what is the best way to clean a used skimmer???

mlreef

mlreef

Active member
Just got my SRO XP 5000 Skimmer, full cone. I got it used and wanted to know what is the best way to clean the skimmer fully?

I was thinking of setting up a Rubbermaid tub and running it with different solutions (vinegar) so that all the parts get cleaned. Also what is the best way to remove minor calcium buildups in places that I can't reach?

Any suggestions would be great! Thanks!
 
I put 1g of vinegar in a 5g bucket and filled it up the rest of the way with tap water. Ran the skimmer for an hour and 99% of the coraline was already off. The rest came off easily with paper towel.
 
Here are some pictures. I want it to be as clean as possible.

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Thanks for the help. I'm thinking about soaking it for 3 days and then running it for another 3 days. I was also thinking of 1 part vinegar to 3 parts water. Let me know what you think. Thanks
 
poidog said:
It looks pretty clean already :)

Don't soak the pump in vinegar. It's been known to ruin them.
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What would you soak the pump in then?

I was also planning on running it fully operational with the vinegar bath... Is that also a bad idea?
 
poidog said:
It looks pretty clean already :)

Don't soak the pump in vinegar. It's been known to ruin them.
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Link? I have soaked pumps in vinegar for weeks at a time without any ill effects. Been doing it since I was a little kid (well my dad was). It's all acid. Magic kleen is actually a stronger acid. If you want to make REALLY fast work of the calcified material use Muriatic acid.

mlreef said:
I was also planning on running it fully operational with the vinegar bath... Is that also a bad idea?
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In my experience you will be fine. Run the whole thing in vinegar for 6-12 hours and scrub it down with a brush.
 
mlreef said:
What would you soak the pump in then?

I was also planning on running it fully operational with the vinegar bath... Is that also a bad idea?
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The above product. Most use vinegar to clean, I have too, but on expensive pumps I wouldn't risk using a acidic solution (like vinegar).
 
mlreef said:
Will the muriatic acid be too strong to soak it in? And will it cause ill effect to acrylic?
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I wouldn't use it. I have done glass tanks in muriatic acid but never anything acrylic (in theory it should be fine). I would stick with the vinegar plan.
 
I'm pretty sure that I will use the vinegar plan. I will let you all know the results of my findings. I might even go to a 1 part to 2 part solution, but then again that's a lot of vinegar. I'll post the results along with Pics later next week.
 
How much for the Domino's Coupons stuck to fridg? Baaaaaahaaahaaaaa Muratic acid all the way no problem. One cup to 5 gals of water. Much cheeper than vinegar. and it dont smell like yo grandma's...................nevermind.
 
Kerusso316 said:
How much for the Domino's Coupons stuck to fridg? Baaaaaahaaahaaaaa Muratic acid all the way no problem. One cup to 5 gals of water. Much cheeper than vinegar. and it dont smell like yo grandma's...................nevermind.
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One cup to five gallons of water? Have you tried using this on acrylic before?
 
It gives the acrylic a dull look(muriatic acid)I cleaned a 125g tank few years ago and left my whole tank with a dull yellowish tint,so i had to buff the heck out of it,maybe i used too much?I have since stuck to vinegar.
 
BADGUS said:
It gives the acrylic a dull look(muriatic acid)I cleaned a 125g tank few years ago and left my whole tank with a dull yellowish tint,so i had to buff the heck out of it,maybe i used too much?I have since stuck to vinegar.
Click to expand...

Ok then, I won't be using muriatic acid then. Gus it's 1.5" in size going into the skimmer section.
 
I ended up using 2 gallons of vinegar to 20 gallons of fresh water and soaked the pump and skimmer for about 3 hours and now have the system up and running for the last 2 hours. I plan on running it over night to give it a thorough cleaning.

I also posted some pictures of it up and running on the member reef tanks page.
 
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