Black goop on skimmer air stone

dekon70

dekon70

New Member
Hi all,
I was doing some cleaning on my BC29. When I pulled out my Oceanic Skimmer, there was a black goop on the airstone. I was able to wipe it off, it was like a gel about an 1/8" thick. It was not covering the whole airstone, but about 1/3 of it. I have been using the skimmer now for a month. Does this mean it is time to change the airstone?
TIA
 
fishkid2

fishkid2

Member
Is the airstone still producing tiny airbubbles really good?
Can you take off all of the black goop off the airstone?
 
spanko

spanko

Active Member
I think the instructions say to replace the wooden airstone once per month. I have had mine about 2 months now without replacing and it is still working. Have not noticed the black goop you are talking about though. It would be nice to know if others have tried a different airstone and how long others have lasted till changing theirs. How do you like the skimmer though?
 
fishkid2

fishkid2

Member
Originally Posted by spanko
http:///forum/post/2535297
I think the instructions say to replace the wooden airstone once per month. I have had mine about 2 months now without replacing and it is still working. Have not noticed the black goop you are talking about though. It would be nice to know if others have tried a different airstone and how long others have lasted till changing theirs. How do you like the skimmer though?
I don't even know how old my airstone is. I'm sure is older then 3 months too and its still pulling out a bunch of green crap.
So would you just go by if its still producing micro air bubbles?
 
K

kat74

Guest
I haven't changed my airstone yet either and mine is still producing nice bubbles. I've had mine in since Jan 2nd.
When I do my water change this Friday, I'll take a look at it. I believe someone posted that when they went to change their airstone, it had swelled so much that he had to wait 2 days for the airstone to dry before it shrunk back where he could remove it.
 
dekon70

dekon70

New Member
It has been working fine, I was just checking it when I saw it. I wiped the airstone off and it still works like it did before. Plenty of microbubbles like when it was new. To get it out, I carefully twisted and pulled on the cap(where the cup sits) and it came right out. I was just wondering if anyone else has seen this.

Rich
 
halostalker

halostalker

Member
lmao i never have a problem with it getting smaller

yea i noticed the black stuff on my wooden air stone i guess its some kind of bacteria that like oxygen or some other gas, or it might be from the mood degrading in the salt water as i could imagine it happening.
i wonder how much new wooden airstones cost mines still doing great so no plan for changing it.
 
sazarac

sazarac

Member
Ah hem, yeah, well that was me. I got the thing apart after 2 days. I have no idea what the issue was. And yes, the airstone did swell enough that it couldn't be removed through the opening, but I was able, as I said, to get the whole apparatus apart finally and replace it. They are cheap, around $4 or $5 bucks for a 2 pack, and most pet stores seem to carry them.
USUALLY I hate it when things shrink, but in this case...

Sazarac
Originally Posted by KAT74
http:///forum/post/2535434
I believe someone posted that when they went to change their airstone, it had swelled so much that he had to wait 2 days for the airstone to dry before it shrunk back where he could remove it.
 
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