To clean or not to clean

I clean the skimmer cup probably twice a week, just dump it out, rinse, and wipe clean with a paper towel. I push a paper towel up the neck of it to clean off the gunk.

Regarding the overflow, I use snails! I keep a banded trochus in my overflow box - when it runs out of algae, it actually goes through the U-tube and cleans it. Sometimes I'll find it on the other side in the box with the sponge. He'll work on it for awhile, back through the U-tube, and back into the overflow. I do rotate the snails out occasionally - I hate to have the same one stuck with "overflow box duty" forever!

 

I clean my skimmer cup weekly. As for the neck, I'll clean it with a Kent Proscraper if it gets too bad. If the neck gets clogged and lined with skimmate, it tends to stay there and not push over into the collection cup. At least that's how the EV-180 responds. I have since hard plumbed my overflow drain into my system. I DREAD the day that I have to clean my OF box out, yeeeeeek!!!

 

I thought about putting a snail in the overflow box Triplemom but I was afraid it would get sucked into the sump, think I'm gonna try this now,thanks.

 

I clean my EV120 collection cup out in the sink whenever it approaches "full". When the scum builds up in the neck I just reach my fingers in and scoop some out.

If it weren't for the salt content, I'll bet that stuff would make some dynamic fertilizer ...

 

I wondered about this!? When you clean the different parts of the skimmer aren't you in fact cleaning the "break-in" off of the skimmer?