aqua c ev180 and downgraded pump

[goinbroke]

i've been running my ev180 for maybe for a year now. the best pump recommended to run it was a mag 7. the skimmer never ripped foam like it should. did some investigating yesterday. aqua c recommendes the water should never be above the internal platform! with the mag7 and gate opened all the way my water in the skimmer was half an inch from the collection cup! i had a mag 5 laying around and swapped it for the 7. within an hour the water level was right where its supposed to be and the skimmer was making more foam then ever! i wonder if i had a mismarked mag pump? it was severly overdriving the skimmer!
now with the mag 5 on there and it operating perfectly i'm going to have to hook up the remote overflow tank to catch all the foam. the way it worked with the 7 it would not even fill the cup to the overflow barb between water changes!

 

[scsinet]

Well, from what it sounds like, you are wondering if the pump you had was a mismarked larger model. Unlikely.
First, if they recommend a mag 7, and you found that a mag5 worked perfectly, that is suggesting that both the mag7 you had and the mag5 you swapped in were mismarked.
Second, the next larger pump from the mag7 is the mag 9.5. This pump is noticably different than the mag7 and smaller models. It is shaped differently (more rectangular than square), and has a 3/4" output connection instead of a 1/2" like the others. So if your mag7 and mag5 look very similar and have the same size output fitting, then it's definitely not a mismark.
It's probably just something about your situation that made the skimmer behave differently. Regardless, I'm glad you got it working right!

 

[goinbroke]

my lfs suggested there may be somthing blocking the output tube. said have heard of packing peanuts being stuck in there from the factory. next week when i take it out to clean it i'll check in there!
the skimmer is working better then ever! hopfully my tank will do better the ever now!
any recommendations on what kind of foam is the best to produce? i would imagine that with the air is wide open and the foam is thin it will produce more but maybe not pull out as much crud. is this correct to assume? maybe thicken it up a bit?

 

[scsinet]

The object is to get as little water in the foam, so to have as "dry" of a foam as possible. The less water, the better.
I personally run wet foam as it keeps the skimmer neck cleaner and maximizes the DOC extraction rate. On my skimmer, if the liquid looks black or dark green, I'm good. Green or yellow water is too much water.
I can't understand how a blocked tube could cause your issue. If the water was high in the chamber, then obviously it's because the pump you were using was running too much water, not too little. I'd like to see a blocked output cause too much water....
On the other hand, you can always relegate this to the "who cares" file; you've got it running great now, and you've got a decent pump for mixing and water change purposes (you can never have enough of those... )... so ... who cares?

 

[natclanwy]

I am running my EV180 with a Mag 9.5 and my water level is exactly where it should be, I can't adjust the level though as the pump is moving the maximum allowable through the 1" gate valve. I am guessing that something was obstructing the outlet of your skimmer. How do you have the skimmer mounted internal or external, and if its internal how much water is it sitting in?
I also run my skimmer a little wet, especially with the EV-180 because if you try to run dry most of the skimmate ends up collecting in the riser tube instead of in the cup. Your skimmate should look like a good strong cup of coffee and maybe a little on the green side but if you are getting a thick buildup in the riser tube you are running too dry.
You might need to choke the air down a little for the next few weeks so your skimmer doesn't try to pump out the entire contents of the tank, it took about six weeks after my skimmer broke in before I could open the air valve all the way, otherwise I would get a gallon or more of light yellow skimmate a day.