In-Sump Skimmer waterlevel

[ryz]

I am running an insump venturi protein skimmer... I realised that the water level in the reaction chamber is very dependent on the sump water level... I am using fans to cool my tank therefore my tank experiecnes hifgh evaporation rate and the water level in the sump fluctuates a lot... This fluctuation has caused it to lose it's efficiency because once the waterlevel in the sump drops too muchthe water level in the reaction chamber drops as well causing the foam formed to be lost... I realised that If I constantly top up water and maintain the water level in the sump at a constant, the skimmer works very well and produces dark thick skimmate however I had to top up water almost every 2 hours.... I was wondering if there is any cheap solution to my water level fluctuation in the sump...

I thought of a few but they are quite costly for me..

possible solutions:

1. get tubby to topup water evaporated efficiently

2. get chiller so I dun have to run fan

what do you ppl think? are there ay other solutions? hoping I wouldn't spend more than 50 bucks on the solution... is this possible?

[terryansimon]

your two possible solutions already cost more than $50 already...

[ryz]

yea thats why I'm asking u all whether u all got any other possible solutions

[yus75]

yea thats why I'm asking u all whether u all got any other possible solutions

where do u place ur PS in the sump??? i guess the water level affected in sump wil be onli at the last part where ur returm pump is....u place ur PS w ur return pump???

[ryz]

why would it be that only the last compartment is affected??/ when the waterlevel in the sump drops, the whole sump water level drops... sump water level is the same at all the three compartments....

And yes I'm placing it with the return pump... I could place it in the middle compartment and the same would occur.

[tdmrider]

PS in the last comp will definitely affect the performance.

maybe post a pic of ur sump will make it easier 4 us 2 help.

[ryz]

hmm... dun have DC with me now... but the sump water level is constant thruout the whole sump(3 compartments) why would placing the skimemr in the last compartment be different from placing it in the middle one?

[yus75]

why would it be that only the last compartment is affected??/ when the waterlevel in the sump drops, the whole sump water level drops... sump water level is the same at all the three compartments....

And yes I'm placing it with the return pump... I could place it in the middle compartment and the same would occur.

IMO onli the last compartment will decrease in level unless all ur baffles got gap at the sump bottom.....

[ryz]

oh... because my water level is above the divider from the second and thrid compartment... the divider supposed to hold in water in the second compartment and let water overflow into the third compartment... I raised the water level in the sump higher than this divider so the waterlevel in the reaction chamber will be higher as well..

[yus75]

oh... because my water level is above the divider from the second and thrid compartment... the divider supposed to hold in water in the second compartment and let water overflow into the third compartment... I raised the water level in the sump higher than this divider so the waterlevel in the reaction chamber will be higher as well..

aiya....tatz y all ur level drop same time if ur water all high up.....

i onli have my water level "just" nice in sump......then try to trip main pump to how much water being siphon back.....test was satisfied as water in sump wil not over flow

[ryz]

but if my sump water level is just nice then it will be very low... the water level in reaction chamber will also be very low... too low I suspect.

[dradttg]

Try increasing the water level in your sump.

This will cause the water level in the PS to be higher. The flip side is that you will have watery foam. However, when evaporate occurs, the water level in the PS will not fall below the required level.

Just my 2 cents worth.

[yus75]

but if my sump water level is just nice then it will be very low... the water level in reaction chamber will also be very low... too low I suspect.

hmmm....mayb can add glass to make higher between 2nd n 3rd compart....but dunno how u goin to it la w ur sump now in service...

[madmac]

hmm... dun have DC with me now... but the sump water level is constant thruout the whole sump(3 compartments) why would placing the skimemr in the last compartment be different from placing it in the middle one?

Your question is so confusing. You first said that you are losing a lot of water.... but it not at the sump, then where do your notice you are losing the water? i.e. it can't be the main tank, so it has to be the sump... (oops unless you have a leakage somewhere). Now if you can tell us in which area of the sump you noticed the water level is different, perhaps some of us may be able to help.... otherwise it would appear that you don't really know what you're seeking.

The response so far are quite valid.... if you placed your PS in the return pump compartment of your sump then that's the area where most of the water level would fluctuate, it would then appear that your PS is actually taking air instead of water, thereby reducing the efficency of your PS as air is already being let in thru' a venturi portion. Shift your pump to the portion where the water level won't change and placed it about 1.5 inches from top. If tt can't be achieved then keep ur current setup and hv ur sump replaced with one tt has a larger base at the return end compartment, cause' obviously its currenltly has a small base now, => the height of water changes rapidly.... don't think it'll cost you > S$50.00

mm

[ryz]

haha madmac it appears that you cannot picture what I have described... There is a divider between the second and third compartment where the water level is supposed to be maintained... however I increased the water level to a level higher than the divider.. therefore the divider does not work like it's supposed to and maintain water level in compartment 1 and two... U seemed confised... haha.. Water is loss thru evaporation as I'm using two AC fans to cool my tank down... This water loss can be gauged by how much the water level drop in the sump....

yus75... yea I think thats the only cheap way out... I might drain my sump and get a taller divider between the second and third compartment... and then add a divider extension.. then place the PS in the second compartment..

[yus75]

haha madmac it appears that you cannot picture what I have described... There is a divider between the second and third compartment where the water level is supposed to be maintained... however I increased the water level to a level higher than the divider.. therefore the divider does not work like it's supposed to and maintain water level in compartment 1 and two... U seemed confised... haha.. Water is loss thru evaporation as I'm using two AC fans to cool my tank down... This water loss can be gauged by how much the water level drop in the sump....

yus75... yea I think thats the only cheap way out... I might drain my sump and get a taller divider between the second and third compartment... and then add a divider extension.. then place the PS in the second compartment..

yea bro....hope tis will solve ur problem ya