ATB Econo 840 Skimmer Review
- Thread starter mojo~
- Start date
vanillagorila
It stings the nostrils
how turbulent is the water/foam in the ATB compared to the WM K2? WM says that their VBT is far superior at minimizing turbulence compared to a traditional bubble plate.
GSMguy
New member
WM doesn't claim is far superior , the way jon eplained it to me is the VBT like the bubble plate stepless neck and cone design is just another feature to aleviate turbulence.
Anything to reduce turbulence is good but the cone design itself is the biggest detterent to turbulence.
Anything to reduce turbulence is good but the cone design itself is the biggest detterent to turbulence.
Last edited:
vanillagorila
It stings the nostrils
okay maybe I worded it wrong. he may not claim that its far superior, but he does clearly say that it does a better job of minimizing turbulence. so how does the ATB compare to the WM?
mojo~
Skimmer Guy
YEa I Want to throw it in pretty bad but I thought I Would run it stock for now.
OK the big question????? Does the VBT make a difference in turbulence? drum roll please. lol
The ATB does not have much turbulence to begin with. The cone does help direct the bubbles in a upward motion. Concentrating them towards the center. One more thing that has to be considered is that the K2 cone has a larger cone with the same basic pump. THe ATB has the better volute cover. But the K2 pulls a little more air than the ATB, but also has a larger cone and neck.
ATB 8 in base cone
4" neck
700lph air
water ??? not sure
WM k2 10 in base cone
4.5 in neck
900-950 lph air
water ???
So to answer the question. I would like to wait till the ATB breaks in more to give my official opinion. I think to answer that to soon would be unfair. You have to remember that these two skimmers are not the same. THe bodies are different and pumps are different (volute). Not apples to apples. The VBT technology does work and reduces turbulance. But the cone on the ATB doest have much either. So give me a few more days to give you a good answer on this. Thanks much mojo~
Looks over and see's the LArge PPW i got from reefspecialty sitting there. might have to go in soon.
mojo~
Skimmer Guy
Well I have started and stopped the skimmer several times today. Every time it starts up perfectly. No inrush, no issues at all.
Ok In my opinion thus far. The Warner MArine has a little less turbulence in the reaction chamber. Not a huge difference. However my skimmer is still breaking in. And I would like to add the fact that I didnt have to worry about what direction the skimmer started. That is worth the difference to me by far. I have not used te k2 with the step less neck so to be fiar I cant really comment on that part of it.
I have several people in and out of my house from our local reef club today. MAny comments were made.
" Wow that thing is quiet "
" That skimmer is bad A++ "
"love the look of it"
" Nice design "
About 6 different reefers came by today and all were really in awe over the skimmer. They also asked what one I would have next week? but thats beside the point.... lol
Ok In my opinion thus far. The Warner MArine has a little less turbulence in the reaction chamber. Not a huge difference. However my skimmer is still breaking in. And I would like to add the fact that I didnt have to worry about what direction the skimmer started. That is worth the difference to me by far. I have not used te k2 with the step less neck so to be fiar I cant really comment on that part of it.
I have several people in and out of my house from our local reef club today. MAny comments were made.
" Wow that thing is quiet "
" That skimmer is bad A++ "
"love the look of it"
" Nice design "
About 6 different reefers came by today and all were really in awe over the skimmer. They also asked what one I would have next week? but thats beside the point.... lol
I know the pump thing has been beaten to death but....
The non directional volute clearly distinguishes the ATB from any other Sicce based skimmer. You can always swap pinwheels around if you want to. You will still be stuck with the direction problem if you dont have the ATB volute. Besides decent pinwheels, this is the most significant improvement in these pumps since they started being used on skimmers.
The non directional volute clearly distinguishes the ATB from any other Sicce based skimmer. You can always swap pinwheels around if you want to. You will still be stuck with the direction problem if you dont have the ATB volute. Besides decent pinwheels, this is the most significant improvement in these pumps since they started being used on skimmers.
46FiatYamaha
New member
Hey Mojo, just curious, do you have any plans on testing out any of the new Korallen Zucht Revolution skimmers to see how they compare?
mojo~
Skimmer Guy
Did they come out with a new one? Or just the same old one they have had out for a while?
After cleaning the cup last night I woke up to the nice wall of foam down my collection cup and some nice nog started already.
