

[DaveC]

I have never used any of the acrylic cement, only PVC stuff...does it come with those large clumsy doppers to apply the cememt?? or is it a squeeze tube with a pointed end??

DaveC

[Zephrant]

#16 is a squeeze tube, and would be easiest to apply. The #3 or #4 is like alcohol (very thin), and needs a syringe or squeeze bottle to apply it.



Zeph

[DaveC]

Thanks....I guess you can tell I have never used the stuff before...any idea where the best place to get this stuff at...I live in RI...

Thanks
Dave C

[Icepic]

locally look in your phone book for plastic dealers ..

in my yellow pages i just look up plastic


but mail order i buy from www.usplastic.com

[kris4647]

A quick fix is a very thin layer of silicon. I did this because I couldn't afford skimmer down time when the leaks started to spread. Its not the best way to do it but it worked on my ETS 600... Still holding today. I let it cure for a few hours and fired it up ......

[WantABigTank]

Don't use silicone if you want to fix it better later. You'll have a problem getting it off and very little sticks to silicone.

I think the biggest problem will be to get it thoroughly dry where the leak is so the glue will work the way it is supposed to. I think drying it the best you can and maybe using alcohol on the leak area to help dry it. The alcohol will mix with the water and will help it dry much faster.

The weldon is probably the best choice. But instant glue will work fine since it is small and not structural. I've used instant glue to attach a top and bottom to a cylinder to make a water replenishing container. I guess it is around 6 years old and used a an air pump to pressurize the cylinder and displace the water. Never had a problem with it either.

Make sure it's very dry before getting it wet. Some glues will become cloudy it exposed to high humidity or water.