I need some help!!!! With my DYI becket skimmmer....

[Portland Reefer]

I need some help!
I have been looking at some of the DYI Becket skimmers. So, I decided to try and make one. I think I'm almost there just need some help to fine tune it. I hope that is all that is wrong with it. The dimensions are 6x9x6, the first riser tube is 4x6, I still have to add the second one yet. That will be 3x8 with 2 inches in the collection cup. I
know I have to go to a 1 1/2 out let still. The biggest problem right know is that I'm getting a few large bubbles in the first riser tub and I don't know why. I would like to know why and what I should do to my current design to make it more efficient.

Thanks for any help you can give me.

 

[clyde]

fresh water or salt water ?

get a valve to control your bubbles, but full bore should give you WHITE foam easily.

 

[Anonymous]

I can't see you becket tube exactly, Do you have a valve on the air intake? If you let in less air, it will make finer bubbles.

B

 

[Bruce Richards]

Hi, I built a bullit 1 type skimmer with a beckett injector and it works very well, but it took some fine tuning over the course of a week probably! I have a mag 18 powering it (overkill, mag 12 would have been enough) what are you using for a pump? I had to throttle the mag back a lot. I used an airline with a 1/4" airline valve that is opened right up for the air injection. With the airline valve wide open and about 4' of airline tube on the inlet side of the valve it has just the right amount of restriction to work. A nice, high quality needle valve would work better but that does the job fine. It also gets rid of the air sucking noise with the 4" of tube!
So, set your water level with the air plugged off, then start to add air bit by bit. It will take lots of tries, but tha's what DIY is all about!

HTH, Bruce

btw, mine had the huge bubbles at the start too, and every time I feed the tank the skimmer does the big bubble thing on it's own for an hour or so.

 

[jdvalero]

Hey Portland Reefer ,
I see one thing missing from your P.S. there is supposed to be a dividor all the way from the top left corner to "almost" the bottom right corner of the box it self. (Of course inside).
Just thoug i point that out.