lanman November 8, 2008 Share November 8, 2008 I sent Dan a PM and an e-mail over a week ago, and have gotten no response. My skimmer motor had a bad impeller, but was still working. Now it's not working, and I still haven't heard from him. Anyone have a phone number of whereabouts?? Please PM me. Thanks, bob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen November 8, 2008 Share November 8, 2008 I sent Dan a PM and an e-mail over a week ago, and have gotten no response. My skimmer motor had a bad impeller, but was still working. Now it's not working, and I still haven't heard from him. Anyone have a phone number of whereabouts?? Please PM me. Thanks, bob Is this the GSA Dan? If so is there any chance I could possibly get it as well. I sent an email also about a week ago inquiring about purchasing an item or two and haven't heard anything. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lmeyer November 9, 2008 Share November 9, 2008 Is this the GSA Dan? If so is there any chance I could possibly get it as well. I sent an email also about a week ago inquiring about purchasing an item or two and haven't heard anything. Last I heard, Dan had changed his business model and wasn't selling direct to hobbyists any longer. You will have to find a retailer who can order from him for you. I don't know if anyone is selling his equipment yet, but I would probably check with Blue Ribbon Koi. They might be able to order his equipment for you. As for his phone number, sorry, I can't help you. I sent him a PM around the same time. He hasn't been back on WAMAS since Oct. 30th. I'm sure he is busy with his new venture. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lanman November 9, 2008 Author Share November 9, 2008 I left PM, e-mail, and yesterday a phone message. I also paypal'd him the cost of a replacement mesh-wheel impeller. Which, by the way, worked just fine to get one last month for my other skimmer. My 240 can't go for long without a skimmer. I guess I will take the impeller from the smaller system, and move it to the 240 in the meantime. bob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ROBZ November 9, 2008 Share November 9, 2008 I sent Dan a PM and an e-mail over a week ago, and have gotten no response. My skimmer motor had a bad impeller, but was still working. Now it's not working, and I still haven't heard from him. Anyone have a phone number of whereabouts?? Please PM me. Thanks, bob Bob this same thing happen with my skimmer impeller, and i been trying to contact Dan for almost 2 weeks, if you get a hold of him please tell me to give me a ring, I know from last time i spoke with him he was very busy with the Restaurant, but again no response after 2 weeks... Robie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lanman November 9, 2008 Author Share November 9, 2008 Bob this same thing happen with my skimmer impeller, and i been trying to contact Dan for almost 2 weeks, if you get a hold of him please tell me to give me a ring, I know from last time i spoke with him he was very busy with the Restaurant, but again no response after 2 weeks... Robie I took the new impeller out of my other greyseas skimmer and put it in the one in the 240-gallon tank. Easy to see the cause of failure. I am going to have to start soaking those Eheim's in vinegar every couple of months. Calcium building inside the channel where the impeller goes. Now I just have to find something to skim my 58-gallon tank with. bob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grav November 10, 2008 Share November 10, 2008 (edited) All, I got an email from Dan on the same issue. One of my customer's mesh wheel is going... the mesh is all mushed and the impeller is starting to go. So the skimmer is just not getting it done. His focus is very much on FireFlies right now. Which, with the economy being what it is, I totally understand. I do not think he has additional mesh wheels to sell, nor do I expect he plans to make more any time soon. One option would be to get normal replacement ehiem impellers and make the mod yourself. Another would be to buy replacement needle wheel impellers from Euro Reef (expect to pay around $100) Finally ASM replacement pumps / needle wheels. Would be cool if their cheap neede impeller worked in an ehiem, but I don't think so. Good luck, if you find somthing that works... share! Phil Edited November 10, 2008 by Grav Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lanman November 10, 2008 Author Share November 10, 2008 I received e-mail today. He expected to get a shipment of impellers last week. So hopefully early this week. I don't think it takes him long to mod them. bob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dandy7200 November 10, 2008 Share November 10, 2008 All PM's and emails replied to. Past- Grey Seas Aquatics was able to provide high quality gear and top notch customer service at a reasonable price. Present- I am no longer able to provide top notch customer service due to increasing family and other career obligations so I have stopped all production of new equipment. I still provide service to existing customers although I hope that everyone can show a little patience and understanding through these trying times. All service request should be made through email: dan@greyseasaquatics.com Future- ???? I guess it kinda depends on the economy but I have a considerable amount of debt associated with this business venture so I am doubting that I will be out for good. Again, I can still make some darn fine gear but without providing exceptional customer service to go along with that I am pulling my entire product line. I love building this stuff and have the skills and machinery to do so. I will always continue to to improve the designs and products even if it is just build one offs for myself. I have already designed and proved the next gen of kalk stirrers and skimmers but that is a tale for another day.....hopefully. I will however address and explain this Eheim impeller issue in a little more detail: I believe there was a manufacturing defect in certain batches of Eheim pumps that has caused premature impeller wear. The bottom of the inside cavity of the pump has a loose grommet holder. This can cause the impeller to spin unbalanced and cause wear resulting in a damaged impeller magnet. Eheim refuses to do anything about this or even respond to my messages to them even though they had been quite helpful and good to work with in the past. I guess the 100 or so pumps I bought from them is small beans in their eyes. I have however devised a solution to fix the pumps. I am making a custom washer that looks similar to thrust washers on other impellers. This washer is