Epoxy putty = skimmer going nuts

[vurbul]

I used some epoxy on Saturday. Just sticking 2 corals to my liverock. My skimmer (MCE300) went totally nuts afterwards. It was bubbling excessively and won't skim at all. Its been like that since.

I googled and it seems I'm not alone. But just wondering wether it has happened to anyone here. And for how many days usually would the skimmer goes back to normal? And what else can I do in the meantime? Would water change help?

[vt_snowman87]

yeap its normal.. my beckette usually goes back to normal overnight..

[comycus]

same for me. Overnight does the work. I remember reading somewhere that you don't want to add too much epoxy at a time into your tank, might have harmful side effects.

[jackywongto]

hi bro.

you obviously did not read my thread

then again, even if you search for info on my thread, I doubt you can find it .. haha

Yeah, if you are using epoxy in your tank, your skimmer will malfunction.

If you are using a weak skimmer (I was using Tunze 9002), you would literally have to strip the skimmer and clean it thoroughly before if can skim again.

Happened to me 2 times. I suspect it is due to the layer of oil leaked into the tank when you use them.

I am not sure how strong is MCE 300 but you can try leaving it running for 3 - 4days.

If it still does not skim. then I think you can strip it and clean the pump and the housing.

After that, It will be ok.

[jackywongto]

same for me. Overnight does the work. I remember reading somewhere that you don't want to add too much epoxy at a time into your tank, might have harmful side effects.

harmful effects to the corals & fishes?

I used 3/4 of a tube twice each time.

No effect on livestock.

Only affected the skimmer leh.

[LaW]

my friend's 2 ft cube,

he used alot to epoxy all his sps onto his rocks.

the next day, tank crushed. some fishes and corals gone. it was said that the epoxy prevent uptake of oxygen and thus the tank suffocates. no matter what is it, dun use too much at one go.

but still, epoxy are pretty safe in my experience.

[yikai]

my friend's 2 ft cube,

he used alot to epoxy all his sps onto his rocks.

the next day, tank crushed. some fishes and corals gone. it was said that the epoxy prevent uptake of oxygen and thus the tank suffocates. no matter what is it, dun use too much at one go.

but still, epoxy are pretty safe in my experience.

+10,000,000 on this.

epoxy will intefere with uptake of oxygen, cloud water and stress corals and fish. this is proven. my corals tend to slime alot after using alot of epoxy.

i don't see the need of using so much epoxy anyway. if for underwater use, a little is fine. if using ALOT, do it out of water. large quantities of epoxy is very hard to use underwater. it just falls off and creates a mess. trust me i'm an epoxy master. i have 5 empty boxes of D&D epoxy lol.

[vurbul]

hi bro.

you obviously did not read my thread

then again, even if you search for info on my thread, I doubt you can find it .. haha

Yeah, if you are using epoxy in your tank, your skimmer will malfunction.

If you are using a weak skimmer (I was using Tunze 9002), you would literally have to strip the skimmer and clean it thoroughly before if can skim again.

Happened to me 2 times. I suspect it is due to the layer of oil leaked into the tank when you use them.

I am not sure how strong is MCE 300 but you can try leaving it running for 3 - 4days.

If it still does not skim. then I think you can strip it and clean the pump and the housing.

After that, It will be ok.

Yeah I did read some but not all of it.

I guess it must be that white powdery substance that clouds the water that was making my skimmer go woozy. My skimmer must have OD on that thing. It's almost 4 days now and he's still seeing stars.

But thanks all. I'll try your method if he's not awake by tomorrow.

[jackywongto]

Yeah I did read some but not all of it.

I guess it must be that white powdery substance that clouds the water that was making my skimmer go woozy. My skimmer must have OD on that thing. It's almost 4 days now and he's still seeing stars.

But thanks all. I'll try your method if he's not awake by tomorrow.

good luck bro and keep us posted.

will be good for other mce 300 users to know.

[vurbul]

+10,000,000 on this.

epoxy will intefere with uptake of oxygen, cloud water and stress corals and fish. this is proven. my corals tend to slime alot after using alot of epoxy.

i don't see the need of using so much epoxy anyway. if for underwater use, a little is fine. if using ALOT, do it out of water. large quantities of epoxy is very hard to use underwater. it just falls off and creates a mess. trust me i'm an epoxy master. i have 5 empty boxes of D&D epoxy lol.

