needle valve for skimmer adjustments

[thefatman]

ok, the air adjustment on my skimmer, absolutely sucks.

it's a little plastic dial thing, over a piece of black nylon airline tubing.

the problem is adjusting it. it's horrible. let's say my water level is 1" below the recommended level in the skimmer. the SLIGHTEST turn of the knob, launches the water 2 or 3 inches ABOVE the line. the SLIGHTEST turn back, drops water 3 or 4 inches below the line, even lower than original.

so, i spend 15-20 minutes getting the adjsutment jsut right, going back and back over and over again.. grrrrrr

so i was thinking a needle valve might be a better solution. however, the only needle valves i can find at HD are brass.

will brass be ok? it's not hanging down in the water, obviously, but i still wasn't too sure if a brass valve will work for this application..

any ideas?

[tdwyatt]

Originally posted by thefatman
however, the only needle valves i can find at HD are brass... ...will brass be ok?

Should be ok, as it is not in contact directly with the water column, BUT...

if it is under the tank in a closed cabinet it will look like total H#!! in about 4 months . Find a better dealer with plastic needle valves, or just use a screw clamp on the hose to adjust the amount of air.

Sometimes a larger dial will help, try attaching a 2 inch dial to the valve to make adjusting it easier.