MRC Skimmer club!!!

[jamescook]

Mine was dirty everytime I've cleaned it. once a month? no way am i cleaning my becketts every other day. just ain't gonna happen, and for $600 yo gotta be kidding...guess I'll go work for tim.
I have experimented and found that the exhaust air flow is constricted by the nipple and tube to the WC. when I loosen the top of the cup and open it, thar she blows!! maybe a 3/4 or ideally a 1 in waste line that didn't restrict air exhaust would be the ticket.
I just can't believe that this design hasn't already been perfected?
Tim says raising the becketts doesn't help either. But i'll be modding soon if I can't get this working.

 

[jamescook]

mine has never produced that dark skimmate like pictured above. It does build up some sludge though

 

[dannybradley]

I run an MR-2R and an MR-3R on our tanks up at the shop at they are both constantly producing copious amounts of waste. In addtion, they're both using waste collectors.

If your injectors are making a whistle as they suck in air, there's a good chance that you need to place some polyfil or 1/2 of a cottonball inside where the the cap unscrews on the air intake. Those not being included in a used MRC skimmer is common, as they are replaced often because of the amount of dust they collect.

I service many of these skimmers in the field. Most don't need their becketts cleaned once a month, some need it every two weeks. I doubt there's one out there that needs it every two days. The main thing that tends to clog them in the ones I deal with is baby snails or limpits. Any large, solid debris getting sucked into the pump that feeds the becketts may clog them. The best way to know is when performance is reduced.

 

[skriz]

jamescook;243410 wrote: Mine was dirty everytime I've cleaned it. once a month? no way am i cleaning my becketts every other day. just ain't gonna happen, and for $600 yo gotta be kidding...guess I'll go work for tim.
I have experimented and found that the exhaust air flow is constricted by the nipple and tube to the WC. when I loosen the top of the cup and open it, thar she blows!! maybe a 3/4 or ideally a 1 in waste line that didn't restrict air exhaust would be the ticket.
I just can't believe that this design hasn't already been perfected?
Tim says raising the becketts doesn't help either. But i'll be modding soon if I can't get this working.

Becketts require A LOT of cleaning; I'd shoot for twice a month. It's a pain, but it's worth it if you want the performance and end results.

Hmm, sounds like the waste collector may be undersized. Which one is it (assuming it's an MRC). For the MR-3R, you should have one that has more than one vent to allow for adequate air.

I'd trust Tim on raising the becketts. I don't see what raising them could accomplish. I can see a larger or taller reaction tube, but not so much the becketts. What's it suppsoed to do?

 

[dannybradley]

Raj makes a good point there about the waste collector. It may be too small. I'll see if I can get a video off of my phone that's an MR-4 with the same diameter drain on the cup going into a waste collecter that's has enough venting.

 

[jamescook]

I have the little WC-1. it has the same 1/2 inch nipple on it that the cup has. I don't have room for anything bigger in the stand.

 

[hfleming]

Make sure the fitting in the waste cup is not dirty. That is easy to overlook when cleaning the waste cup. It never clogs but the open area can be greatly reduced to to buildup.

 

[skriz]

jamescook;243427 wrote: I have the little WC-1. it has the same 1/2 inch nipple on it that the cup has. I don't have room for anything bigger in the stand.

That may be the issue! The larger units have more than one vent, whereas the WC-1 only has one. I'm not sure if that lid can be modded for another vent of not, but if so, that'd be what I'd do. May want to ask Tim. OR, you can always have him make a new lid with 2 vents.

 

[dannybradley]

jamescook;243427 wrote: I have the little WC-1. it has the same 1/2 inch nipple on it that the cup has. I don't have room for anything bigger in the stand.

The 1/2 is plenty to move air through. Once you start going past 1/2" tube, it's too heavy to support it's own weight and crimps anyway. We can always customize an order if they want something larger, however.

The 1 air valve on the collector is where the bottleneck is occuring. If there's room on the waste collector, we can probably add a second valve. If there's not, we may be able to fabricate you a top that does incorporate a second one. Raj can probably tell you more on that.

I'm still working on that video... I'm trying to find a 3g2 converter that works with my phone.

 

[jmaneyapanda]

jamescook;243410 wrote: Mine was dirty everytime I've cleaned it. once a month? no way am i cleaning my becketts every other day. just ain't gonna happen, and for $600 yo gotta be kidding...guess I'll go work for tim.
I have experimented and found that the exhaust air flow is constricted by the nipple and tube to the WC. when I loosen the top of the cup and open it, thar she blows!! maybe a 3/4 or ideally a 1 in waste line that didn't restrict air exhaust would be the ticket.
I just can't believe that this design hasn't already been perfected?
Tim says raising the becketts doesn't help either. But i'll be modding soon if I can't get this working.

Honestly, if you are looking for a skimmer that requires no maintenance, sell the ebckett and buy something else. IMO, there is no better skimmer than the mR series. They do require maintenance and a large pump. If you are willing to do it, you will hav ethe most produictive skimmer available. That is the reality.

 

[william1]

I have been cleaning my becketts every couple of days because theres some fine sand particles building up inside them. Theres a small leak in the baffle on my sump which is allowing then into the pump section. I will be repairing this soon .

 

[william1]

Were finally getting some people in here with there MRC skimmers nice. Come on I know there has to be some more people out there...

 

[hfleming]

I have heard on the MR-1 that stepping up to a mag-18 instead of a mag-12 will really improve performance. Anyone have any experience with this?

 

[dannybradley]

hfleming;245807 wrote: I have heard on the MR-1 that stepping up to a mag-18 instead of a mag-12 will really improve performance. Anyone have any experience with this?

That's true of any MRC Skimmer. The greater the velocity and volume of the water moving through the becketts the more you'll be able to skim. You're talking about a 50% difference in power output between those two pumps.

I will say, however, with what your skimmer is pulling out with the 12 on a 55g, you're probably doing just fine. Are you having any issues with phosphate, nitrate, cyanobacteria, or algae?

 

[skriz]

hfleming;245807 wrote: I have heard on the MR-1 that stepping up to a mag-18 instead of a mag-12 will really improve performance. Anyone have any experience with this?

Yep. Add a good pressure rated pump (like the

 

[william1]

Im also looking for a preasure rated pumpfor my MR-2 dual beckett. It has a mag 18 right now but Im looking for something bigger. Maybe hfleming might want to purchase the mag18 from me....

 

[hfleming]

I'm always looking for a deal!

 

[william1]

Make me an offer

 

[william1]

So I cleaned my becketts today and thought it would be a great way to take some pics of the inside during cleaning... You can see the crud built up inside the becketts...I just wash this out reassemble and put back.

alt="" /></a>

alt="" /></a>

alt="" /></a>

alt="" /></a>

 

[skriz]

your becketts are installed backwards mate!

The ball part fits into the opposite end. This should improve your skimming tremendously!