Deltec make a series of self cleaning heads for their larger AP series skimmers which can increase the efficiency of your skimmer by up to 20%

On all skimmers if you watch them over a number of days you will see the amount of waste collected fall off with time. This is because as the foam rises it deposits some of the fat and proteins that it has collected on the side of the riser tube. This deposit makes it harder for the foam to climb and so the amount of waste in the cup decreases.

On my own AP902 skimmer I can collect a good inch of thick dark waste over a period of 2-3 days. If I do not clean the cup at that point it may take another week to collect the same volume.

The idea behind the cleaning head is that every 1-2 hours, brushes on the head clean the inside of the riser tube and keep it spotlessly clean. No additional water is used for this as the wetness of the foam is sufficient if done on such a frequent time scale.

Once a day, depending on the rate that the waste is collected, the solenoid switches on which introduces a jet of freshwater into the cup. The cup fills up and when it reaches the top of the crook on the auto syphon pipe it runs away to drain until the cup is empty and the syphon breaks.

Only regular cleaning will maintain the maximum skimmer performance. When using a Deltec cleaning system, cleaning is fully automatic.

Function

The cleaning system has two functions

1 - It cleans the inner surface of the inner skimmer cup tube

An electronically controlled step motor operates a pair of brushes, which rotate and remove the fatty substances from the inner skimmer cup tube. Unlike some other systems using water flushing, the unwanted substances are not being washed back down into the system, but removed into the skimmer cup.

2 - It flushes and empties the skimmer cup at desired intervals

The skimmer cup is automatically flushed and a special siphon system will also automatically empty the cup.

To do this, the skimmer cup must be connected to a pump feeding tap water to the skimmer cup from a reservoir, or via a solenoid valve fitted to a mains water supply. The pump or solenoid valve must be controlled by a timer (the timer is not supplied). When the water supply switched on, the skimmer cup will fill up to a set level, at which point a siphon will start which will automatically empty the skimmer cup taking with it any waste build up.

The unit requires use of a timer which is not supplied which should be set to allow at least one operation per 24 Hours. The duration of each cleaning cycle should only be one or two minutes.

Important

The water supply into the skimmer cup should be at least 2 l/min to ensure proper functioning of the siphon system.

Models

The SCH cleaning heads are available in 3 sizes

• SCH1 - Item 88100 - For AP702/AP902
• SCH2 - Item 88101 - For AP703/AP1003/AP1004
• SCH3 - Item 88102 - For AP1006

The new model Self Cleaning Heads use a low voltage supply and transformer.