aqua C skimmer

[benjamin]

I have an aqua C remora skimmer. I purchased it used on these forums about 3 years ago. It has done well, but has started to pull less and less "gunk" out of the water. It hardly pulls much out of the water now. I also have recently had a really bad algae outbreak. I have pretty much cleared it up by scrubbing the rocks and adding more clean up crew. I thought the amount of algae might be the problem, but since the allege has gone away the skimming hasn't improved. Last weekend I went and cleaned out the canister and maxi jet and soaked both in vinegar for a day thinking that it might just be backed up. That has not fixed the skimmer. Is there anything else that I can do? I can't see how the skimmer can go bad, but who knows, after my 3 years and it being used it might have just gone bad. Btw there is no physical damage that is noticeable to me on the unit. Any information or help would be great. Thanks

[Babyreef]

Is there any calcium or algea buildup at the point where it injects the water?

[Amphiprion]

I would also recommend cleaning/checking the spray inductor. That is the weak point on any of their skimmers in terms of performance degradation. The smallest clog would result in drastic performance reduction on the one I had (EV180). It may also be worth wiping down the entire skimmer body with clean paper towels. Sounds odd, I realize, but some systems will actually deposit a waxy buildup on the skimmer walls, which dramatically reduces foam production. The last thing I would try after that would be to replace the pump or simply try a different pump. The skimmer itself, though, won't "go bad," since it is just a piece of plastic.

[benjamin]

Thank you for the help guys. I took out the screw and cleaned beneath it. Totally forgot about that and it was clogged. Pulling a lot of nasty stuff back out of the water again and lots of it. Thanks again.