need help with super skimmer

[neotekz]

i just got my sump setup and running now and have my 65g coralife super skimmer up and running but it makes huge bubbles in the chamber. i ran it a few times before and it ran great but now that i have it in my sump it;s doing this, what;s going on here???

[Vacter]

How far into the water do you have the return?

[neotekz]

about 1-1.5 inches

[Deuce67]

Got any pics of your setup?

[neotekz]

no sorry
i'll try to discribe it, i have a 35g reef with a 20g sump. the sump is divided by baffles and a refuge. i just added the sump today with about 20g of new water. the skimmer is sitting in the middle section of the sump right now. i only have a single fish with a cleaner crew and a couple of small frags.
i've set up the skimmer in a rubbermaid tub with the water that i took out of the tank when i did a water change and it works fine.
this problem only started when i put it in the sump

[Deuce67]

Okay. Silly question, but do you have salt mix in the water?

[neotekz]

read the above post i edited it

[Deuce67]

Ooops. You edited. Let me think about this.

[Deuce67]

How much flow is going out of the skimmer with it fully open. Is there a decline in flow since you last set it up?

[neotekz]

one more thing, i didn;t break in hte skimmer yet but before when i had it setup for a few hours just to try it out it worked a lot better than now

[Deuce67]

But that still wont explain the big bubbles. How deep is the skimmer pump submerged?

[neotekz]

there is a good amount of flow going out but this time there's not a lot of bubbles going out of the exit as before, the pump is totally submerged. is my pump broken or something? i detached the pump from the skimmer and it;s not producing nearly as much bubbles as before

[Deuce67]

Originally posted by neotekz
there is a good amount of flow going out but this time there's not a lot of bubbles going out of the exit as before, the pump is totally submerged. is my pump broken or something? i detached the pump from the skimmer and it;s not producing nearly as much bubbles as before

How deep below the sump water line is the pump submerged.

[neotekz]

i have 8 inches of water in the sump and the pump is sitting on the bottom

[Deuce67]

I know thats what the instruction said to do but that is wrong. Raise your pump up to about 2 to 3 inches below the sump waterline. Use some plastic hose clamps to secure them. For maximum efficiency, place the input of the skimmer pump as close as you can to the overflow output.

[neotekz]

what difference will raising the pump do? u mean put it close to the drain?

i just called the store that i got it from and he said that it might be the surface tension of the water and to just break it in for a few days

[Deuce67]

Also, you said that your skimmer return is 1" to 1.5" below the sump water line? Did I read that right? If so, you will get some backpressure. Raise the return tube to be above the waterline. Again, I know thats what the instructions says, and its wrong.

[Deuce67]

Originally posted by neotekz
what difference will raising the pump do? u mean put it close to the drain?

i just called the store that i got it from and he said that it might be the surface tension of the water and to just break it in for a few days

The pump is too deep to draw air. Its not only the CSS pump but most pumps on the market does that. You can follow the instructions of your LFS if you like, but I guarantee you the skimmer will not perform for you if you pump is 8 inches below the water line.

[neotekz]

so the exit flow of the skimmer should be above the water line?

[Deuce67]

Originally posted by neotekz
so the exit flow of the skimmer should be above the water line?
Yes

[neotekz]

ok i raised the pump a few inches and turned the exit tube so now it;s just pouring onto the water

btw thanks for the help deuce

[neotekz]

so do i just wait now and see what happens?

[Deuce67]

Are small tiny bubbles forming in the skimmer? If so, yes. Wait for the skimmer to break in.

[neotekz]

the bubbles are smaller now but there's also some bigger ones, about half inch and the ocassional big one

[Deuce67]

There should not be any big bubbles. How deep is your pump now?

[neotekz]

about 1.5-2 inches above the bottom of the sump

[Deuce67]

So that means that the pump is 6"to 6 1/2" below the sump water line? Its still too deep.