[Twan013]

hey guys, i got shafted when i bought my corallife superskimmer...everything works fine, and i want to keep it, but the powerhead that came with it is messed up... what powerhead should i replace it with? can i call/email corallife and buy just the PH from them? or should i just buy a different one anyway? this one has the needlewheel impeller and all that... the problem i'm having with the PH, is that when i plug it in, i have to tinker with it (remove the impeller housing and twist the impeller until it starts moving on its own)... and then, when it is working, its loud as all get out... that's a dissappointment because it claims to be "whisper quiet".... so what can i do? the LFS has a no return/refund policy, so they won't help me out... so what's another option?

[Krazy]

How long have you had it ?

Try running it in vineagar for a couple hrs, it will clean out the calcium deposits...

Otherwise you can get a replacement through coralife..

[Twan013]

i've had the skimmer for a little over a month now, but i've had the problem since i plugged it in... i know i should have taken it back to the LFS immediately, but i live an hour away, and since they had that policy, it would have been a waste of time anyway... i tried running it for a day or two, but it was so loud i couldn't sleep, and it accumilated skimmate so fast it overfilled the cup within a few hours... so i unplugged it and left it alone until now...if i run it in vinegar, should i let it run through plain freshwater afterwards to clean the vinegar out of it? i'll try it, hopefully it will work, but if not, i guess i'll give coralife a call...

[Krazy]

yes just run it with freshwater after words, you can do a diluted water/vinegar solution, the white distilled stuff is what you want... a month old you should defiently contact coralife without even having to clean it with vinegar, out of the box problems is no good..

[Twan013]

well, it wasn't exactly "out of the box"... i mean it was, but the LFS apparently had sold it before... it was a used system... everything was there and clean, but you could tell it had been used.. where the tape was, there was 2 separate layers (like it had been retaped after being opened).. and on that powerhead, the piece going into the rubber tube, its chipped off.. nothing to interfere with its working abilities, because it still sticks to the tube... there was another piece that was broken, but i may have done that myself without realizing it... even tho, it wasn't anything major.. it was just a clip that held the hose going to the tiny air silencer thing to the water intake tube... just to keep that small tube in place, so it looks neater and more uniform... so that doesn't matter to me..

i don't know... the fact that its a used/returned item, it kinda contradicts the whole policy thing... and i know it wasn't an old item from back in the day, because the time i went in there before i bought the skimmer, all they had to sell was an old used skilter 400.... and this last time i went in, they had 2 of the skimmer that i bought... i don't know, maybe their supplier sold it and took it back, and then sent it to this LFS.. or maybe one of the employees had taken it out and was studying it and broke it, and thought "oh crap, i better put this back".... the only reason i'm not going to try to take it back and get it exchanged or refunded, is because i can't tolerate the stress... i'd drive an hour out there, go in, explain the situation, ask to get it replaced, they'll say no, and talk about their policy, i'll get upset, and eventually a cop is gonna be involved... so i just prefer to stay away from it.. learn from my mistakes, and either study the packaging more next time, or not shop there again...

[Twan013]

ok, i tried cleaning the powehead in warm water and vinegar... i know it cleaned it because after a few minutes of some powerful bubbles coming through the PH, i saw a bunch of junk floating around in the sink.... but it still has a real loud humming noise... i don't know what it could be.. it will hum real loud for a few seconds, and then it will let up slightly for a few seconds, and then get loud again...there doesn't seem to be any power loss between the 2 different tones any other ideas besides getting it replaced?

[Krazy]

The impeller or the impeller cover is shot..

Same thing happened to my mag 9.5

I bought a new pump but also a replacement impeller and impeller cover and o-ring...

They wear out over time...

Contact coralife, dont tell them it was used when u bought it as new....

Tell them the situation, explain you tried cleaning with water and vinegar solution and see if they will replace the pump for you

There website is Energy Savers Unlimited | Coralife | ESU Reptile | Birdlife | Pondlife | Deep Ocean | A Worldwide Manufacturer of quality pet products

you can find how to contact them via phoen or email there..

Hope its works out for ya, let us know how you made out...

[jvharding]

Metal shaft on Impeller sometimes have a black rubber cap on them. Do you see something like this when you take it apart? This could make it rattle but still work! My guess is someone lost theirs and took yours thats why the package was apparently opened! You can purchase new impellers for many power heads what brand is it?

[Twan013]

thanks for the new info! jvharding, yeah, i've got both caps... i don't really know what brand the powerhead is... all's i know is that it came with the superskimmer...maybe the powerhead is coralife brand too?

[Twan013]

krazy k, you're saying i may get lucky and only need to replace the impeller? i took it out of the powerhead and tried spinning it on the metal rod going through it, and it doesn't spin smoothly... its "jumpy"... so yeah, i think you're right... the impeller is screwed... if i can just get a new impeller assembly, i'll be happy!

[jvharding]

Post a picture maybe we can identify the pump.

[Twan013]

i think i've discovered what had happened! there is a small piece broken off of the impeller housing tube, and i think it may have fallen down into the impeller housing and when the impeller was turning, that piece got caught and bent that rod... because looking in the impeller housing, one small area on the side has tiny scratches/dings, like something has hit it several times, in that one spot... ya know, this thing is retarded anyway, there doesn't seem to be any way to mount the powerhead to a solid surface... there's tabs on the bottom of the powerhead, but in the kit, even the list of parts in the book, there's nothing that would go there.. i may just ditch this whole idea, get an aquaC remora (seems to be the best HOB skimmer), and try to sell this thing on eBay... at least then i'll get SOME money back from it...

[Krazy]

I think you'd like the aqua c better...

there's always deltec's mce-600

It doesnt hurt to write coralife and explain it all to them...

They should honor the product and replace the faulty pump.. it isnt your fault it fell apart....

Its somewhat common for impellers to go... at least they are replaceable

[Twan013]

good news! i got an email back from ESU, and they're sending me a new impeller! no questions asked or anything! maybe it will last long enough, and work good enough for a while, so that way i won't feel like i wasted the money when i get a different skimmer... if it lasts a year without any malfunctions then i'll be satisfied... and then i can just get a new, better skimmer!

[Krazy]

Originally Posted by Twan013

good news! i got an email back from ESU, and they're sending me a new impeller! no questions asked or anything! maybe it will last long enough, and work good enough for a while, so that way i won't feel like i wasted the money when i get a different skimmer... if it lasts a year without any malfunctions then i'll be satisfied... and then i can just get a new, better skimmer!

See that !!!

I'm glad to hear it worked out for you !!

[Twan013]

what amazes me is that they didn't ask for any warranty info, and isn't making me pay anything... i basically sent them an email saying "hey, my impeller's broke, can i get a replacement?" and they replied saying "yeah we just need your shipping address", and then sent me another one saying that it may be a few days because the warehouse is out, and they don't know when they're getting another shipment... which may be bad... oh well, can't turn down a freebie!

i just can't wait till tomorrow, getting my lights!! (nova extreme!) after all the hassle of just deciding on things, i'm glad everything's FINALLY starting to come together! next will come livestock, so be sure to look for future post from me (keywords : "what livestocck should come first?") lol