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Manufactured by
OSCAR ENTERPRISES, INC, the Aquarium Surface Skimmer claims
to :
1. Remove organic film on the water surface
2. Prevents
un-desirable biological processes on the water
surface.
3. Helps improve exchange of oxygen.
DESCRIPTION
& INSTALLATION
It features a full control value, 360-degree intake float, flexible hose and
a suction-cut unit holder. Installation is rather simple and the equipment can
be used with most filter types. I first used mine with the FLUVA external
canister and presently with the Eheim 2217 filter. There
are 2 inlets on the skimmer to the canister filter. By means of the flowcontrol
lever (through the float & silt in the main cylinder), the rate of inflow
can be balanced between the lower inlet and the surface inlet. The surface inlet
is designed to float on the water surface and adjustment should be made till the
silt is about 2-4 mm below water surface to "skim" the few mm of the
water surface.
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Other
comments :
1.
It is inevitable that air will also be drawn into the canister filter with
the surface skimmer and this may not be good for the filter impeller.
However, I have not observed any adverse impact to my canister filter at
this point of time (since Jul 2003).
CONCLUSION
I
consider the Surface Skimmer a good buy notwithstanding the shortcomings.
(Updated
in Jul 03)
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Tips
for adjusting the float
Adjust
the flow control to only allow a thin film of water to be skimmed
from the water level. A good indication is to adjust till the water level
is about 1/2 within the transparent plastic
float. |
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COMMENTS
& REVIEW
Likes
:
1.
Based on how I installed the equipment and personal experience, the equipment is
effective in skimming the water surface when adjusted to the correct
level.
2.
The suction cup are of good quality and installation is a breeze.
Dislikes
:
1.
However, I observed that at times the float can be completely submerged when
there are some disturbance to the water level by the bigger fishes. As a result,
I initially have resorted to tying the float to the main cylinder at a pre-determined
level. However, this has to be periodically adjusted as the water level drops
due to evaporation. Recently, I discovered that with a little patience and
experience, it is possible to adjust the control to a point where total
submergence of the float is minimised.
2.
The gurgling sound when water enters from the surface inlet.
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Schematic
diagram of the surface skimmer in my tank
Other
types of surface skimmers in the market (Aquaclear, Fluval and Eheim)
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