Skimmer Problem...Please help.
 

So I had my skimmer running but turned it off today temporarily. Now when I turn it back on, its not working right. Its a PM Bullet 2 (beckett style). The problem is that when I turn the pump on, instead on the air intake for the beckett taking in air, it sprays out water!!! A LOT of water. Now all over my living room floor:sad: . Anyways, I have no idea why this is happening. I have never used a beackett style skimmer until now, so I do not know much about them. I had only ever set up the skimmer the first time a few days ago and it worked great. This is the first time I shut it off and tried to start it again and it was a disaster. Any help would be really appreciated. I bet this is something really simple that I just do not know:mrgreen:

You are sure that you only shut the pump off...you didn't by chance reverse the input and output lines on the pump?

No not at all. The only thing I touched was the actual air intake valve. I unscrewed it to attach some air line tubing to see if I could make the skimmer quieter. I screwed it back in and then the problems started. I don't really see how that could have screwed things up though...

mine has done this a time or two, I just blow in the air tube or block it off until the skimmer is up to speed

The air line you installed, was it after the pump? If you add a line at the base of the skimmer the pump will shoot water out. The only air intake that I know of is before the pump so it gets sucked in with the water.

Sorry Im confused:redface: . I never added a new air intake if thats what you mean. I am just talking about the air intake that the skimmer comes with. This air intake IS after the pump. Maybe you are thinking of some other type of skimmer instead of the beckett style. All the becketts I have seen have this same design.

You know I actually tried this but it never worked. I shut the air intake completely for quite a long time but everytime I opened it again, water came spraying out. Im so confused and getting very frustrated. I hate not having a skimmer running on the tank for too long...especially when the tank is still newly set up...

As far as I know the air line needs to be before the pump. Is it not similar to the Red Sea Berlin?

make sure the beckett is clean and your return valve is open enough

Sorry GSP just looked up your skimmer and it is not what I thought, just sounded the same as what had happened to me once.