Skimmer pump died: replacement?

[Zucker26]

I bought a used protein skimmer a while back. It came with a CAP-2200 pump that was modified with an air hose to suck air bubbles into the skimmer. The pump is starting to die on me, and I have no idea what the best replacement is.

All I can tell you is that the skimmer runs perfectly with this CAP-2200 pump, which pumps ~800gph. I need to find a comparable sized pump that either comes with an air inlet, or can be modified to include an air inlet or a needle-wheel impeller. Any suggestions?

[mg426]

Have you tried cleaning the impeller in vinegar ???

[Zucker26]

Yea, I completely disassembled the pump and it's the electricals. The mechanicals are all in good condition, but the electric motor just doesn't have the oomph to start the pump from a stop. If I kick-start the impeller it will still run great, but once I turn it off it won't start back up again.

[luke33]

Need a little more info. What skimmer are you using to run this, whats the total height, the reaction chamber diameter and neck diameter? A pic would help as well.

[Zucker26]

Here's a quick diagram of my skimmer. It's very generic looking, possibly even homemade. Right now my CAP-2200 pump is throttled back maybe 25%, the water flow is right but I'd like more bubbles. Any pump brand and size suggestions are greatly appreciated!!

[Psionicdragon]

what is a cap?

[luke33]

Cap=catalina, that skimmer is pretty narrow. I would use a 500gph nw pump on it. If your neck is only 1" diameter that is not good as it can hardly handle any air. Instead of buying a new pump, maybe its time to invest in a new skimmer. But if you want a new pump you have a few choices imo. The best out of the box is an aquabee. 500gph at 17scfh air stock. You could get an octo 2000 but out of the box it only pulls around 5scfh, you can mod it to do around 20-25 though. You could also get a cheap odyssea wp500 and mod it to do around 15scfh. The aquabee would be around 120, octo round 40, odyssea round 25. The big problem is all produce to much air for your neck size.

[Zucker26]

So I just got home from the LFS and got a good deal on a Mag7. I'll just make my own venturi attachment out of PVC, but where will it work best? Should I attach the venturi on the inlet of the pump, or the inlet of the skimmer? Where will it work best?