I got to thinking more and more about the turbulence in the skimmer. Here is the deal. The skimmer pump does 2 basic things,it pulls in water and air. The skimmer body does the reverse separates the water and air. (well in basic terms) it does a lot more of course with the reaction with water and air to pull out dissolved solids ect... stay with me here.... The water and air from the pump goes into the skimmer and then what? it has two places to go. The bubbles rise and the skimmed water settles out the bottom of the skimmer. Well as the water has to flow downward you will get some turbulence. The cone helps with this some as the cone gets larger going down thus slowing the water flow going out. Plus as it narrows it helps concentrate the foam head. Well most of that water we see goes to the lowest point of pressure. The outside edge of the skimmer. And What Jon did with the VBT is allows that back pressure sort of speak to be released through the center of the bubble plate allowing a more gentle rise of bubbles upward. there is still turbulence inside the skimmer but with his design it has a chance to go inwards. I have seen this in action and it works. However, Does it really make the skimmer skim any better? I cant really say yes or no to that question. I have had so many other skimmers skim well with out a bubble plate. Like the WM s200. That thing is a skimming beast.
I have said this before, Its not just about how much air it pulls. Obviously that does help to a point. But its about balance. How much air/water it pulls, the design of the skimmer how easy it is to use, and how efficient it gets the job done. And to be totally honest I Don't really compare the ATB 840 to the warner marine skimmer. Different size bodies ect... the ATB 840 competition in my opinion is the bubble king mini 160. They are both very quiet. and both skim very well. THe bk has a Red dragon pump which is top notch. No arguments there I am sure. But the ATB pump acts much of the same way. Has a similar small bubble out put that everyone enjoys filling up the skimmer body. Both draw about the same amount of air and water, and they both target about same system sizes. The bubble king is a little thicker in material. It is built like a tank. No doubt about that. The ATB is just a little thinner but uses all the same material. Acrylic and PVC base plate ect... If I wanted a bubble king mini you would not be disappointed in my mind. But if you have the room with lower water level for your skimmer I would go with the ATB 840. I don't call it econo anymore as econo in my mind sounds cheap. There is nothing cheap about this skimmer. Ill post some nog shots over the next couple days.
Just for reference I feed twice a day. PC mysis or Rods during day and cyclopese, reefroids, or rods coral food at night. maybe a few pellets here and there as well.
Tank parameters
PH 8.3
nitrates trites and ammonia all 0
CA 440
DKH 9
MAG 1400
temp 78.5 +- .2
Mojo~
After cleaning the cup last night I woke up to the nice wall of foam down my collection cup and some nice nog started already.
I got to thinking more and more about the turbulence in the skimmer. Here is the deal. The skimmer pump does 2 basic things,it pulls in water and air. The skimmer body does the reverse separates the water and air. (well in basic terms) it does a lot more of course with the reaction with water and air to pull out dissolved solids ect... stay with me here.... The water and air from the pump goes into the skimmer and then what? it has two places to go. The bubbles rise and the skimmed water settles out the bottom of the skimmer. Well as the water has to flow downward you will get some turbulence. The cone helps with this some as the cone gets larger going down thus slowing the water flow going out. Plus as it narrows it helps concentrate the foam head. Well most of that water we see goes to the lowest point of pressure. The outside edge of the skimmer. And What Jon did with the VBT is allows that back pressure sort of speak to be released through the center of the bubble plate allowing a more gentle rise of bubbles upward. there is still turbulence inside the skimmer but with his design it has a chance to go inwards. I have seen this in action and it works. However, Does it really make the skimmer skim any better? I cant really say yes or no to that question. I have had so many other skimmers skim well with out a bubble plate. Like the WM s200. That thing is a skimming beast.
I have said this before, Its not just about how much air it pulls. Obviously that does help to a point. But its about balance. How much air/water it pulls, the design of the skimmer how easy it is to use, and how efficient it gets the job done. And to be totally honest I Don't really compare the ATB 840 to the warner marine skimmer. Different size bodies ect... the ATB 840 competition in my opinion is the bubble king mini 160. They are both very quiet. and both skim very well. THe bk has a Red dragon pump which is top notch. No arguments there I am sure. But the ATB pump acts much of the same way. Has a similar small bubble out put that everyone enjoys filling up the skimmer body. Both draw about the same amount of air and water, and they both target about same system sizes. The bubble king is a little thicker in material. It is built like a tank. No doubt about that. The ATB is just a little thinner but uses all the same material. Acrylic and PVC base plate ect... If I wanted a bubble king mini you would not be disappointed in my mind. But if you have the room with lower water level for your skimmer I would go with the ATB 840. I don't call it econo anymore as econo in my mind sounds cheap. There is nothing cheap about this skimmer. Ill post some nog shots over the next couple days.
Just for reference I feed twice a day. PC mysis or Rods during day and cyclopese, reefroids, or rods coral food at night. maybe a few pellets here and there as well.
Tank parameters
PH 8.3
nitrates trites and ammonia all 0
CA 440
DKH 9
MAG 1400
temp 78.5 +- .2
Mojo~
Similar threads
