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Surface Extractor
Jim Taylor wrote: >>> Is anyone using the Eheim surface extractor? Is it
noisy. Does it adequately skim the whole surface of the water? Will it
suck up fish? I used to have an overflow box and every few days I would
have to take the octocinclus catfish from the sump area and put them back in
the tank.>>>
Yes, it is a bit noisy. Mine kind of gurgles more like a stream though; it
doesn't have any type of motorized sound that I would find objectionable.
And yes, it will skim the whole surface, if adjusted properly. I have found
mine slightly finicky. As the water evaporates, it is helpful to adjust the
device by lowering it in the water. Maybe twice a week is sufficient for
me. And I should have replaced the suction cups a year or so ago. Mine now
has a tendency to break loose from the glass and need further adjustment and
pressing back into place.
On one occasion I found a small oto lodged in the extractor suction tube. I
opened the back end cap and he swam free. Don't try to pull one out in
reverse.
I have also had fish go through the overflow box into the trickle filter
system. I have found an altogether satisfactory solution to this problem.
Cut a square of filter foam about ¼ inch larger than the inside measurement
of the overflow box and lodge this in the inside of the filter box. You'll
still get a reasonable flow through the overflow box but no fish will get
through. A quick rinse during the weekly water change will clean it out and
you're back in business.
Regards, Steve Dixon in San Francisco