Djplus1 July 7, 2013 Share July 7, 2013 How often does everyone clean their protein skimmers? I pull my unit weekly with water change and hose spray the gunk out of the body and wipe the neck and collection cup. I vinegar everything about every 3 months. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YHSublime July 7, 2013 Share July 7, 2013 I skim as dry as possible, and do once a week like you with water changes. Unless it stinks earlier. I clean in my sink with tap water, and let it dry. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gmerek2 July 7, 2013 Share July 7, 2013 Here is what my reef octopus directions say. Collection Cup: It should be cleaned at least once a week, depending on the organic load. Cleaning will enhance the extraction substantially. Reaction Chamber: Take apart skimmer and clean every 6 months recommended. Pump: Take apart pump and clean every 4 months recommended. Use a vinegar/water solution for cleaning off excess build up. The parts included with the pump are the venturi, volute cover, pinwheel impeller, and shaft with 2 rubber grommets. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimlin July 7, 2013 Share July 7, 2013 (edited) i clean my collection cup and skimmer body once every 2-3 days which is when gunk starts building up on the neck. i dont use any chemicals, just use my fingers and running water, wipe dry. Edited July 7, 2013 by jimlin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rtsusc83 July 7, 2013 Share July 7, 2013 I clean my collection cup once per week and have done one vinegar bath so far. Skimmer is one year old. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldReefer July 7, 2013 Share July 7, 2013 (edited) The skimmer neck needs to be cleaned at least once a week. More is better. That is why neck cleaners like Swabbies are so popular. It makes a big difference. The big strip-down and cleaning is only required when you start getting coralline and such building up in the reactor chamber. Most skimmers will fit in a 5 gallon bucket with the pumps removed. So about two or three times a year, I will fill a bucket with about 3 gallons of water and 3 ounces of Muriatic acid (lifetime supply purchased from Lowes paint dept. for $15). I stick the skimmer in the bucket for an hour. I flip it over for an another hour, and then I hose it off and put it back in the sump. It seems much easier than taking the thing apart. The game-changer for me was the Muriatic acid. You can make gallons of cleaning solution for pennies. It is much more effective than vinegar. Be careful with the stuff though.... Edited July 7, 2013 by OldReefer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Origami July 7, 2013 Share July 7, 2013 I clean the collection cup and neck when needed - that is, typically weekly. I hardly ever clean the body unless I feel it really needs it. Once a year if I'm feeling ambitious. Once every couple of years if the mood hits.... In reality, it stays pretty clean, though sometimes, if the intake is not filtered, you can get sediment settling in the bottom. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roni July 7, 2013 Share July 7, 2013 I run a swabbie so the neck stays pretty clean. However, I try to take the cup off and clean completely about every 2 weeks, simply because skimmate collects on the top of lid and on the swabbie blade. I think the higher dollar neck cleaners do a wash down and/or you can build your own but I haven't found the need. I try to clean the pump once every 3 months or so. I don't think I've ever cleaned the body of my skimmer, but for the most part, I don't really see the need since it should stay pretty clean unless you have light and coralline grows. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sharkey18 July 7, 2013 Share July 7, 2013 I clean the cup and neck every time I empty. Usually every other day. I clean the reaction chamber every 4 to 6 months. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sachabballi reef July 8, 2013 Share July 8, 2013 Is it bad to have coraline growth in the body really? What affect does it have? Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hypertech July 8, 2013 Share July 8, 2013 I have a swabbie. I clean it out every couple weeks. Body and pump get cleaned maybe once a year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul b July 8, 2013 Share July 8, 2013 The reaction tube comes off and I clean that maybe every 3 weeks, the body I think I cleaned in the 90s. I never opened the pump which is from the 90s also. It drains into a 5 gallon bucket. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimlin July 8, 2013 Share July 8, 2013 The reaction tube comes off and I clean that maybe every 3 weeks, the body I think I cleaned in the 90s. I never opened the pump which is from the 90s also. It drains into a 5 gallon bucket. wow, that thing looks crazy old. how much skimmate do you get with that? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul b July 8, 2013 Share July 8, 2013 how much skimmate do you get with that? It depends on what is going on in the tank. I used to have a sea urchin business and I collected sea urchins, I didn't have enough room for them so I put 24 of them in my tank, they all decided to spawn at the same time and that five gallon bucket overflowed about 10 gallons. Now I have an auto shut off if it fills. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sachabballi reef July 8, 2013 Share July 8, 2013 It depends on what is going on in the tank. I used to have a sea urchin business and I collected sea urchins, I didn't have enough room for them so I put 24 of them in my tank, they all decided to spawn at the same time and that five gallon bucket overflowed about 10 gallons. Now I have an auto shut off if it fills. Lol I LOVE Paul stories.....you never know what innocent question will "spawn" one Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
netpez July 8, 2013 Share July 8, 2013 (edited) My Cleaning schedule: Every week (with water change), - Clean bubble trap/mecahnical filters - Scrub protein skimmer (the entire thing) - Vacuum sump Every 3-4 weeks (based upon how things are looking: - Clean bubble trap/mecahnical filters - Scrub protein skimmer (the entire thing) - Scrub all pumps (take them apart) - Scrub all hoses & outputs that connect to pumps - Scrub sump & vacuum Every 2nd one of the big cleanings, I run my pumps in vinegar for about an hour. I am a little mental about things in my tank being clean, particularly since I have a habit of over feeding every now & then. Edited July 8, 2013 by netpez Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ToddR July 8, 2013 Share July 8, 2013 Empty the cup every three or four days. Clean the whole skimmer every other month. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sachabballi reef July 8, 2013 Share July 8, 2013 My Cleaning schedule: Every week (with water change), - Clean bubble trap/mecahnical filters - Scrub protein skimmer (the entire thing) - Vacuum sump Every 3-4 weeks (based upon how things are looking: - Clean bubble trap/mecahnical filters - Scrub protein skimmer (the entire thing) - Scrub all pumps (take them apart) - Scrub all hoses & outputs that connect to pumps - Scrub sump & vacuum Every 2nd one of the big cleanings, I run my pumps in vinegar for about an hour. I am a little mental about things in my tank being clean, particularly since I have a habit of over feeding every now & then. you need to add another hobby to make you less anal of your hobby LOL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ohaverd July 8, 2013 Share July 8, 2013 You are supposed to clean those things!? :P once a week when I do all my other maintenance, fill top off tank, check two part levels, that sorta stuff. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coral Hind July 8, 2013 Share July 8, 2013 I empty the cup every two or three days. I skim a little wet so I only need to wipe the neck out about once a month. About once a year, normally on a snow day I completely remove the skimmer and clean it out. I use that time to inspect the pumps and vinegar soak them if needed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Huly July 8, 2013 Share July 8, 2013 you need to add another hobby to make you less anal of your hobby LOL LOL LOL LOL I can not count how many times we have told him he cleans too much! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matt July 8, 2013 Share July 8, 2013 I clean my cup and neck every 2-3 weeks. I'm having a bit of an algae problem at the moment....likley because I once cleaned the cup and neck weekly and that was better. I'll probably go back to weekly now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Djplus1 July 9, 2013 Author Share July 9, 2013 I guess that I'll stick with what I'm doing, as its not too much effort. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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