machined to .001 tolerance and is inserted into the bottom of the cavity which in turn creates a new "bottom" to the pump cavity. There is no performance loss by doing this and has had 100% success rate so far (installed on about 20 pumps). If anyone would like the upgrade parts shipped to them for free please send a request by email. If anyone would like new mesh kits for free, please send email. If anyone needs a new impeller please send me an email. The impellers I cannot replace for free but I can do my best to get you a replacement as quick as possible at a reasonable price. Again, if you need anything please email me, I will respond, maybe not within a few hours like in days past but, I will get to you. Do not call me, leave messages, send pm's or show up on my door. Thanks in advance for understanding, Dan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lanman November 10, 2008 Author Share November 10, 2008 Darn... my next step was going to be to show up at the restaurant and complain about getting sick from the food. I figured that would get me the manager in a hurry! Sorry about the PM's, midnight phone calls, notes slipped under the door - and epecially the policeman waiting for you when you got home the other night. But my corals needed you! Thanks for the explanation. bob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bededog February 12, 2009 Share February 12, 2009 I just sent Dan a long email explaining the problem I was having with the pump on the 8 that I bought from him last summer. It sounds like I am having the same problems that other are having. Anyone get a new impeller from Dan and did it fix the problem? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grav February 12, 2009 Share February 12, 2009 I have not heard from Dan in a while, sent a PM a week or two ago, not sure if he is checking the board. I replaced the one I had with a standard, non-needle, non-pin, non-mesh replacement impeller from the pump Mfg and the skimmer is working better now than it was. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Origami February 12, 2009 Share February 12, 2009 I have not heard from Dan in a while, sent a PM a week or two ago, not sure if he is checking the board. I replaced the one I had with a standard, non-needle, non-pin, non-mesh replacement impeller from the pump Mfg and the skimmer is working better now than it was. Really, Phil? You're just hammering away at the air intake with regular impeller blades? Interesting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lanman February 13, 2009 Author Share February 13, 2009 dan@greyseasaquatics.com He doesn't check mail often - but he does check it. I've received replies from his blackberry. Recently. bob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bededog February 13, 2009 Share February 13, 2009 This sucks. I have a $700 skimmer that is less than a year old and I don't know what to do to fix it. Has anyone tried simply mesh modding the standard impeller on the Eheim 1262? I am just wondering if I should buy a new impeller for the pump or wait until I get a reply from Dan. The skimmer isn't working any better than the junk I had running before I bought this one. dan@greyseasaquatics.com He doesn't check mail often - but he does check it. I've received replies from his blackberry. Recently. bob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Origami February 13, 2009 Share February 13, 2009 (edited) Here's a link to a $100 pinwheel impeller from Euro-Reef's SPE5 (a modified Eheim 1262) pump which, if like my GSA Custom 8, should fit the Eheim on your skimmer. The impeller is very close in design to Deltec's pinwheel impellers and is used on some of Euro-Reef's bigger RC models (like their RC750 - RC2000, and CS180 - CS600). http://commerce03.i2net.com/able55new/stor...2-P173C105.aspx If the link ever dies, try Googling "Euro Reef SPE5 impeller." Edited February 13, 2009 by Origami2547 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grav February 13, 2009 Share February 13, 2009 Really, Phil? You're just hammering away at the air intake with regular impeller blades? Interesting. I dunno about "hammering away" but yep, just put in a standard impeller and it works great. I'm sure someone will say that a a "real" pin or needle wheel will work better, or that the threadwheel / mesh wheel is good, and they aer probably right. BUT my customer didn't want to spend $100 on an OEM skimmer impeller, and I feel that the mesh mods cause the impeller magnet to wear out. (the one I replaced was hourglass shaped.) I put a standard impeller in to see what would happen and on my next visit to the tank, it had pulled out more gunk than it was pulling when the mesh mod was working. Good luck all! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
extreme_tooth_decay February 13, 2009 Share February 13, 2009 Maybe it just appears it is working better for now because there is an accumulation of junk in the tank from the period when the skimmer wasn't working well, and that stuff is coming out now. Would be interested to see a month later if it's back to normal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grav February 14, 2009 Share February 14, 2009 (edited) Good point... I should have said I made the change about 6 weeks ago, took a little time to dial it in, but has been running great for a month now. ...... Look I'm not telling everyone to run out and replace their pinwheel or mesh wheel with a standard impeller. What I am suggesting is that if you have the option of standard impeller or nothing, the standard impeller works pretty darn good and perhaps, based on a sample test of 1 (one,) even better than a meshmod that is nearing the end of it's useful life. Edited February 14, 2009 by Grav Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bededog February 14, 2009 Share February 14, 2009 I should be receiving the Euro-Reef pinwheel impeller today. I will let everyone know how works. I have calcium buildup in my pump and I have read on here that others have had the same problem. What should I use to get it out. Should I just scrape it out, soak in vinegar first? Thanks in advance to anyone that can help out with this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lanman February 14, 2009 Author Share February 14, 2009 Costco has large containers of vinegar (1.25 gallons?) Take a bucket, pour in the vinegar, and soak the pump. Let it soak overnight - but remove any rubber suction cups. Plug it in, and let it run some vinegar through it. Soak it a few more hours. Take it out and run it in a bucket of fresh water. Rinse well. Put it back to work. bob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now