Yah I heard before it may crash your tank. This thing is nasty in a way. But just wondering, would superglue gel works if I'm just sticking small frags to my LR?

[LaW]

Yah I heard before it may crash your tank. This thing is nasty in a way. But just wondering, would superglue gel works if I'm just sticking small frags to my LR?

yes vurbul.

it helps. get those bigger/value pack to save more on money on superglue.

in my experience, superglue is easier to work with. but their limitation is to smaller sized frags.

[vurbul]

good luck bro and keep us posted.

will be good for other mce 300 users to know.

Thank you sir. Hopefully I don't have to strip it apart and put it back together. But I had a strong feeling I might just have to. We'll see tomorrow.

[vurbul]

yes vurbul.

it helps. get those bigger/value pack to save more on money on superglue.

in my experience, superglow is easier to work with. but their limitation is to smaller sized frags.

That's nice to hear. And it'll make my life slightly easier.

Thanks.

[jackywongto]

yes vurbul.

it helps. get those bigger/value pack to save more on money on superglue.

in my experience, superglue is easier to work with. but their limitation is to smaller sized frags.

LaW

can those super glue gel be used in the water?

[FuEl]

Don't understand why you guys like epoxies that dissolve in water.

[LaW]

LaW

can those super glue gel be used in the water?

hi jacky,

yes you can. but its not recommended to apply it in water (squeezing in water), its hard to use like that.

take ur frag out of water, apply some at the base and put it at the position you want in the tank. hold it for like a good 30s and it will be good.

[onizukaa]

iwarna sell those aquazonic gel, 5 stick for $15 i think

it's good to use! esp small frag, just clean it dry on frag and the frag holder (e.g stone/frag plug), squirt the gel and place the frag on it, press it gentlely and put it inside salt water.

few minutes later and it's ok. can put inside tank le

all this (if i written correctly) is advised to me by the exotic sps/zoas collector

you guys can try it

[LaW]

Don't understand why you guys like epoxies that dissolve in water.

Fuel has a point. epoxy is hard to use in water. i normally used for pegging, out of water(first) till the shape is there and strong enough to hold. then put it at a low flow area waiting for it to set.

pegging with epoxy is a good combo. other than that, its really hard to use(in water).

[vurbul]

Cleaned Mr Skimmer this morning. And I found sticky residue inside. Took a while to clean it.

But it's working now and nice thick foam is forming around the cup.

I think I'm done with epoxy. Either I use it out of the water or its superglue all the way.

[vt_snowman87]

i always use superglue gel + epoxy together.. they work wonders when combined..

[jackywongto]

hi jacky,

yes you can. but its not recommended to apply it in water (squeezing in water), its hard to use like that.

take ur frag out of water, apply some at the base and put it at the position you want in the tank. hold it for like a good 30s and it will be good.

Thanks LaW. Will try it this weekend.

iwarna sell those aquazonic gel, 5 stick for $15 i think

it's good to use! esp small frag, just clean it dry on frag and the frag holder (e.g stone/frag plug), squirt the gel and place the frag on it, press it gentlely and put it inside salt water.

few minutes later and it's ok. can put inside tank le

all this (if i written correctly) is advised to me by the exotic sps/zoas collector

you guys can try it

I used them before. does not really like it leh. Will keep you posted on the comparison with Loctitite superglue gel.

Cleaned Mr Skimmer this morning. And I found sticky residue inside. Took a while to clean it.

But it's working now and nice thick foam is forming around the cup.

I think I'm done with epoxy. Either I use it out of the water or its superglue all the way.

lol. same here bro. glad you got your skimmer fixed!

[onizukaa]

ok,let me know the price per tube and how's it compared to the gel.

[vt_snowman87]

i've tried it before, the tube is half filled with air.. and the quality is not comparable to loctite..

[vurbul]

Skimmer went bonkers again. Too much bubbles and nothing skimmed. I've added more carbon and changes filter wool. Hope that helps.

[Ah-lim]

I used epoxy with plastic tubes to make liverocks arches for a long long time due to its strength to hold the weight.

Nv really had much problem.

Forgot the brand, bought at aqua marin and the color is very close to coraline.

If your tank is really small or you want to reduce the oil, cure it a week in a bucket of salt water.