Back in the hobby

VSpeck

VSpeck

Slash Smack Talker
Just stoping by to say hi. I have been out of the hobby for about a year. I just bought a 58gal and I'm in the process of setting it up and getting my equiptment together. a couple questions for you guys:
1. How are the tunze skimmers? I've never used them but i dont have much room in my sump and i dont want anything out side of the stand so i have room for up to the 9020 but i dont know how well they fair against te recirc skimmers but i like the small footprint. The only spots to put a skimmer in my sump is 11"x5" or 12"x6" any suggest are appriciated.

2. How are the hydor koralias? I like the price but was wondering how the quality is. The ones i saw was the #4 but it seemed like it was made kinda cheap. again any suggestions are welcome.

thanks for reading and any input


-Vic
 
Go used Tunze's if you cannot afford new ones, or get some mod kits for Maxijets... better flow and smaller too.
 
ati bubblemaser 160 :D cheaper and insanely small footprint.


oh, and the koralia.......eh eh. good pump. not cheaply made IMO. you have to try it before you decide if you like it. :lol: some people love them, some hate them. I'm half and half with them.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10995550#post10995550 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by JxMetal
ati bubblemaser 160 :D cheaper and insanely small footprint.


oh, and the koralia.......eh eh. good pump. not cheaply made IMO. you have to try it before you decide if you like it. :lol: some people love them, some hate them. I'm half and half with them.
Click to expand...

I like the Koralias, just kind of big in my opinion...
 
Yea i was thinking i would probably go with tunze's but i've seen those hydors everywhere and was wondering. i had maxijets in my other tanks but i dont like how the flow is in a small pattern. the maxi mods look cool but i'm not the diy guy. I like to buy things ready to drop in the tank. i guess i'm lazy like that... :lol:

i've read about the bubble masters too and i could fit one of those will it be enough for my tank? i want it to clean well and it says it will handle 160 gallons which is the max. i like to over power as much as possible.

also as far as lights i was thinking the 36" tek retro w/ 6 t5's i'm sure that will be enough light but what are your thoughts on those fixtures?
again thanks for all the quick reply's and suggestions
 
what are you keeping? coral-wise



The ati bubblemasters are extremely efficient since they have like a 3:1 air:water ratio or something like that. Mine's on a 58 with 30 sump extremely stocked. Over sized skimmers don't run at full efficiency. It can become difficult to get a full skimmate head going when the skimmer is built to handle more than it's being fed (poop).

I have video and pics of mine in another thread. Let me find them..
 
Here's a video -

http://youtube.com/watch?v=k-ser5w1rbs


Pics. This is all after 24 hours of being cleaned.

Photo_101307_001.jpg


Photo_101307_003.jpg


Photo_101307_002.jpg


My skimmate has never been this stinky. I cleaned it last week and it was about 3/4 full. It was probably the first time I almost threw up cleaning a skimmer.
 
as far as corals go it will be mixed reef i want sps at the top and some lps and clams. If i do softies i want them at the bottom i left some places that will shadow them. One of the tanks i had before was a 75 but i had 2 250w reef optix iii pendants and 6 65w pc bulbs on it i like alot of light. i dont want a chiller on this system though so i want to try t5's. i am new to t5's so i was wondering what you guys thought of the tek lights and do i need 6 or 8 bulbs.

the skimmer looks nice i think i will try one out.
 
tek lights are good. the 6 bulbs should be enough. The new ATI fixture are able to put out twice the PAR since the reflectors are less wide. They're still new, so there's not too much longterm statistics on them.

With this skimmer, the sump water level MUST be constant. A sectioned off area for the skimmer is a must.
 
whats up farmer? yea i had to come back. i had no choice its addicting! How is your tank doing? selling any equiptment?
 
Nevermind,

I just ordered one from DIYReef. Boy, My wife is going to kill me, but no more broken down DIY skimmer! Anyone in need of a Sedra 5000 NW?

VSpeck,

ReefGeek is on backorder but DIY Reef has one left in stock if your interested. I've been eyeing these skimmers for a while but the price kept me hesitant. However, with all the problems I've had lately with my DIY Skimmer I'm ready to move up to the Cadillac. Oh, this is going to be sweet. The footprint is small enough to keep it in-sump and still possibly have a small fuge
 
As for the Koralias,

I had 2 #2s that both tried to electrocute my take and ended up tripping the GFCI. Supposedly the issue was only with the 2's and 3's. I'm still waiting on replacements from Hydor. I've never had any issues with the Tunze nanos, I have two 2045s. I have however ordered a Koralia 1 for my frag tank.
 
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